You are here: Home: Employer insights: Baillie Gifford & Co: About the organisation
Baillie Gifford is an investment management firm based in Edinburgh. It is entirely privately owned by its 36 partners and seeks to expand through organic growth rather than mergers and acquisitions. It has grown considerably since the 1980s because of its involvement in the pension fund market, and is a major player in this area. Its clients include pensions and insurance providers such as Scottish Equitable, AXA and Standard Life as well as wealthy individuals, charities and other institutions.
Its services include equity and fixed income products and investment trust ISAs. Key selling points include the company’s stability and long-term approach to investments and client relationships.
All the firm’s operations are run from its Edinburgh headquarters. Further small marketing offices are based in New York and another may be opened in future in Shanghai or elsewhere in China.
Baillie Gifford’s well-established US links are unusual in a firm of its type. It is also strong in Japan, with over 20 years of collaboration with Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking. It has had to expand its markets in response to the difficult economic climate in the UK, and now manages far more funds in Europe than even ten years ago.
There are six major departments within the firm:
Baillie Gifford takes an innovative approach to technology and would like to build its reputation as an IT recruiter. Richard Barry, HR manager, explains, ‘We have developed our own bespoke software to analyse and monitor our investments, rather than using off-the-shelf technology that we would then have to bash into shape. We are also interested in infrastructure and connecting these different offices together. We have a keen interest in mobile technologies, including early adoption of iPads. We are not known as an IT employer but we would like to take things in that direction.’
The company is stable, and self-owned. This makes business easier as there are no shareholders or external investors to keep happy, so it’s possible to focus on long-term strategy rather than short-term rewards. The company grows organically, rather than by acquisition.
Richard Barry, HR manager at Bailie Gifford
Baillie Gifford does not publish information about salaries. In an interview with Investment Week Alex Callander, senior partner at the firm, made it clear that any applicant who is primarily concerned with asking about bonuses and financial reward has not done their research on the company’s values.
Salaries, and more prominently bonuses, are based on two main factors. The first is financial performance; the second is the manner in which an employee conducts their work. This is consistent throughout the firm, from senior partners to graduate joiners.
Performance is difficult to judge in a firm that plays the long-term game with its investment offerings. It is difficult to reward staff based on specific returns relating to client deals. So, bonuses throughout the firm are determined according to contribution to the team as a whole.
Given the nature of the company’s business, employees can be assured of having a solid pension scheme as part of their contract.
The behaviours of staff are measured, rather than short-term results. This is particularly important in our business as occasionally wrong investments are made, but this is to be expected. There is the cliché that if you make the right decision 51% of the time you have done well. Baillie Gifford is more interested in making sure that staff exhibit the behaviours that produce the correct results over a long-term, rather than worry over the shorter term, say a few months.
Richard Barry, HR manager, Baillie Gifford
The firm is committed to its independence and close-knit, collaborative structure. All central operations are run under one roof in Edinburgh, placing teams in direct face-to-face contact with one another.
Baillie Gifford does not seek to expand through mergers and acquisitions. HR manager Richard Barry explains, ‘We know what we’re good at, and rather than jump into new fads or a new trend we try to deliver what we can do best. It’s best for us to develop the business, rather than take on a business built by someone else that then proves problematic to integrate into what we do.’
The typical Baillie Gifford employee has a calm and analytical attitude towards the markets, and is not prone to panic.
The organisation takes a long-term approach to investment and client relationships and building relationships with clients. Employees are expected to take a considered approach to decision-making, basing their conclusions on thoughtful analysis and research rather than reacting impulsively to market developments. Business decisions at boardroom level are made in the same way and are thoroughly debated.
Staff turnover is low and a significant proportion of graduate recruits will remain with the company for the long term. Continuity is highly valued. The approach to the work is measured and reflective, which is appropriate given that the organisation specialises in long-term investment portfolios. The trading floor has been described as being more like a library than having the hectic pace that might be expected. The typical Baillie Gifford employee has a calm and analytical attitude towards the markets, and is not prone to panic.
Given that its approach to investment is long-term, Baillie Gifford does not single out star performers who have made short-term financial gains for large bonuses. Instead, when employees’ performances are reviewed, their contributions to their teams and the way they have approached their work form a crucial part of the assessment.
Because we deal with long-term investments, our ‘trading floor’ is less frenetic than short-term investment businesses and staff communicate and debate more with each other. The business itself is therefore more highbrow and we don’t dispel this reputation in the marketplace. Jobs here are more interesting if you enjoy discussing things in depth.
There was a time when the business used to approach dons in Oxford and ask them if they could recommend which students would be worth approaching, but things have changed as the business is now less UK-centric, and to understand new markets, new ways of thinking are necessary.
Richard Barry, HR manager at Baillie Gifford
Employer insights are written by independent experts with job candidates in mind, helping you research and understand employers.
Copyright of all material written for Employer insights lies solely with GTI Media.
Register for how to get hired advice straight into your inbox
©2012 GTI Media Ltd. Registered in England No. 2347472.
Registered office: The Fountain Building, Howbery Park, Benson Lane, Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BA UK