Investment Committees through the Behavioral Intelligence Lens

Written by: Leon Morales | Financial DNA

Most investment committees have a very clear mission: Serve as stewards for assets of the organization they represent.

Recruiting the right people to do that is critical to the success of the Investment Committee. But how do we define “right”? Is it a professional background? Education? Investment knowledge? And where does the diversity lens come in, if at all? What about their inherent risk-tolerance and behavioral biases toward investments?

In a study by Vanguard’s Vanguard Investment Counseling & Research on Group Decision Making for Investment Committees, there are definitely biases (both investment behavioral biases and workplace behavioral style differences) that should be considered when forming a committee with such important responsibilities in an organization.

Group Decision Making for Investment Committees Source: Vanguard Research

Most investment committees focus on five critical decision-making areas:

Establishing goals or objectives for the investment portfolio they are managing.

Setting an investment policy-on everything from strategic asset allocation to rebalancing policy to performance metrics.

Selecting managers to implement the portfolio’s investment policy.

Evaluating short- and long-term investment performance-both for the portfolio and for individual managers.

Selecting experts (e.g., a consultant) to guide the committee as necessary.

As you think about how your committee recruits and selects new members, are you making the most of the opportunity to broaden the search to include those who would bring a diverse and beneficial perspective to the group?

As the research shows, this can lead to a more effective team and, in turn, a better outcome for the committee’s main mission.

Using a Behavioral Finance approach can shed light on the risk-tolerance and behavioral bias of the Investment Committee Members who may possibly be more wired for a Newness Bias or the More Anchored Bias. There are several behavioral biases that can either create conflict for the Investment Committee or potentially a group-think bias that could create risk for the firm.

In selecting an expert to guide the committee as indicated in bullet point 5 – Selecting an Expert, using a behavioral discovery process can add a dimension of behavioral diversity to the important function of the Investment Committee by ensuring the group can function collaboratively and effectively while also preventing “Group think.”