Capital Allocators – Inside the Institutional Investment Industry

Today's show discusses an innovative joint venture between asset owners and a multi-manager hedge fund that seeks to deliver smooth, equity-like returns at a lower cost than available in the marketplace.

My guests are Will England, Derek Drummond, and Tony Caruso.  Will is the CEO and CIO of $12 billion multi-strategy hedge fund Walleye Capital. Derek is head of external public markets investing at the State of Wisconsin Investment Board, and Tony Caruso is Managing Director of hedge funds at UTIMCO. Together, they co-founded Dockside Platforms, a managed account platform that gives institutional allocators direct access to portfolio managers using the infrastructure, risk systems, and financing capabilities of a multi-strat underneath.

Our conversation traces Dockside's evolution from a barstool brainstorm to a platform with more than 60 managers and billions in assets. We discuss the accessibility of talent through managed accounts, differentiated manager sourcing, due diligence with trade-level transparency, capital efficiency across portfolios, hedging, risk management, and onboarding and exiting managers on the platform. All told, the combined heft of large asset owner capital and the sophisticated infrastructure of a multi-manager hedge fund have created a win-win for everyone involved.

Learn More
Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn
Subscribe to the mailing list
Access Transcript with Premium Membership
 
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠)

Sloane Payne and Dave Joerger are the COO and CCO of WCM Investment Management, a firm chronicled over the years for its remarkable culture and growth to $120 billion in assets under management. This special conversation was hosted by Scott MacDonald on our affiliate Investment Management Operations podcast.

Their conversation describes WCM's culture in practice that includes hiring for character over credentials, trust as an operating principle, overtrusting before proof exists, generous compensation and shared equity, values as a daily practice, connection through relational investment, making mistakes feel survivable, scaling culture by modeling behavior, accountability alongside kindness, and succession planning without financial burden. Sloane and Dave believe the atypical human blend of these disciplines has been the primary driver of the firm's success. Although not the origin of its name, it's perhaps not surprising that WCM also stands for Why Culture Matters.

Learn More
Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn
Subscribe to the mailing list
Access Transcript with Premium Membership
 
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠)

Alex Sloane and Matt Perelman are co-founders of Garnett Station Partners, a $4 billion private equity firm focused on buy-and-build investments in founder-led, core economy businesses. Alex and Matt are lifelong friends who took an unconventional path out of business school, acquiring a 23-unit Burger King franchise in North Carolina that they scaled to 1,100 locations before selling it back to the franchisor. That operating experience became the foundation for their investment firm.

Our conversation traces that evolution from operators to investors. We discuss their "shared desk" partnership and culture of debate, and the Garnett Station playbook, from sourcing "lighthouse" businesses and moving quickly in fragmented markets to building diversified platforms through disciplined capital allocation. We also cover lessons from scaling through cycles, the role of speed and integration in buy-and-build strategies, and how they think about risk, exits, and long-term value creation.

Learn more about our Strategic Investments: Ascension.

Learn More
Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn
Subscribe to the mailing list
Access Transcript with Premium Membership
 
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠)

Rodney Comegys is the CIO of Vanguard Capital Management and its Head of Global Equity Indexing, where he oversees $8.5 trillion in index assets across domestic, international, and multi-asset strategies. Rodney joined Vanguard twenty seven years ago and has worked across operations, customer service, risk management, and investing. 

 
Our conversation covers the philosophy and mechanics behind running one of the world's largest index fund operators. We discuss Vanguard's ownership structure, values, product selection, and mechanics of delivering an index fund. We then turn to common issues around indexing, including concentration in U.S. equities, corporate governance, private assets, and AI. 


Learn more about our Strategic Investments: Thema.



Learn More
Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn
Subscribe to the mailing list
Access Transcript with Premium Membership
 
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠)

Randall Stutman is the founder of Admired Leadership and one of the most sought-after executive coaches in the world. He's known across Wall Street, the hedge fund community, professional sports, the Olympics, and the White House entirely by word of mouth. Randall was a past guest on the show six years ago in a rare public appearance, and that conversation is replayed in the feed.  
 

Our conversation covers the framework for uncovering the behaviors and best practices of admired leaders and then dives into examples around giving feedback. We also discuss how admired leaders both generate results and develop followership, and a few extra behavioral gems for investment leaders. 



Last year, Randall launched ALEX, an insane AI coaching tool trained solely on his insights. It's effectively an executive coach available 24/7 for only $300/year. We use it regularly, and always for situations with elevated stakes. Give it a try at leadwithalex.com. 

Learn more about our Strategic Investments: OWL.




Learn More
Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn
Subscribe to the mailing list
Access Transcript with Premium Membership
 
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠)