Job Openings at Allan Gray Proprietary Limited

Job Summary

• The Allan Gray Institutional development team is an environment where growth is encouraged and individuals who display initiative; willingness to learn and stretch themselves are given the opportunity to do so; the acquisition of new skills, both business and technical, is supported wholeheartedly. 
• The team is currently around 80 members, covering a range of skills and responsibilities including Business Analysts, Application developers, Reporting/Integration developers, Testers and IT Operations. This team is responsible for the systems that support Allan Gray’s asset management function. There is plenty of opportunity to learn about the asset management industry and technology. 
• We are looking for a developer with 2+ years of experience to join a team responsible for developing new solutions and supporting the existing systems in a challenging business environment. 
• Our web applications follow a microservices approach where the backend services are built primarily of RESTful API’s using .NET Core whilst our frontends are written as ReactJS single page applications.  
• Our previous generation of desktop applications were built using WPF and WinForms. 
• Our ideal candidate is highly autonomous, detail-oriented, and possesses strong written and verbal communication skills.

Job Responsibilities

• Interact with business users, Business Analysts and other Developers to understand new requirements. 
• Write technical specifications and develop new functionality to Allan Gray standards and deadlines. 
• Participate in design and planning sessions. 
• Understand how our existing systems work, how they fit into the overall architecture, and what they achieve for the business. 
• Analyse issues reported by users and track down their cause through debugging techniques and discussion with other team members. 
• Testing and deploying code changes.

Key Attributes and Competencies

• A positive attitude, willing to learn, shows curiosity. 
• Attention to detail and quality. 
• Willingness to take initiative and responsibility. 
• Ability to meet deadlines and deal with pressure. 
• Ability to work effectively as part of a diverse team and cross-train with team members. 
• Strong analytical & mathematical skills. 
• Good communication. 

Experience

• Experience with any of the following would be advantageous: 
• Microservices. 
• Docker and Kubernetes. 
• Message queueing technologies (e.g. RabbitMQ). 
• Event driven architecture. 
• Cloud (preferably AWS). 

Requirements

• 2+ years' experience in systems design and coding in Microsoft .NET, .NET Core, C#, C++, Java or JavaScript. 
• Proficiency in a database technology such as SQL Server or PostgreSQL. 
• Knowledge of software engineering practices for the full software development life cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes and testing. 
• Experience interacting with business users to understand requirements and manage the implementation of system changes. 
• Experience with any of the following would be advantageous: 
• Microservices. 
• Docker and Kubernetes. 
• Message queueing technologies (e.g. RabbitMQ). 
• Event driven architecture. 
• Cloud (preferably AWS)

Qualifications

• Degree or diploma in an analytical, quantitative field such as computer science, engineering, business science or similar. 
• Candidates should demonstrate a track record of achievement in the top 25% of their peer group

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Purpose of the role

• Our Client Service Centre is integral to our service offering for clients and independent financial advisers. As an Investment Service Consultant, your purpose will be to build clients’ and advisers’ trust and confidence through providing world-class service.
• Our consultants do impactful work by empowering our clients on their investment journey. You will gain in-depth knowledge of Allan Gray's range of products and develop the necessary skills to confidently communicate with and educate our clients.

Job Responsibilities

• Provide excellent service to investors, potential investors and independent financial advisers via our various servicing channels, i.e. inbound calls and emails, face-to-face interactions.
• Build trust and confidence by explaining our investment philosophy and long-term approach to investing.
• Educate clients by sharing product and fund knowledge and empower them to make informed investment decisions.
• Take end-to-end ownership of transactions and ensure accurate record-keeping.
• Actively participate in the organisation’s drive towards continuous improvement by contributing to solutions to client problems.

Skills and Competencies

• This role is suited to individuals who are highly performance driven and seek new challenges.
• A growth mindset and resilience are key attributes to successfully navigate the ever-changing needs of clients and the financial services industry.
• The role requires high adaptability, vigour and agility.
• Our consultants need to be empathetic and client focused.  
• Strong verbal and written communication skills are essential.
• The ability to deal with complexity in a high-pressure environment, analytical thinking, attention to detail and problem-solving ability are crucial to ensure we always do what is best for clients.
• A genuine passion for people and a commitment to service excellence are vital to building long-term and meaningful relationships with our clients.
• Consistently strong academic record. 

