Winston-Salem, NC (PRWEB) November 08, 2013
The Wake Forest University Office of Investments today announced that Chief Investment Officer (CIO) Jim Dunn was one of only ten endowment managers to make aiCIO’s “The Chief Investment Officer Power 100” list for 2013. Dunn moved up in the ranks from 89th last year to 81st in the 2013 edition.
An international finance magazine, “aiCIO” (asset international Chief Investment Officer), recently published their 100 most influential and powerful asset managers worldwide in the October 2013 issue. In only the second-annual rankings published by the magazine, Jim Dunn is two for two in making the aiCIO list “The Chief Investment Officer Power 100.”
In the issue’s “Letter from the Editor-in-Chief,” Kip McDaniel proudly comments on the CIO Power 100 process and its focus on a more qualitative approach, “We refuse to rely on one-year returns as a benchmark of influence, just as we equally refuse to use assets under control as a proxy.” McDaniel also noted that to compile the list the magazine starts by looking at large, positive trends in the industry – specifically risk-factor approaches, infrastructure investments, and novel advances in risk management. Finally, the aiCIO team interviews industry professionals for their thoughts on these questions: “Who are the CIOs leading the charge in these areas? Who is taking the risks that other, more timid CIOs refuse to?”
The Wake Forest University CIO’s name must have been the answer to those questions. Since the inception of “The Chief Investment Officer Power 100” in 2012, Dunn has now made the Power 100 list both years. Out of the ten schools whose endowment managers made the list, Wake Forest University has the second smallest endowment.
Dunn highlighted his investing approach and its advantages to aiCIO as follows, “Because we’re benchmark agnostic and use a factor-based asset allocation model, we don’t have traditional asset class ‘buckets’ to fill. We are able to be creative and opportunistic in our investment choices. One example is that of a global real asset manager who reached out to us regarding a large, distressed agricultural co-investment in Australia. The deal does not fall neatly into any bucket. The transaction required a quick analysis and turnaround – something we are able to do given our experience in the sector and our focus on factor exposures as opposed to asset classes.”
Dunn took to Twitter to express his gratitude when the full list was released, saying he was “honored and humbled to be in such great company.”
To see more of aiCIO’s “The Chief Investment Officer Power 100,” please go to: http://www.ai-cio.com/2013_Power_100.aspx.
Media Advisory: Jim Dunn named aiCIO’s top 100 most influential asset managers worldwide: http://news.wfu.edu/2013/10/30/media-advisory-jim-dunn-named-aicios-top-100-most-influential-asset-managers-worldwide/.
About Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University combines the best traditions of a small liberal arts college with the resources of a large research university. Founded in 1834, the school is located in Winston-Salem, N.C. The University’s graduate school of arts and sciences, divinity school, and nationally ranked schools of law, medicine, and business enrich our intellectual environment. Learn more about Wake Forest University at http://www.wfu.edu.
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Contacts:
Paige Bosworth
Office of Investments - Wake Forest University
bosworkp(at)wfu(dot)edu
Tel: 336.758.6469
Stuart Smith
Red Nine PR
ssmith(at)redninePR(dot)com
Tel: 954.303.0235