Director of Total Fund Research Position Available In Leon, Florida

Director of Total Fund Research Florida State Board of Administration – 4.1 Tallahassee, FL Job Details Full-time $143,600 – $204,400 a year 2 days ago Qualifications Investment Investment management Microsoft Excel Doctoral degree Trading R 11+ years Research Master’s degree Financial Mathematics Jupyter Analysis skills Bachelor’s degree Accounting Risk management Data science Senior level Associate’s degree Chartered Financial Analyst Communication skills Python SDLC Actuarial Science Full Job Description Responsibilities The Director of Total Fund Research assists the Senior Investment Policy Officer with investment research and analysis. The main areas of research focus include total fund and asset class investment strategies, asset allocation, investment policy, asset/liability management, risk management, market structure evolution, conditional risk/return expectations, and business cycle analysis. The Director of Total Fund Research works closely with Investment Policy & Asset Allocation staff and senior staff and reports to the Senior Investment Policy Officer. The Director of Total Fund Research will maintain an awareness of cutting-edge research findings, theories, and techniques by analyzing written publications and conversing with academics, consultants, economists, and investment strategists. With the benefit of this knowledge, they will utilize their advanced quantitative skills in statistical modeling, optimization, numerical methods etc., to produce high quality research and analyses specifically germane to the SBA in the topics listed above and further elaborated upon below. The successful candidate will be comfortable utilizing commercial analytical tools/software when expedient, and self-developed solutions when not. Investment Policy & Strategic Asset Allocation Research Studies the long-run drivers of asset classes’ risk and return; develops and implements models for estimating factor/risk premia Establishes internal capital market assumptions and tracks third parties’ capital market assumptions Participates and assists in activities such as asset liability studies and actuarial studies to determine their investment policy implications, and develops any resulting recommendations for investment policy and benchmarking changes, if necessary Understands and explains to oversight groups the implications of economic and actuarial projections on the current structure of the FRS Pension Plan and FRS Investment Plan Risk Management & Total Portfolio Implementation Research Develops and implements appropriate metrics for quantifying total fund leverage and ensures compliance with total fund leverage policies Presents and recommends strategies for managing cash inflows and outflows (i.e., contributions, Deferred Retirement Option Program payments, capital calls, etc.) Helps develop and monitor risk budgets; makes and presents risk budget recommendations to oversight groups Makes asset allocation, work plan and investment strategy implementation recommendations to senior staff and senior oversight groups Tactical & Dynamic Asset Allocation Research Develops tactical/dynamic asset allocation and rebalancing strategies to capture relative value opportunities, minimize transaction costs and adjust risk exposures Applies rigorous backtesting and validation regimes to possible tactical/dynamic strategies (i.e. walkforward validation, cross-validation, etc.) Fostering of Institutional Memory, Resiliency and Efficiency Documents research findings through the authorship of scholarly papers (for an internal audience) that demonstrate a commitment to a high standard of rigor Participates in the creation and development of quantitative reporting and decision-making models and tools and utilizes current tools and platforms to support research and monitoring efforts Tests and documents analytical models and tools Acts as an advisor to senior leaders on organizational and strategic objectives; assist in formulating, implementing, and monitoring progress toward a departmental strategic plan Evaluates unit/department operations annually and assists the department’s senior leader and/or Budget Manager to in formulating a budget that will meet anticipated needs Completes expense reports and provides supporting documentation per established policies and procedures Conserves department resources by efficiently utilizing time, equipment and supplies Effectively supervises junior staff while ensuring a satisfactory level of cross-training, responsibility coverage and progress in knowledge & skill development Communication & Collaboration Presents research results and recommendations to senior staff and oversight groups Assists in the preparation of oversight groups’ meeting materials as needed Qualifications Eleven years of related experience. A postsecondary degree may be used as an alternative for years of direct experience; 2 years for an associate’s degree, 4 years for a bachelor’s degree, 6 years for a master’s degree, 7 years for a professional degree, or 9 years for a doctoral degree.

Preferences:

A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in accounting, finance, business, engineering, actuarial science, economics, mathematics, financial mathematics or a related field A master’s degree from an accredited college or university in accounting, finance, business, engineering, actuarial science, economics, mathematics, financial mathematics or a related field Experience in investment research, performance measurement and investment analytics, asset allocation, multi-asset class investment management, or investment risk management Experience writing investment related research papers Experience building financial models and tools Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) credential Financial Risk Management (FRM) credential Experience with modern data science tooling (i.e. Python, R, Jupyter Notebooks, etc.) Familiarity with seminal theories in financial economics Experience with advanced econometric techniques and/or techniques in time series analysis Experience creating and deploying work product in a software development life cycle (SDLC) context

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices Knowledge of institutional fiduciary investment policy formation and execution Knowledge of equity, fixed income and cash like investments and investment strategies Knowledge of the use and trading of derivatives and swaps Knowledge of private market investments Knowledge of investment related market and operational risks Advanced knowledge and use of Microsoft Excel Strong analytical skills Ability to learn and use analytical systems and software Ability to manage multiple projects and processes simultaneously Ability to exercise initiative and independent judgment Ability to conduct research, compile data, and present results in an articulate and useful manner, with high attention to detail

Hiring Range:

$143,600 – $204,400 The State Board of Administration is an Equal Opportunity Employer Successful completion of a pre-employment background check is a condition of employment with the State Board of Administration