The core tenets of our investment philosophy remain as relevant today as they were when we started Agility in 2007. We remain committed to a few simple ideas. Collaborative decision-making. Multi-manager, multi-asset class portfolio construction. Contrarian asset allocation. Rigorous due diligence on each investment. Underlying those simple tenets is a comprehensive, process-oriented approach that has achieved award-winning results.
At the heart of our investment approach is manager selection. We take pride in identifying and accessing what we believe are top-tier investment managers, many of whom are not household names. We travel around the world to meet with hundreds of managers each year, and only a small subset of those managers make it through our due diligence process. Prior to our making an investment, managers are scrutinized by our investment, operational due diligence, and risk management teams. The ongoing monitoring process is no less rigorous once the investment is made.
We believe long-term outperformance requires an active approach to asset allocation. Through our intensive research process, we form a view of the market environment and position our clients’ portfolios to take advantage of the opportunities we identify. We adjust asset class weightings and use other techniques, such as hedges and overlay strategies, to create what we believe is the optimal portfolio for the years ahead. While we have a long-term outlook, we recognize that markets change daily – sometimes meaningfully. During those periods of high volatility, we can reposition our clients’ portfolios to take advantage of any new opportunities.
We do not believe in a “one size fits all” approach to portfolio construction. We start by understanding the return goals, risk tolerance, and unique needs of each client. We then construct a portfolio designed to best meet those needs, with a prudent level of concentration that reflects our conviction. Portfolios reflect our “best ideas” across a variety of alternative and traditional investment strategies. Over a market cycle, we are proactive in shifting the asset allocation, underlying managers, and overall risk profile to adapt to different environments. During periods of market stress, we can look to be buyers when others are panicked or forced to sell – an advantage afforded by the long-term nature of our clients’ capital.
Risk management is a critical part of our investment process. Using both internal and external tools, we analyze a client’s portfolio as well as each underlying investment. Our proprietary “risk dashboard” provides a comprehensive assessment of the risk profile of a client’s portfolio. In addition to monitoring the overall portfolio, the risk management team is integrated into the due diligence process for each investment. The risk team also works closely with the operational due diligence team, ensuring that investments are scrutinized at multiple levels.