Fixed Income Portfolio Manager 2

Job Title: Fixed Income Portfolio Manager 2
Employee Status: Regular
Schedule: Full-time
Location: Hybrid from Westfield Center, OH

About Us:
You're ready to make your mark where people care about each other. Where your work is meaningful. And where your unique perspectives are welcome. Think about joining Westfield, a company focused on what's most important - the people behind our policies.  

Westfield was founded in 1848 by a small group of hard-working farmers who believed in the promise of the future and the power of the individual. Today, as one of the nation's leading property and casualty (P&C) companies, we remain true to their vision and are dedicated to making a positive difference in our customers' lives.

Responsibilities :

• Works on all projects assigned by the Chief Investment Officer.
  • Takes responsibility, works diligently, and provides desired deliverables in a timely and professional manner. Makes well-researched decisions based on frameworks with proven fundamentals.
  •  Builds reliable work processes, models, and systems based on strong analytical foundation. Back tests processes, models and systems to prove its validity and reasonableness.
  • Adheres to CFA Institute's Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct. Fits in a team that emphasizes a culture of trust, integrity, accountability, excellence, and fiduciary responsibility.
• Co-develops the portfolio investment objectives and strategy with the the Chief Investment Officer and the Investment Committee.
  • Evaluates portfolio objectives and current investment strategy in order to assess suitability of benchmarks, risk tolerances, and effectiveness of portfolio policy and investment guidelines.
  • Identifies and escalates concerns and/or suggestions for improving investment performance measurement, benchmarking, and reporting.
  • Works with the Chief Investment Officer, the Investment Committee, and business owners to formalize changes to portfolio strategy and reporting.
• Works with the Chief Investment Officer and Investment Committee to define the sub-asset class allocation that is optimal for each portfolio. Responsible for full life-cycle of investments, including sub-asset class research, portfolio construction, trading, and attribution.
  • Participates in team strategy discussions. Prepares and presents analysis on assigned sub-asset classes, including fundamental investment security analysis, credit, issuer, or interest rate analysis in support of recommendations.
  • Monitors market activity throughout the day, including analysis of market news, issuer and credit spreads, and discussions with industry peers and selected brokers. Monitors domestic and world situations, analyzing their effect on investments to ensure the successful management of portfolios.
•  Determines security selection within asset-class assignment(s).
  • Assesses the future expected value of securities and their return patterns.
  • Employs multiple valuation methodologies, including discounted cash flow, concentrating on a company's ability to generate free cash flow, earn high returns on capital, and allocate capital efficiently, as well as assessing market expectations for company performance.
  • Conducts duration, convexity analysis on securities and impacts on the portfolio. Assesses yield spreads and changes in spreads.
  • Analyzes financial information to forecast business, industry, and economic conditions for use in making investment decisions.
  • Applies competitive strategy frameworks, disruptive/sustaining innovation, diffusion of innovation, increasing return economics, etc.
  • Builds and maintains industry and company-specific models with the goal of understanding the economic drivers of a business.
  • Monitors projected cash (income, excess premium, trading cash, etc.), identifies specific security-level investment decisions, and determines timing of purchases.
  • Generates orders and communicates to brokers for execution. Monitors executions and allocates trades, as appropriate, based on pre-defined allocation requirements.
• Monitors, analyzes, reviews, and reports on performance returns, attribution, and risk reporting metrics.
  • Prepares and discusses monthly performance results, and rationale for portfolio management decisions made and proposed with the Chief Investment Officer, including purchases, sales, income variance, etc.
  • Continuously analyzes securities in the organization's investment portfolio. Conducts economic studies to maintain up-to-date information on holdings and recommends additional purchases, sales, or exchanges. Monitors positions in assigned sleeves based on the latest economic or market news and escalates risks to the Chief Investment Officer as necessary. Identifies/monitors factor exposures and event risks; recommends and implements systematic controls (where possible) or manual controls.
  • Works with the role related Investment Analyst to identify and evaluate new investment insights and provide a written and verbal presentation to the Finance Committee, the Chief Investment Officer, or the Investment Committee as appropriate.
  • Provides regularly scheduled and newly assigned reports to the Chief Investment Officer and the Investment Committee.
  • Reviews performance measurement and attribution analysis generation by the Investment Operations Analyst.
  • Manages broker relationships. Provides reports to the Chief Investment Officer and Investment Committee on broker commission payments versus budget, including reasons for variances. Contributes to the annual trading cost analysis and annual assessment of approved broker listings.
  • Analyze securities in a loss position quarterly and produce a rationale and recommendation on whether it should be impaired or not.
•  Supports the management reporting process as requested to ensure high-quality decision support.
  •  Presents sector reviews and security holding updates to the Investment Committee.
  •  Periodically lead economic and market outlook discussion at the Finance Committee.
  • Periodically present other reports as required such as those related to ERM, Liquidity, etc.
  • Works on the annual planning process to develop the budget. Provides regular updates to the forecast as the year progresses or new information becomes available.
•  Serves as a peer mentor on the investment team, specifically mentoring and coaching the Portfolio Manager 1 or role related Investment Analyst.
•  Annually or as required participate in calls with regulators and external auditors to review portfolio actions, OTTI and other potential investment portfolio impacts.
• Supports data quality initiatives as appropriate in support of the investment decision-making process.
• Participates in periodic assessments of third-party sub-advisors, custodians, brokers, and technology providers.
• Monitors new technology in support of the investment process. Becomes a skilled user in all investment technology as requested by the Chief Investment Officer.
•  Attends one, non-broker sponsored industry events per year. Provides a verbal debrief to the Investment team.
• May perform talent management responsibilities including employee selection, performance management, coaching, and development. Manages priorities and workload distribution, and removes barriers that impede progress. Completes all personnel, salary administration, and reporting duties. Performs operational responsibilities that drive team performance including planning, execution, process improvement and best-practice sharing.
• Travels occasionally in order to perform special assignments, training, and/or travel between office locations.

Qualifications: 

• CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) or MBA required in addition to specific experience requirement:
  • Fixed Income Portfolio Manager 2: 10 years of current and relevant experience as a Fixed Income Portfolio Manager or a Fixed Income Analyst.
  • Equity Portfolio Manager 2: 10 years of current and relevant experience as an Equity Portfolio Manager or an Equity Analyst.
  • Alternatives Portfolio Manager 2: 10 years of current and relevant experience as an Alternatives Portfolio Manager or an Alternatives Analyst.
• Excellent trading skills with experience synthesizing real-time economic data. Strong analytical and critical thinking skills, and ability to leverage financial data to make high quality decisions.
• Proficient user of office productivity tools, including Excel, Word and Powerpoint to develop reliable work processes, models, and systems, and present their results.
• Proficiency in Bloomberg (or similar investment software) and experience with and knowledge of Insurance, ERISA, and Banking Investment Regulations.
• Understanding of portfolio performance measurement, financial modeling, and Modern Portfolio Theory.
• Valid driver's license and a driving record that conforms to company standards.
• Physical  essential functions: ability to work 40 hours in an office environment (sitting, standing, on a computer, etc.), operate office related technology (computer, phone, etc.), travel as required.

Westfield offers a Total Rewards program that focuses on compensation, benefits and wellness, and includes perks like 401(k), pension plan, annual incentive, education reimbursement, flex-time, onsite fitness center or gym reimbursement and casual dress. Work/life balance, recognition, and learning and career development are all part of a rewarding career with Westfield. 

Learn more about current opportunities at www.westfieldinsurance.com/careers.

We are an equal opportunity employer/minority/female/disability/protected veteran.

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