Company Profile
Founded in 1977, GMO is a global investment manager committed to delivering superior long-term investment performance and advice to our clients. We offer strategies and solutions where we believe we are positioned to add the greatest value for our investors. These include multi-asset class, equity, fixed income, and alternative offerings.
We manage approximately $65bn for a client base that includes many of the world’s most sophisticated institutions, financial intermediaries, and private clients. Industry-wide, we are well known for our focus on valuation-based investing, willingness to take bold positions when conditions warrant, and candid and academically rigorous thought leadership. Jeremy Grantham, GMO’s Co-Founder and Long-Term Investment Strategist, is renowned as an expert in identifying speculative investment bubbles and also as a leading climate investor and advocate.
GMO is privately owned and employs over 430 people worldwide. We are headquartered in Boston, with additional offices in Europe, Asia and Australia. Our company-wide culture emphasizes commitment to clients, intellectual curiosity, and open debate. We celebrate and respect our differences, while embracing and valuing what each of us brings to work, as we know that diverse teams in an inclusive, caring environment achieve higher engagement and better client results.
Position Overview
The Investment Operations Associate Program is a unique opportunity to gain a deep understanding of the full breadth of investment operations while learning the inner workings of an investment management firm by working across teams supporting the trading, portfolio management, investment research, and client services groups. We aim to invest in and develop exceptionally bright and motivated individuals to build our pipeline of talented employees. The Investment Operations Associate Program is a two-year rotational program in which you will work across multiple teams at GMO learning the core operational functions of the business.
Each rotation will be approximately six months in duration. The duration and nature of each rotation will vary based on team needs, fit, and your skills and interests. Upon joining in June 2025, you will participate in an expansive training program over the course of several weeks in order to gain insight into the firm and the investment management landscape. Additional training will be provided on an ongoing basis throughout your tenure in the program.
After two years of the rotational program, the goal is for you to be placed in a full-time position with one of our investment operations teams.
Responsibilities
You will work across and gain experience with the some of the following teams:
Trade Operations
Within Trade Operations, you will provide business and operational support for GMO’s trading functions. You will gain a strong understanding of equity, fixed income, and derivatives instruments in addition to gaining experience directly supporting the life cycle of a trade. Working with this team also provides broader exposure to non-investment functions within the firm including Compliance, Client Relations, and ESG.
Investment Analysis
The Investment Analysis team provides detailed performance analytics to GMO’s investment teams and clients. You will assume responsibility for asset class coverage, including the calculation of returns, attribution, exposure and risk analytics. Skills developed within Investment Analysis will include both GMO proprietary and third-party applications including FactSet and StatPro. In partnering with Global Client Relations and Portfolio Management, you will gain an in-depth knowledge of GMO’s products and strategies.
Pricing Analytics
The Pricing group is responsible for providing timely and accurate valuation across all securities held within GMO funds. You will gain exposure across multiple asset types, ranging from equities and futures, fixed income, listed and unlisted derivatives and complex OTC instruments.
Reconciliations Analytics
The Reconciliations group is responsible for ensuring the integrity of data provided by custodian banks. You will have ownership for specific funds and have analytical, accounting, and reporting responsibilities for a number of GMO’s mutual funds, hedge funds, and separately managed accounts. You will identify, research and resolve any and all discrepancies discovered through the review and validation of investment activity.
Shareholder Services
The Shareholder Services group is responsible for reviewing, processing and reporting institutional and high net worth client cash flows in mutual funds, hedge funds, and other complex investment products. You will partner closely with internal and external parties and develop client-facing skills while building a strong foundational knowledge of the various products GMO offers.
Qualifications
• Completion of a Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business or a related field by June 2025.
• Previous exposure to financial services through prior internships, personal projects and/or classwork.
• Desire to learn a broad range of skills.
• Effective verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong quantitative and analytical abilities along with the ability to learn new concepts and systems efficiently.
• Positive attitude, professional and mature.
• Detail-oriented, able to effectively manage multiple tasks, and able to prioritize work.
Application Process
Step 1
1. Submit a Statement of Interest that explains (please keep it to one page):
• Why you want to pursue a career in asset management.
• Tells us something about yourself that is not on your résumé.
2. Include your current résumé.
3. Include a copy of your transcript.
Step 2
Selected candidates will be asked to complete a video interview with the manager of the Investment Operations Associate program during October/November 2024.
Step 3
Selected candidates will be invited to a final interview during November 2024.
GMO is committed to the recruitment, employment, and promotion of all candidates equally, regardless of an individual's gender, race, color, national origin, ancestry, age, religion, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military or veteran status, genetic information, physical or mental disability (except where such disability is a bona fide occupational disqualification) or any other classification protected under federal, state or local law.
Top Skills
What We Do
For more than 40 years, GMO has partnered with a broad range of sophisticated institutions, financial intermediaries, and families to provide the investment expertise they need to meet their goals and fulfill their missions.
Investing on behalf of our clients is GMO’s sole focus. Across asset classes and around the world, our investment teams identify and exploit long-term opportunities and develop solutions that both anticipate and respond to client needs.
GMO is comprised of a collection of investment teams with focused specialties. All are grounded in a long-term, valuation-based investment philosophy – an approach we believe provides the best risk-adjusted returns.
GMO partners with an impressive roster of sophisticated clients worldwide, delivering innovative investment solutions and tailored client service. Our clients benefit from our diverse expertise, intellectual curiosity, and open culture of debate, as well as from our ability and willingness to take advantage of contrarian market opportunities.
For important disclosure information please visit: https://www.gmo.com/americas/terms-and-conditions/
