Forecast Research Strategist

Business Unit:Investment Division

Reporting To:Director, Research & Development

Shift:India (10:00 am - 7:00 pm IST) (India)About Russell Investments, Mumbai: 

Russell Investments is a leading outsourced financial partner and global investment solutions firm providing a wide range of investment capabilities to institutional investors, financial intermediaries, and individual investors around the world. Building on an 88-year legacy of continuous innovation to deliver exceptional value to clients, Russell Investments works every day to improve the financial security of its clients. The firm has over $1 trillion in assets under advisement (as of December 31, 2023) and $302.7 billion in assets under management (as of March 31, 2024). Headquartered in Seattle, Washington in the United States, Russell Investments has offices around the world, including London, New York, Toronto, Sydney, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Mumbai.

Joining the Mumbai office is an incredible opportunity to work closely with global stakeholders to support the technology and infrastructure that drives the investment and trading processes of a globally recognized asset management firm. Be part of the team based out of Goregaon (East) and contribute to the foundation and culture of the firm’s growing operations in India. The Mumbai office operates with varying shifts to accommodate time zones around the world.

For more information, please visit https://www.russellinvestments.com.

Job Description:

The asset allocation and forecasting team is seeking a talented individual to advance our understanding and communication of capital markets insights. Reporting to the Director of Forecasting, you will create models that project the return and risk of different asset classes that are used across Russell Investments.

This role is part of a technical team, so familiarity with complex financial models is essential. However, the primary responsibility is not to build these models, but rather to effectively communicate them, both in writing and verbally, to a non-technical audience.

Years of Experience

5-7 years of professional experience working with complex financial models and communicating models to end users in a clear and understandable way.

Qualifications

• Masters / professional experience in quantitative finance / economics / investments.
• The Forecasting team is highly collaborative, so the successful candidate must be confident in voicing their opinions during group discussions and challenge groupthink.
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills along with the ability to translate complex mathematical concepts into easily understandable language for a non-technical audience.
• A core requirement is the ability to apply computer technology to financial research. Professional and/or academic experience with Python and SQL is required, with ability to learn MATLAB. Python is our team’s preferred language.
• A strong understanding of, and interest in, economics, financial markets and their interactions is essential.
• Experience working with and analyzing private market assets and their return characteristics is desirable but not a pre-requisite.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a key point of contact for Russell Investments’ capital market forecasts in the EMEA region.
• Conduct research on various asset classes to help the Asset Allocation team in developing insights and intuition about their behavior.
• Quickly develop prototype asset class models across various scenarios to evaluate asset allocation implications.
• Build relationships with end users of Russell’s capital market forecasts to help them maximum benefits from our capital market forecasts.
• Work with key stakeholders of Russell Investments’ forecasts to identify communication needs and develop suitable collateral material to support their needs.
• Proactively identify shortcomings in the forecasting system and recommend solutions.
• Be an instrumental part of the semi-annual update of Russell’s capital market forecast and present updated forecasts to end users.
• Collect data and maintain databases for use in calibration of Russell Investments’ forecast models.

Special Requirements 

Time zone flexibility to work with colleagues based in Russell’s different locations globally.

Candidate Requirements

• Ability to organize findings and present results clearly.
• Actively participates in team efforts, sharing responsibilities and ideas as well as giving credit and recognition to team members.
• Effectively shares information, demonstrates a willingness to accept and support compromise, shows respect differing opinions, and contributes constructively to final group decisions.
• Maintain a strong passion for the business, staying updated on competitor products and services, and possesses in-depth industry knowledge, demonstrating a clear understanding of Russell’s position within the industry.
• Proficient in managing multiple projects and tasks simultaneously.

Core Values

• Strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication and collaboration skills with all levels of management
• Strong organizational skills including the ability to adapt to shifting priorities and meet frequent deadlines,
• Demonstrated proactive approach to problem-solving with strong judgment and decision-making capability.
• Highly resourceful and collaborative team-player, with the ability to also be independently effective and exude initiative and a sense of urgency.
• Exemplifies our customer-focused, action-oriented, results-driven culture.
• Forward looking thinker, who actively seeks opportunities, has a desire for continuous learning, and proposes solutions.
• Ability to act with discretion and maintain complete confidentiality.
• Dedicated to the firm’s values of non-negotiable integrity, valuing our people, exceeding client expectations, and embracing intellectual curiosity and rigor.