About the job

Responsibilities

• Manage fund and mandate launches, closures and transition events, including custodian changes, name changes, in-specie transitions and benchmark changes.
• Project manage the end-to-end delivery of events, ensuring key milestones are achieved and operational risks are identified, managed and escalated appropriately.
• Coordinate communication with external stakeholders, including custodians, administrators, transition managers and, where appropriate, underlying clients.
• Maintain clear and effective communication throughout each event, ensuring all stakeholders are informed of progress, responsibilities and target completion dates.
• Manage the operational set-up of new funds, mandates and transition events across internal systems, including the establishment and maintenance of custodial accounts and system linkages.
• Work closely with Legal and relevant internal stakeholders to coordinate the review and completion of Investment Management Agreements
• Partner with Derivatives Administration teams to facilitate the establishment of trading agreements for derivative products.
• Ensure market openings for new clients are completed ahead of funding dates and that new market requests for existing clients are progressed within agreed timescales.
• Coordinate the review and approval of Operating Memoranda and Operational Service Level Agreements (SLAs), ensuring operational commitments are clearly understood and appropriately implemented.
• Provide direct client servicing for operational queries relating to the ongoing management of client accounts.
• Develop and maintain a strong understanding of internal processes, controls and procedures, as well as relevant regulatory and industry developments.
• Build and maintain effective working relationships across Operations, Legal, Investment, Trading, Technology and other relevant business functions.
• Develop strong relationships with external service providers, custodians, administrators, brokers and system providers.
• Ensure all activities are completed in accordance with established procedures and agreed SLAs.

Secondary Responsibilities

• Participate in departmental initiatives, projects and change programmes.
• Review existing systems, processes and procedures, identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, control and the overall client experience.
• Contribute to operational risk management initiatives and control activities as required.
• Support the wider team with additional operational and client servicing activities as required.

Skills and Experience

The successful candidate will ideally have:

• A degree or equivalent qualification, or a minimum of A-Level standard education combined with relevant experience in a client servicing or investment operations role.
• 1–2 years’ minimum experience within the buy-side, ideally in a client servicing, middle-office or operations environment.
• Relevant industry qualifications, such as the IMC or equivalent investment/financial services qualifications, would be desirable but are not essential.
• Strong knowledge of investment operations, particularly middle- and back-office functions, including settlements, confirmations, reconciliations, client reporting, performance, pricing and valuation, corporate actions and client guideline management.
• Experience working with financial and investment systems, such as SWIFT, TLM, Bloomberg, custodian platforms and portfolio accounting systems.
• Strong knowledge of investment products, including equities, fixed income, forwards, derivatives and alternative investments.
• A sound understanding of trading and investment principles.
• Experience liaising with brokers, custodians, fund administrators and other external service providers.
• Strong experience of both manual and automated reconciliation processes.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with stakeholders at all levels.
• Strong Microsoft Office skills.
• Additional European language skills would be advantageous.