🎥 Cerity Partners' Tom Cohn and Amita Schultes - combining an OCIO with a $100B wealth management practice

Welcome back to the Alt Goes Mainstream podcast.

Today’s episode dives into one of the most topical trends in the evolution of wealth management platforms and their adoption of private markets.

We are joined by Tom Cohn and Amita Schultes of Cerity Partners, where they discuss the recent combination of their two respective businesses, Cerity Partners, the $100B+ national wealth management firm, and Agility, a leading OCIO business.

Tom and Amita discuss their merger, why there was a need to create customization for wealth investors in private markets, and how bringing on a leading OCIO business takes Cerity Partners’ capabilities to a new level as a solutions provider in private markets.

Tom is the Chief Solutions Officer and a Partner in Cerity Partners’ New York office. He’s a member of the firm’s Leadership Team. He has over ten years of experience in various investment management roles, previously serving as an Investment Analyst at Spero-Smith Investment Advisors, where he was responsible for due diligence and analysis of third-party managers and assisted in global market and asset allocation research.

Amita is a Partner in Cerity Partners’ New York office, managing Cerity Partners’ OCIO client portfolios. She’s a member of the OCIO Investment Committee. Amita brings over 20 years of experience as an investment consultant to bear to the firm. Before joining Cerity Partners, Amita was a Partner and Client Portfolio Manager at Agility, where she served as a voting member of Agility’s Investment Committee. Prior to Agility, she was a Partner, Managing Director, and Senior Consultant at Colonial Consulting, serving as an investment consultant for endowments, foundations, and pension plans. She also served as a Senior Consultant at Ibbotson Associates.

Tom, Amita, and I had a fascinating discussion. We covered:

* The why and the how behind Cerity Partners’ merger with Agility.

* How wealth management platforms can balance customization and scalability.

* Why scale matters in wealth management.

* How alternative asset managers can differentiate when engaging with the wealth channel.

Thanks Tom and Amita for coming on the show to share your views and wisdom on wealth management and private markets.

Clip #1: Why did Cerity Partners decide to look externally to build OCIO capabilities rather than build in-house?

Clip #2: Marrying an OCIO practice with a wealth management practice.

Clip #3: Do wealth clients look at having an OCIO capability as something differentiated?

Clip #4: What are the things you look for when evaluating a fund manager?

A word from AGM podcast sponsor, Ultimus Fund Solutions

This episode of Alt Goes Mainstream is brought to you by Ultimus Fund Solutions, a leading full-service fund administrator for asset managers in private and public markets. As private markets continue to move into the mainstream, the industry requires infrastructure solutions that help funds and investors keep pace. In an increasingly sophisticated financial marketplace, investment managers must navigate a growing array of challenges: elaborate fund structures, specialized strategies, evolving compliance requirements, a growing need for sophisticated reporting, and intensifying demands for transparency.

To assist with these challenging opportunities, more and more fund sponsors and asset managers are turning to Ultimus, a leading service provider that blends high tech and high touch in unique and customized fund administration and middle office solutions for a diverse and growing universe of over 450 clients and 1,800 funds, representing $500 billion assets under administration, all handled by a team of over 1,000 professionals. Ultimus offers a wide range of capabilities across registered funds, private funds and public plans, as well as outsourced middle office services. Delivering operational excellence, Ultimus helps firms manage the ever-changing regulatory environment while meeting the needs of their institutional and retail investors. Ultimus provides comprehensive operational support and fund governance services to help managers successfully launch retail alternative products.

Visit www.ultimusfundsolutions.com to learn more about Ultimus’ technology enhanced services and solutions or contact Ultimus Executive Vice President of Business Development Gary Harris on email at [email protected].

We thank Ultimus for their support of alts going mainstream.

Show Notes

00:00 Introduction to our Sponsor, Ultimus Fund Solutions

02:05 Introducing Today's Guests, Tom Cohn and Amita Schultes

07:35 Cerity Partners and Agility Merger Details

08:24 Client Services at Cerity Partners

09:39 OCIO and Wealth Management Synergies

10:52 Why Cerity Partners Chose to Partner

11:36 The Importance of Cultural Alignment

13:33 The Role of OCIO in Wealth Management

15:17 Cerity Partners' Approach to Private Markets

16:56 Operational Excellence in Private Markets

18:06 Research and Due Diligence in Manager Selection

19:32 Institutional vs. Wealth Management Clients

21:22 Complementary Insights from Institutional and Wealth Management

23:05 Unified Research Platform

28:57 Access and Customization in Client Solutions

30:56 Scalability and Customization in Private Markets

32:38 Structuring Customization with Scalability

33:05 Educational Component in Client Investments

33:21 Framework for Custom Portfolios

33:55 Resource Allocation for Customization

34:07 Niche Opportunities and Large Teams

34:32 Enhancing Client Relationships with OCIO

34:48 Negotiating Fees and Structuring Solutions

35:03 Next Innovation in Investment Solutions

35:24 Turnkey Solutions for Operational Complexities

36:26 Model Portfolios and Unique Strategies

37:25 Combining OCIO and Wealth Management Practices

38:23 Innovations in Structuring Solutions

38:45 Workflows in Private Markets

39:31 Client Experience and Technology Integration

40:30 Importance of Definitions in Private Markets

40:58 Private Capital and Real Assets

42:06 Relaying Information and Expectations

42:42 Role and Goal of Investments

43:03 Evolution of Alternatives and Private Markets

45:13 Partnerships and Mergers at Cerity Partners

48:08 Evaluating Managers: Art and Science

50:11 Trust and Long-term Partnerships

52:28 Manager's Edge and Structural Benefits

54:49 Training and Mentoring in Manager Selection

57:21 Challenges and Opportunities for Managers

59:31 Favorite Alternative Investments

01:02:28 Closing Remarks and Final Thoughts

Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant.

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