Asset managers that have a high percentage of women on their investment teams outperform gender-diversity laggards by 45 basis points, a report from Willis Towers Watson found.
That figure, highlighted on International Women’s Day, points to higher annual net returns for investment teams in the top quartile of gender diversity compared with funds in the lowest diversity quartile.
The biggest delta is in equity strategies, with a 46-bp difference, and the lowest was in credit, at 14 bps, according to WTW. The firm arrived at those figures by examining data provided by eVestment for a total of 543 products with at least a five-year performance record through 2022. It also included diversity data on more than 1,500 strategies, which were provided by asset managers that responded to a questionnaire from WTW.
“There has undoubtedly been progress made on diversity by many asset managers in recent years, but the fact is that the pace of change at an industry level is still slow and disappointing,” said Chris Redmond, head of manager research at WTW. “We are hopeful that the truly extraordinary investment performance benefits linked to superior diversity can serve as a catalyst for acceleration.”
While 80% of asset managers have formal diversity, equity and inclusion policies, only about half as many (42%) have any measurable objectives in those policies, WTW found. Additionally, just over half (51%) of managers have diversity initiatives designed to help attract senior-level staff. Some 40% measure pay gaps for gender and ethnicity but not other areas of diversity, according to the report.
While 84% track gender diversity and 72% track ethnicity diversity within their companies, only 31% did so for disability status, nationality (28%), sexual orientation (21%), socioeconomic standing (10%) and neurodiversity (6%).
Vanilla is extending its estate planning tech to Callan Family Office's ultra-high-net-worth business, while WealthFeed's organic growth engine will now be available to roughly 100 advisors at The Mather Group.
“We are helping families take an important first step toward building a financial foundation for the next generation,” said Franklin Templeton CEO Jenny Johnson
Richard Brothers Financial Advisors joins the fee-only RIA, adding its first Maine office and $240 million in client assets
Cleveland RIA grows to $68 billion in assets as Philadelphia team, deepening its high-net-worth and retirement-plan practice.
Financial planning leaders say unresolved rules on fees, Roth conversions and financial aid complicate comparisons with 529 plans.
Dan Biagini of American Equity says the steady decline of pensions, longer lifespans and a reset in interest rates are rewriting how advisors build retirement income
Direct indexing is on pace to outgrow ETFs and mutual funds. Northern Trust's Ken Lassner explains why the advisors who get it wish they had started sooner.
