• Brings hedge fund leaders’ perspectives on the competitive advantage of having a diverse team
• Establishes D&I practices as a strategic senior management matter
• Provides 45 practical recommendations to enhance diversity and inclusion (D&I) in hedge funds

12^th November 2019, London: The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), supported by EY, has today published a new paper reflecting the heightened focus on D&I within the global hedge fund industry. The paper provides firms with actions they can take to improve the diversity of their workforce, create a culture of inclusion and compete with large financial institutions, technology firms and service providers for talent.

The paper comes as industry leaders increasingly recognise the competitive advantage that is found in a diverse workforce. More so than ever, firms need talent from a variety of backgrounds in order to harness diversity of thought, experience and perspectives—in all its guises—and look at the markets through different lenses.

Investors are also paying close attention to the D&I practices of the firms to which they allocate. Institutional investors have many reasons for this focus, including a belief that diversity and inclusion can lead to better decision making and therefore overall performance by countering the risk of groupthink.

The paper draws on members’ own perspectives to explain why D&I matters and to identify the advantages of diverse and inclusive teams. It highlights the range of career opportunities in hedge fund firms for curious and ambitious people of all backgrounds and tells the stories of prominent members of the industry who took less traditional routes to success.

The core of the paper is 45 actions hedge fund firms of all sizes can take to improve D&I, ranging from the recruitment process, to employee retention, to relations with external stakeholders. Those actions are broken into the following categories:

• Foundations
• Recruitment
• Retention
• Promotion
• External Relationships

It represents an important step in AIMA’s commitment to improving diversity and inclusion across the hedge fund industry.

Robyn Grew, Chair, AIMA Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group and Group COO of Man Group commented: “Our industry has always attracted pioneers, and hedge fund firms are staffed with people who refuse to accept the status quo. Our commitment is to provide the industry with practical resources, advice, role models and case studies to continue to build an inclusive culture.

This is an exciting industry with problems to solve and investors to serve. We hope that some of the stories told and examples given throughout this paper will help to open doors for the next generation of talent.”

AIMA CEO Jack Inglis commented: “Our industry must stay true to its meritocratic roots in order to continue delivering the performance investors expect. We at AIMA will continue to do our part to foster diversity and inclusion by using our global reach to convene broad coalitions of industry stakeholders to disseminate sound practice and raise awareness of the opportunities available in the industry to individuals from all walks of life.”

Diya Wilson, Wealth and Asset Management Partner at EY added: “The alternatives industry is well known for being dynamic and fast paced, and has always adapted nimbly to the ever-changing economic environment it operates in. As investors become more diverse themselves, it is important that the industry reflects this. This paper offers some excellent practical tips for small and large alternative asset managers to achieve their diversity objectives.”

ENDS

About AIMA

The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) works to grow the alternative investment industry to benefit the world’s economy, savers and investors. To achieve this, we strengthen the links between fund managers, investors, regulators and industry service providers.

Our thirty-year heritage means AIMA understands our members’ priorities, who access our resources to grow their businesses, create lasting connections using our events and benefit from the effect our advocacy work has on the environment in which they must operate. Since our formation the industry has grown by 60 times.

AIMA’s capacity to deliver local support across the globe has made us connected, knowledgeable and influential, and means our 2,000 members are now based in over 60 countries.

About EY

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In doing so, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

EY refers to the global organisation, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organisation, please visit ey.com.

This news release has been issued by EYGM Limited, a member of the global EY organisation that also does not provide any services to clients.

About the AIMA Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee:

The AIMA Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group is a manager-only initiative created in 2018 to direct AIMA’s work on promoting diversity and inclusion (D&I) in the alternative investment management industry. The Group is chaired by Robyn Grew, Group COO and GC of Man Group. Group membership is by invitation of the chair.

The Group has two primary goals:

• Expanding the diversity of the talent pool of the alternative investment management industry and enhancing the inclusiveness of the alternative investment management environment, by raising awareness of, and interest in, the industry amongst diverse audiences.
• Providing managers with practical resources to enable them to hire and retain a diverse workforce.

In order to support the Group in accomplishing those goals AIMA is currently talking to manager members to find out what D&I means to them, how D&I can be fostered, and how it affects the wider industry.

Notes to Editors:

Insights within this paper have been drawn from leading firms. Contributions include  Bridgewater Associates’ Eileen Murray on how Bridgewater has fostered an environment in which people succeed based on merit, Simon Ruddick, Chairman of Albourne Partners on his pledge to proactively address structural inequality in all guises and Elena Lieskovska on her journey from activist in Czechoslovakia to Partner and Head of European Financial Services at Värde Partners.

We would like to thank the following contributors:

• Alistair Rew, Global Head of Investech, Public Markets, AMP Capital; Founder and Leader, Cortex-Investech; Chair, AIMA Australia
• Caryn Maxwell-Smith, Director, Business Development and Investor Relations, Polar Asset Management Partners
• Donna Rix, General Counsel, Citadel Europe
• Eileen Murray, Co-Chief Executive Officer, Bridgewater Associates
• Elena Lieskovska, Partner and Head of European Financial Services, Värde Partners
• Isaac Mung, Execution Trader, Dymon Asia Capital
• Jessica Clark Barrow, Executive Vice President, Investor Relations, Waratah Capital Advisors
• Julia Whitfield, Director of Talent, Polar Asset Management Partners
• Kenneth Kan, Chief of Staff, Dymon Asia Capital
• Kirsten E. Voss, Senior Managing Director, Värde Partners
• Phillip Meyer, General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer, and Co-Chief Operating Officer, Oasis Capital
• Saadia Mujeeb, Global Head of Hedge Funds, Asset Managers, Prime Brokerage & CCPs Risk, NatWest Markets
• Simon Ruddick, Chairman, Albourne Partners
• Umran Akhtar, Managing Director, Phipps Bridge Consulting

We would also like to thank the members of the AIMA Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, AIMA’s Council and AIMA Executive:

• Robyn Grew, Chair, AIMA Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group; Group COO and General Counsel, Man Group; Member of AIMA’s Council
• Amanda Cherry, Director of Human Resources, Aspect Capital
• Elizabeth Keeley, Principal, Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel, Taconic Capital
• Jennifer Mernagh, Investment Strategist, Aberdeen Standard Investments; Member of AIMA’s Council
• Michelle Bedwin, Chief Compliance Officer, Coremont LLP
• Simon Elvidge, Board Director, EOS Investment Management
• Adam Jacobs-Dean, Managing Director, Global Head, Markets, Governance and Innovation, AIMA
• Max Budra, Associate, Markets, Governance and Innovation, AIMA
• Aniqah Rao, Analyst, Markets, Governance and Innovation, AIMA
• Jane Moran, Coordinator, Government Affairs, AIMA