Senor Associate – Strategic Asset Allocator/External Funds - Public Markets - SWF

Overview

• We are partnering with a leading sovereign wealth investor to hire a Senior Associate into its Public Markets team.
• This is a strategic asset allocator seat: the core of the role is selecting, appointing and overseeing best-in-class external fund managers across global public markets, rather than managing positions actively on a day-to-day basis.
• The mandate is built around long-term, strategic allocation of capital through external managers.
• You will help decide which managers earn the institution's capital, why, and at what size, then monitor that conviction over time.
• If you enjoy manager due diligence, allocation decisions and patient, research-led oversight more than running a trading book, this will suit you.
• The role
• Reporting to the Head of Public Markets, you will support the full external manager lifecycle across equities, fixed income, liquid alternatives and multi-asset strategies.
• What you will focus on:
• Mapping the investable external manager universe across asset classes, styles and geographies using databases, consultant networks, conferences and industry contacts.
• Screening strategies on performance, risk, factor exposures, drawdowns, liquidity, capacity and fees to shortlist managers for deeper due diligence.
• Leading qualitative and quantitative due diligence, including meetings with portfolio managers, analysts and risk officers, to assess philosophy, process, portfolio construction, alpha drivers and team stability.
• Applying analytics to distinguish genuinely active, skilled managers from market beta, and testing whether fees and compensation are justified.
• Coordinating operational and risk due diligence with risk, legal and compliance teams.
• Preparing manager selection reports and investment memos, and presenting hire / retain / redeem recommendations to investment committees.
• Negotiating mandate terms, fees, performance structures, liquidity terms and side letters to align manager incentives with the institution's objectives.
• Monitoring appointed managers against benchmarks and peers, maintaining conviction ratings, and supporting rebalancing and allocation sizing decisions.
• What we are looking for:
• 5–7 years in public markets investing, with a clear emphasis on external manager selection, including Hedge Funds, oversight and monitoring (from a pension fund, consultant, family office, SWF or asset manager).
• Demonstrable hedge fund and liquid alternatives manager selection experience is important for this mandate.
• A genuine orientation toward long-term, strategic allocation through external funds rather than active, day-to-day position management.
• Strong manager research depth: the ability to judge whether a manager's past results are repeatable.
• Solid quantitative evaluation skills across performance, factor/style and risk analysis.
• Structured decision-making, sound risk awareness and the judgement to make clear hire/retain/terminate calls.
• Confident written and verbal communication, with the ability to defend recommendations to investment committees.
• CFA or an advanced degree in finance, economics or a related field.
• High integrity, a fiduciary mindset and an entrepreneurial, self-starting approach.
• What is on offer:
• A high-visibility seat with one of the region's most respected institutional investors, direct exposure to senior decision-makers and global external managers, and a long-term, conviction-led approach to public markets investing, based in Dubai.