Qualifications

• A completed or currently completing a Bachelors of Commerce or Business Science degree
• Specialisations in Finance, Economics, Investment Management, Statistics and related fields will be considered

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Role summary

• We are an investment manager focused on generating long term wealth for our clients. Our retail business consists of a fund manager as well as an investment platform. This role forms part of a newly established multi-manager business unit, with the initial aim of providing independent financial advisers with investment solutions that comprehensively address their investment advice process needs.
• The successful candidate will play an important role in supporting the day to day management and growth of our multi-manager offering. This Cape Town based role reports to the Head of Multi-Manager Portfolios who, in turn, reports to the Head of Platform and Adviser Proposition. Experience in a multi-management, discretionary fund management, or asset consulting environment is a prerequisite. The successful candidate will combine analytical, research, governance, reporting and project management responsibilities in a small team environment. 

Role responsibilities

Investment research and portfolio construction:

• Support the Head of Multi-Manager Portfolios on manager research and portfolio oversight activities.
• Qualitative and quantitative analysis and screening of underlying managers and funds, including maintenance of an up to date view of funds and managers on the ‘bench’ and flow trends.
• Maintain manager research databases, scorecards, due diligence documentation and investment monitoring frameworks.
• Participate in manager meetings, research discussions and investment committee processes.
• Support the preparation of investment recommendations, research notes, reports, and analysis for investment decision-making.
• Assist with portfolio reviews, asset allocation analysis and performance attribution.
• Act as a sounding board and secondary reviewer on manager research and portfolio decisions.
• Engagements with fund managers as required to give effect to changes to agreements, fee arrangements, and regulatory changes impacting the multi-manager portfolios.

Governance and operations:

• Own and maintain the governance framework supporting the multi-manager portfolios.
• Coordinate investment committee documentation, agendas, minutes and action tracking.
• Maintain investment policies, mandates and research records.
• Ensure manager reviews, due diligence processes and governance requirements are completed on schedule.
• Support regulatory and compliance-related requirements relevant to the multi-manager portfolios.
• Ongoing monitoring of underlying managers and funds, including for daily flags, allocation breaches, and identification of potential liquidity concerns.
• Definition and implementation of an extended and automated validation and control framework. 
• Proactive handling of any pressing operational matters with the underlying managers, including liquidity concerns, liaising with internal and external parties as required.

Reporting:

• Take primary responsibility for all multi-manager reporting requirements, including the gathering, collation, transformation and validation of data from internal sources and third party managers.
• Produce portfolio performance reports, investment committee packs, quarterly board reports and management information.
• Coordinate regulatory reporting and data submissions.
• Preparation and quality control of factsheets, presentations and marketing collateral, including supporting the drafting of quarterly commentaries, the gathering of the required information from the underlying managers, monthly performance reporting calculations, and data validation and sign-off prior to publication.
• Act as the central point of coordination between investments, operations, compliance, marketing and distribution teams.

Product development and project management:

• Perform market research and support the drafting of business cases and proposals.
• Work in collaboration with other business units, supporting the launch and implementation of new multi-manager portfolios, as well as initiatives which integrate the multi-manager offering with the financial advice process and streamline the implementation thereof on our investment platform.

Experience and qualifications

Experience and qualifications

• Five years of relevant industry experience, at least three of which must be within a multi-management, discretionary fund management, asset consulting, or related investment environment.
• Demonstrated exposure to manager research, portfolio analysis or investment consulting activities.
• Relevant degree in Finance, Investments, Economics, Actuarial Science, Mathematics, Statistics or a related field.
• Progress toward or completion of CFA, CAIA or similar investment qualification preferred.

Attributes required

• Strong investment analysis and quantitative skills.
• Good understanding of portfolio construction principles and manager research methodologies. Exposure to portfolio implementation preferred.
• Familiarity with investment data, reporting processes and systems.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present complex information clearly and effectively to a range of audiences.
• Strong technical skills, including usage of Excel and other applicable software systems.
• Ability to work in a small team environment where it is necessary to prioritise and balance different responsibilities while working toward tight deadlines