Since the emergence of “Modern Portfolio Theory” and the “Capital Asset Pricing Model” in the late 1960s, institutional investors have taken a quantitatively driven approach to portfolio construction, looking to create portfolio diversification and obtain better risk-adjusted returns by balancing their asset-class exposures. This journey has seen several important advancements in thinking about how to optimally achieve desired results.
Funds that want to take the total portfolio approach first need to get the total portfolio view. To do that they not only need data – and lots of it – but a rock-solid understanding of exactly how they’re going to use it.
Towers Watson taps new talent for its think-tank
(Pictured: Sonja Lee)
Sonja Lee, Towers Watson’s marketing director in Australia, is to join the consulting firm’s prestigious ‘Thinking Ahead Group’ (TAG2.0), based in the UK, from early July.
In her new role, Lee will also be revisiting the skills she needed in her previous occupation in management consulting. She has been at Towers Watson for eight years but spent six years as a senior analyst at The Boston Consulting Group prior to that. She was also a consultant to the Sydney Paralympic Organising Committee.
Tim Hodgson, head of the Thinking Ahead Group said: “We are delighted that Sonja is joining the team. With a recent upgrade of our mission, we have several initiatives where she will add value.”
Hodgson recently described the role of TAG2.0 “to provoke the investment industry to change for the benefit of the end saver. Ultimately, TAG2.0 is about making the investment world a better place and it intends to expand its reach and drive more innovative solutions by continuing to work with other parts of the investment value chain such as asset owners, managers, policy makers and academics.”
TAG has links to many organisations, including other think-tanks around the world such as the Santa Fe Institute and (the original) Chatham House, which are less mainstream for the investment community.
Dianne Cleary will temporarily lead the Australian Marketing team. She has held several senior roles for professional services firms, including six years as marketing director for Towers Perrin.
