Investment management has emerged as one of the most fancied career options in recent times. With opportunities ranging from equity or fixed income analysts to portfolio management and private wealth, the sector is attracting both aspiring students as well as individuals looking for a career shift. 

But, where does one begin with? What are the skill sets required to make the cut? Can people from non-finance backgrounds get into the investment management profession? What are the range of opportunities available under investment management? These are some of the common questions. 

To address these queries, the CFA Institute in partnership with the businessline on Friday hosted a webinar on the theme ‘Charting a successful career in the investment management industry.’ The event was moderated by Parvatha Vardhini C, Editor of businessline Portfolio.

Arati Porwal, Country Head, India, CFA Institute, said the very term investment management includes individuals and institutions that manage other people’s wealth and therefore strong ethics and code of conduct are the foremost requisites of an investment manager. 

She further said, just like a doctor, an investment manager should also be sensitive to their clients’ needs, and be updated with the latest skills and knowledge of the industry. 

Rinda Lakshmi, Vice-President, Credit Manager, Northern Trust said, the investment management space offers a plethora of opportunities, especially in the areas of equity research, credit research and client-facing roles. She, however, added that people switching from other professions should be open to start with analyst roles as it provides the basic learnings of the industry. “Being open to different roles and taking up roles lesser to your current role is the theme I would go up with.”

Shagun Thukral, Senior Investment Professional & Adjunct Faculty said, most people think of equity research as the foremost option but there are plenty of opportunities, if not even more, available in the fixed income space. “We are reading a lot of private credit evolving in the alternative space. It’s a great time for someone to explore this area as people are setting up a lot of private credit funds in India,” she added. 

Thukral, who moved from the investment industry to academia, said aspirants should not be scared to reinvent themselves while making a career shift. 

In her turn, Jayashree Sathy, Managing Director, Head-Investment Analytics, State Street, said, that institutional investors were shying away from alternative asset classes post the 2008 global financial crisis due to liquidity and transparency challenges in the investment management space. She said this led to the emergence of ‘Managed Accounts Services’, which offers end-to-end investment management services from portfolio analysis to performance management. “The alternative investment pace globally is growing to trillions of dollars. In India also this space is growing. As the asset class grows, the career opportunity in this space will also be huge,” Sathy added. 

Emerging areas

Porwal said in addition to the regular curriculum, the CFA has also been expanding to cover emerging areas like data analytics, data sciences and environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) to equip the investment professionals with the latest industry needs.. “On the industry side, we are creating specialised pathways for private market and private wealth space at CFA Level 3 beginning 2025,” she added. 

Porwal, however, emphasised that ethics is the core of the investment management industry since the investment manager will be handling clients’ money. “Hence, ethics forms 15 per cent of our curriculum and is assessed with 15 per cent weightage.”  

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