Who We Are:

AB is a leading global investment management firm that offers high-quality research and diversified investment services to institutional clients, individuals and private clients in major markets around the world. AB employs more than 500 investment professionals with expertise in growth equities, value equities, fixed income securities, Multi-Asset Solutions, and alternative investments, and, through its subsidiaries and joint ventures, operates in more than 20 countries. AB’s research disciplines include fundamental research, quantitative research, economic research and currency forecasting capabilities. Through its integrated global platform, AB is well-positioned to tailor investment solutions for its clients. AB also offers independent research, portfolio strategy and brokerage-related services to institutional investors.

What You'll Do:

We are seeking a Nashville, TN based Hybrid Associate Portfolio Manager / Risk Control Candidate who will work within the Multi Asset and Hedge Fund Solutions (“MA HFS”) Risk Management and Associate Portfolio Management Teams.  The primarily responsibilities are being part of the trade implementation team as well as enforcing the firm’s error management and operational excellence / risk framework within the MA HFS SBU.  The Portfolio Management Group (“PMG”) supports the Investment team in the implementation of portfolio strategy across client accounts.  The team is based in New York and Nashville and oversees the management of all Institutional client accounts and AB funds investing in AB’s Multi Asset Strategies.  Associate Portfolio Managers (APM’s) initiate equity, derivative and currency trades, interacting closely with Portfolio Managers and Traders, and monitor the portfolios on an ongoing basis.  APM’s develop a deep understanding of AB’s investment products and operational policies and procedures.

 

The candidate will partner with the areas involved to help them document and correct the error, identify the contributing process weaknesses, and agree on improvements to support our firm’s program of continuous improvement and risk reduction. The immediate focus of this role is error correction and reporting.  There is also significant emphasis on the identification, escalation, mitigation and prevention of further exposures. Lastly, this role works hand in hand with the Portfolio Implementation team.  There are many opportunities for this role and the “Associate Portfolio Manager - APM” role to overlap and depending on the skill set of the Risk Control Officer there are opportunities to cross train and help to support the MAS APM team This position will report to the Multi Asset Strategies Risk Manager.

Responsibilities include:

Portfolio Implementation:

Implementing investment decisions for separately managed accounts and funds

Day to day monitoring of portfolio positioning, trade executions, cash management and compliance with client guidelines.

Adjusting funds within a strategy to align with the manager’s targets.

Addressing client requests and managing events throughout the client’s lifecycle, such as cash flows, transitions, and account openings and closings.

Liaising with other departments internally, including Portfolio Management, Research, Legal and Compliance, Sales and Marketing, Trading, and Operations.

Project based initiatives related to process improvement and implementing new strategies.

Ability to assess current workflows and processes for ways to automate and improve manual processes.

Actively manage the error/incident resolution process objectively and in a timely manner for the MA & HFS business unit which involves:

Partner with portfolio managers, associate portfolio managers or MAS Trading to cover market exposure due to trading or client account errors

Coordinate calls between interested parties where necessary to conduct root cause analysis of material breaches in procedure

Escalation and notification to Sr. Management

Liaise with Client Servicing group regarding the impact to client accounts and with Fund Administration group regarding the impact to funds and establishing necessary levels of communication

Assist business and risk management with the development of remediation efforts

Work with senior risk management professionals to highlight significant areas of concern and required action.

Supporting the Risk Manager in error trend analysis and other operational risk projects which involves:

Collaborating with firm-wide error coordinators to share best practices

Lead projects to facilitate the implementation of risk mitigations

Partner with Regional Risk Managers to help on any global initiatives which impact the MAS account base.

i.e., SFDR

Assist in periodic reviews of Risk Maps with business partners

Identifying and monitoring Key Risk Indicators

Participating in various working groups and forums focused on managing operational risk

Streamline internal reporting

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What We're Looking For:

Bachelor’s degree

2-5 years relevant work experience, preferably with operational risk or process management

Strong project management skills

Highly analytical with a strong attention to detail

Superior communication and interpersonal skills in order to elicit consensus from senior managers in the firm

Self-starter with the ability to work both independently and in groups

Team player who is able to work in a global team

Intermediate level understanding of the financial markets

Knowledge of statistics & statistical analysis

Ideally basic coding skills in technologies such as Python and SQL

Advanced Excel/Powerpoint / Power BI skills

What makes this role unique or interesting (if applicable)?

This is an exciting opportunity for any person who enjoys process analysis, problem solving and continuous learning.  The position provides exposure to all departments within the buy-side business’, our multiple Vendors and senior management across the firm.  This role works directly with the Investment Teams, the MAS Trading team, technology, and many other operational business partners who support our account base.

What is the professional development value of this role, i.e. what learning and professional growth does the role offer the candidate?

Excellent opportunity to get a comprehensive view of Portfolio Management and Trading activities in an Investment Management firm, learn and understand how critical processes are performed and optimized, and how they fit together. This role can be a stepping stone for an Operational Risk Manager, Audit position or Associate Portfolio Manager (“APM”).

AB does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, religion, creed,  ancestry, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, citizenship status, sexual orientation, gender identity, military or veteran status or any other basis that is prohibited by applicable law.  AB’s policies, as well as practices, seek to ensure that employment opportunities are available to all employees and applicants, based solely on job-related criteria.