From graduate job to investment manager: my £600m portfolio

I started a graduate career in investment management because I’d done an internship with my current employer and it really appealed to me. After an initial training programme, I started work as a research associate.

Starting out with a graduate-sized list of stocks

As a new graduate I was given a list of stocks that were fairly small and, as I became more experienced, started to work on larger stocks and cover sectors that are seen as more important. By the time I became a senior analyst I was meeting with CEOs of enormous global companies.

'By the time I became a senior analyst I was meeting with CEOs of enormous global companies.'

My role was to find out everything I could about a company and then publish research internally, including a buy or sell recommendation, which was used by portfolio managers to inform their investment decisions. To do this I met with management, visited their operations, spoke with competitors and did other research.

I worked on several different sectors, covering everything from biotech to large oil companies, and this was an excellent way to gain the broad base of knowledge that I need now as a portfolio manager.

Portfolio manager: the £600 million job

My job is to take a pot of money and to invest it in companies that I think are going to outperform the market. I am responsible for a fund worth £600 million pounds, which invests in UK companies, and my objective is to outperform the FTSE all-share index.

The shareholders may be pensioners or holders of ISAs. I need to make sure that the fund is correctly invested so that it adds value and increases their wealth. To do this, I use as many inputs as I can on a regular basis including calling on the resources of analysts who do the in-depth research that I used to do. I must be confident in their judgement. At the same time, the ultimate responsibility lies with me and I have to set up the fund as I see fit.

A typical day in portfolio management

When I’m in the office, a standard day could include talking to analysts, meeting with companies, going on site visits or speaking with economists and academics. I tend to arrive by around 8.00 am and leave between 6.00 pm and 8.00 pm .

'Even while I’m out of the office, I have a heightened awareness of investment opportunities everywhere.'

I travel for three or four days a month – because I’m a UK portfolio manager the companies I cover tend to be based nearby. I am totally in charge of my own diary and can decide how I manage my time and how much I travel: the main aim is to get a good result and it’s up to me how I get there.

Even while I’m out of the office, I have a heightened awareness of investment opportunities everywhere. For instance, I might look out the window at a construction site and notice things that relate to investment opportunities. What logos can I see? What kit is being used? I need to be curious; looking for information, coming up with ideas and insights and then linking them to companies I could invest in.

I like the fact that all of this research and analysis transforms into a very clear outcome. At the end of the year, I can see how the investments have done and there’s a measurable result.

Tom gained a BA in philosophy, politics and economics at the University of Oxford (1998) and an MSc in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2000). Tom joined Fidelity International as a graduate research associate and is now a portfolio manager in UK Growth Funds.