PORTFOLIO MANAGER - FIXED INCOME

The Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) is seeking a Portfolio Manager to play a crucial role on the Fixed Income (Interest Rate Sensitive) Team. The Portfolio Manager will support the Deputy CIO in managing and trading the Interest Rate Sensitive portfolio and over time provide assistance with the management and oversight of the Credit Portfolio which includes investments in Private Credit, Distressed Debt and other credit investments. The portfolio manager will focus on legal contract oversight, performance measurement calculations, quarterly conference calls, and at the discretion of the Deputy CIO participate in on sight diligence meetings including Private Credit annual limited partner meetings.

Essential activities:

1. Primary oversight of the Interest Rate Sensitive asset class including portfolio management and trading responsibility for the approximately $2 billion internal investment grade fixed income portfolio; conducting investment research on various sectors of the investment grade market to determine the appropriate positioning relative to the assigned benchmark and executing open market trades with approved broker/dealers to optimally position the portfolio.
2. Assistance with the management and oversight of the Credit asset class including primary due diligence and monitoring roles for select Credit partnerships. The Fixed Income Manager also assists in the identification of new investment ideas in Credit and conducts due diligence on potential externally managed opportunities across private debt, distressed debt, structured credit and other opportunistic strategies; including a comprehensive review of the investment and operational process, negotiating fund level economics, working with external legal counsel to review all fund terms and presenting attractive opportunities to the internal asset class committee.
3. Management of the ASRS securities lending program including daily monitoring the program is in compliance with the securities lending authorization agreement, periodic reporting on the status of the program, and primary responsibility for negotiating legal terms and portfolio guidelines within legal contracts.

The ideal candidate will have:

Academic

• Relevant Bachelor’s or Master’s degree

Certification

• CFA and/or FRM, or other appropriate professional investment designation or progress towards designation

Experience

• 7+ years of experience related to capital or private markets and institutional portfolio management

Other Skills

• Experience trading on platforms such as TradeWeb, Market Axess, Bloomberg, or other EMS
• Experience with portfolio management software such as Bloomberg EMSX, Charles River, Blackrock Aladdin, or other similar portfolio management platforms.
• Experience using Risk Management Platforms such as MSCI Barraone, BlackRock Aladdin, Axioma, etc.
• Preference for experience in leveraged finance markets
• Highly organized with exceptional attention to detail
• Ability to work both independently and with a team
• Creativity and problem solving skills
• Excellent Microsoft Office skills
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills