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[email protected] Chief Investment Officer / ai-cio.com/surveys 1 2018 Outsourced-CIO Survey Asset owners seek OCIO partnerships to navigate increasingly challenging conditions amid a growing lack of internal resources and the need for better risk management n 2018, our annual outsourced chief investment officer effort to handle larger portfolios, sometimes to add more account- (OCIO) survey shows institutional investors across the ability and take on more fiduciary responsibility. A growing trend that board have been working hard to find the right OCIO Russell Investments is seeing: some asset owners are adding internal partnershipsI to navigate increasingly challenging conditions. management structures to improve accountability. The key challenges for the year: a jump in the lack of internal “To improve risk management, institutional investors such as resources, even as the need for better risk management also Harvard Management Company are moving from a portfolio of climbs. A lack of internal resources was cited a “critical” reason for asset class sleeves to a model in which all members of the invest- outsourcing this year by 71% of respondents, up sharply from 58% ment team take ownership of the entire portfolio,” said Weeks, the year prior. Better risk management, meanwhile, was cited as “for example, near the end of the investment cycle, bond portfolio “critical” by 52% of respondents from 32% last year. managers gravitate toward high-yield bonds and equity managers That follows the trends of 2017, when OCIO services were key seek out the scarce companies that could grow when the economy to diversifying investments and helped to navigate returns through slows down.” the frothy waters of geopolitical risk.