Myriad factors—a hybrid work environment, continued consolidation among investment consultant firms, and shifting market conditions—have changed the dynamic between investment consultants and manager research teams. Gaining the attention of investment consultants will require consultant relations professionals at asset management firms to employ a more targeted approach, according to the latest Cerulli Edge—U.S. Institutional Edition.

The hybrid work environment has changed the ability of consultant relations professionals to do their jobs exactly as they did before the pandemic. Consultant relations professionals say they must work harder to preserve their existing relationships within the industry and focus on identifying the up-and-comers likely to be influential in future manager searches.

The two strategies asset management consultant relations professionals find most effective when targeting investment consultants are building relationships with the overall research management groups (94%) and region-specific research management groups (67%). Just less than half, 47%, say value-added content, often thought leadership content, is valuable to investment consultants. Thought leadership can include white papers and articles, plus educating potential clients on asset classes in which an asset manager specializes or on topics of interest, such as artificial intelligence (AI).

While most (63%) of consultant relations professionals say conferences and similar events are only somewhat effective at targeting, they also admit that the role of conferences has grown in importance.

“Precisely planning meetings with key individuals and activities during conferences is a more significant focus than it had been in the past,” says Laura Levesque, director. “Not only are firms being more targeted in whom they encounter at conferences and events, but they also are spending more time evaluating how attending, presenting, and sponsoring specific conferences fits into their overall sales strategy.”

Moreover, with the consolidation of consultants and an increased reliance on their proprietary databases to research new and existing investment strategies, 100% of consultant relations professionals list accurate, timely updates to consultant databases as a very important key differentiator in generating new business. Additional factors considered very important include clearly articulating investment philosophy and process, relationship management, and portfolio attribution/ explaining past performance (94% each).

“As consolidation continues to reduce the number of consultant firms, competition among existing asset managers is building to get the strategies they cover attention and, eventually, ratings and recommendations from the consultant,” says Levesque. “Managers will have to tailor both digital and in-person strategies to break through and win assets from high-conviction prospects.”