In the latest in our series, Portfolio Adviser hears from senior vice president – business development & client services John Griffith (pictured right)
Which asset classes and strategies do you anticipate intermediary clients focusing on in 2022?
Sustainable investing has become mainstream during the pandemic – however, we are only at the beginning of the evolution, whereby sustainable investment principles become a core part of all our investment strategies. Will the term ‘environmental, social and governance’ (ESG) carry such weight in, say, five years’ time? One of the next phases in this evolution will see investors looking to identify strategies that can demonstrate the economic impact of applying sustainable principles, ensuring at the same time we do not sacrifice the alpha that comes with active investing.
The strategy receiving the most interest from investors right now is our listed infrastructure strategy, which has sustainable investing and impact at its core.
Should end investors – and by association, asset managers – be thinking beyond equity and bond investments? Towards what?
Yes – although the regulatory requirement for daily liquidity can make this challenging. This liquidity requirement leads end-investors back to equity and bond products. Notwithstanding this, there are many equity and bond products one can access that have a more long-term focus, but still offer the liquidity required.
Given client and regulatory charges, how is your business delivering value for money to intermediaries and end-clients?
As a boutique asset manager, we have always been very client centric – we have to be. To this end, we are always looking to balance cost reductions for our clients and creating value-added investment opportunities.
We are mindful the regulatory requirements, and their inevitable costs, are always increasing. Therefore, our investment team is always seeking to create value-added outcomes for our clients’ net of these regulatory costs.
“Impactful strategies are the best alpha opportunity we are likely to see over the next 20 to 30 years”
How much of your distribution is currently oriented towards ESG issues and sustainable investing? How do you see this evolving?
We are pioneers in ESG investing and have been promoting sustainable investing principles for more than 20 years – not that anyone referenced ESG in those days – and since mid-2019, we have seen our pipeline shift almost exclusively to these strategies.
We are in the nascent stages of a process that demands ESG factors are taken into consideration, to full ESG integration, and finally investing in impactful strategies because they are the best alpha opportunity we are likely to see over the next 20 to 30 years.
In what ways do you think the experience of lockdown has permanently affected or changed the asset management sector?
Asset management has always been a results-driven industry – and this is easy to measure. The pandemic has proven this can still be achieved with a blended work/life balance. The 8am to 6pm model does not suit everyone’s circumstances and we will maintain our shift towards a blended working life – which ultimately delivers better outcomes for clients.
How do you plan to balance face-to-face and virtual distribution? Have you identified aspects where one is especially better (or worse) than the other?
The jury is still out. We will continue to work with Zoom and Teams, but something is missing from the interaction you would have had with clients and prospects in a face-to-face meeting – and on the way to the elevator from a meeting. This is a people business, and human interaction is important – and that cannot be replaced by a video call. I might be just showing my age, though!
“Goal-focused tasks have come to the fore and the way we achieve them is personal to us all”
Have you managed a staycation or to get abroad in the last few months? Whereabouts and how was it?
Our restrictions – we are based in Dublin – were somewhat different from those of the UK. I managed to get to Santorini for a week with my wife, thinking this might be a nice ‘quiet time’ to visit – I was wrong. Cruise ships peppered the bay you can see behind me in the photo – but it was nonetheless a beautiful place.
What aspects of your own lockdown routine do you expect to continue with as people migrate back to office-working?
First, the blended routine of three days in the office and two working from home. Second, I like starting work early, but want to be able finish earlier to pursue my hobbies in the evening time – the elusive work/life balance!
More generally, what are you expecting from ‘the new normal’?
As mentioned, I think the goal-focused tasks have come to the fore, and the way we achieve them is personal to us all. That freedom and trust should be part of the ‘new normal’.
