New York, New York, United States
Senior professional with over 20 years of experience in operational risk identification and mitigation, trading and fund operations and administration, and client services. Strong communication and interpersonal skills and experience interacting with senior executives. Excellent time and project management skills and ability to motivate, train and mentor staff. Extensive knowledge of operational best practices and risks of investment in alternative investment vehicles gained from conducting hundreds of operational due diligence reviews including some of the industry’s largest and most complex investment managers.
* Conduct business and operational due diligence reviews on hedge fund, private equity, real estate, real asset and liquid alternative investments. Maintain primary responsibility for over 50 manager relationships across the U.S., Europe and Asia. * Perform desk reviews of manager and fund documents including offering documents, financial statements, policy and procedure manuals and regulatory filings. Evaluate and address issues identified in legal due diligence and background checks. * Lead onsite meetings and calls with existing and prospective investment managers, interfacing with COO, CFO, CCO and functional managers, participating in systems demonstrations and process walkthroughs, and reviewing meeting minutes. * Rate investment management firms based on risk and adherence to best practices in governance, regulatory and compliance, infrastructure, disaster recovery/business continuity, information security, trade processing and valuations. Proactively communicate issues with internal and external stakeholders throughout the diligence process.
* Conduct business and operational due diligence on a diverse range of alternative investment products (including hedge funds and fund of hedge funds) and strategies across North America and Europe for a $40 billion investment platform. * Review all manager and fund specific documentation including offering materials, service agreements, audited financial statements and regulatory filings. * Conduct onsite meetings with new and existing hedge fund investments, including interviews with senior management of the firm. * Present due diligence findings and recommendations to multiple product and investment committees.
Identify and assess risks and mitigating controls for alternative investment businesses including hedge funds, fund of funds, managed futures, real estate and private equity. Manage the review process and business partnership while supervising an audit team. Produce timely risk profiles, business summaries, audit reports and ad hoc management reports. Exhibit a strong understanding of corporate and regulatory policies and their business implications. * Manage a global audit team with members in New York, London and Hong Kong to ensure consistent monitoring and testing of a multi-billion dollar real estate business. * Pilot the use of multiple firm-wide audit programs including Fiduciary Oversight, Investment Management, Operation Risk and Risk Assessment and served as a subject matter expert on Operational Risk. * Selected from a group of 200 auditors to a ten member Improvement Committee charged with reviewing audit processes to identify best practices and increase efficiency, and present Senior Management with clear action plans. * Develop solid client relationships while maintaining independence and ability to work through significant audit issues. * Liaise with various control functions to ensure timely project execution and efficient workflow. * Highly regarded by Senior Management as a representative of audit to the business and noted for receiving positive feedback from both the clients and peers.
Interacted daily with Portfolio Managers, CFO’s and Controllers of multiple hedge funds. Understood client needs; coordinated new account start up process and trained clients on technology and reporting to provide superior service. Partnered with sales team in marketing of services to improve market share and generate new business. * Managed the start up of six new clients with a total of $3 billion in assets under management. * Doubled Goldman Sachs’ market share of a top 50 client by teaming with sales group. * Selected from a group of 80 to an eight member Efficiency Team charged with development, testing and implementation of new technologies to increase efficiencies and improve productivity. * Selected from a group of nine to Compliance Team charged with insuring representatives follow control procedures and comply with transparency rules. * Received from Senior Management direct feedback from top revenue clients on the quality and responsiveness of my service.