Institutional investors

Our research archive Our research is designed to answer your questions that may not have been posed before. Below you can access some of our latest publications on topics that interest you. Research available to download Subscribe to our research RSS Learn more about RSS Private Open-End Core Real Estate Funds: Ready for Recovery (PDF) Private open-end core real estate funds that target core investments are a significant and growing part of the global real estate investment universe. A growing array of choices offers the potential to simultaneously pursue income and alpha. This research discusses key reasons why core real estate is compelling institutional investors— including the potential for both long-term strategic benefits and the timely attractiveness of returns. Investment outsourcing means insourcing investment management best practices (PDF) In this environment, many in the non-profit sector have sought additional help from professionals outside their organization. One of the most visible trends is widely known as investment outsourcing. This research explains Endowments and Foundations' growing interest in working with strategic providers who have professional expertise, share fiduciary responsibility and improve governance. Getting it right: New regulatory and fiduciary focus on 403(b) plans (PDF) 403(b) plan sponsors are feeling pressure from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Labor (DOL) to comply with new regulatory and fiduciary standards. This research offers a four-step process to help plan sponsors update their plan's administration, governance and investment options with the objective of providing a better experience and outcomes for plan participants. Washington update: Participant fee disclosure and its implications for 401(k) sponsors (PDF) Historically, 401(k) participants and sponsors have not paid enough attention to fees. Change is on the way; and despite the initial difficulties that inevitably accompany any change, we believe the Department of Labor's (DOL) recent fee-disclosure regulation will shed much-needed light on obscure facets of 401(k) accounts. This research explains why ultimately, the new rules mean that plan sponsors and providers will be held to a higher standard, one that should benefit participants. Russell's beliefs on retirement income disclosure (PDF) The first step towards improving defined contribution participant outcomes is deceptively simple. Bob Collie, representing Russell, testified to the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of The Treasury (Treasury) committee on the topic of retirement income disclosure. This brief paper explains why the topic matters and how plan sponsors can provide retirement income disclosure to participants in a simple yet effective way. Slow and steady wins the race: Commission Recapture adds consistent value (PDF) Commission Recapture (CR) not only continues to be an effective cost and conflict management tool for the institutional investor community, but has added more value to client portfolios over the past ten years than allocations to U.S. equities. Against a backdrop of restructuring and change in the CR industry, the practice continues to demonstrate a positive contribution to portfolio assets and provides a mechanism for controlling commission costs as trading decisions are made. Due care - the forgotten fiduciary duty (PDF) The fiduciary standard of conduct is generally considered the highest standard of conduct under the law. So much is made of independence and conflicts analysis (based on the duty of loyalty) that we often forget the real value of an advisor. Beyond the need for disclosure, transparency, and management of conflicts of interest, due care is the need for seasoned expertise. This research explains why due care is a higher standard of care that investors should demand from their advisors. DC Directions: Russell's experience in Australia provides lessons for U.S. retirement plan sponsors (PDF) The challenge of retirement security is enormous as countries around the world face aging populations. The Australian defined contribution (DC) system is about 10 years ahead of the U.S. in terms of moving down the DC path. By comparing the U.S. system with its Australian counterpart, plan sponsors can see which features work best, and try to incorporate the best from both worlds in their plan design. Jobless recoveries and misplaced points of maximum bond market pessimism (PDF) In the two previous jobless recoveries, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond hit bottom far into the recovery period when short-term interest rates already had been low for a lengthy period. At present, investors' dismay is building, as they are concerned with the possibility of a jobless recovery and a double-dip scenario. This research presents arguments against a double-dip scenario, implications for corporate bonds and portfolio perspective for investors. Risk management: A fiduciary's guidebook (PDF) Our investment consultants and strategists have been publishing articles on the topics of risk and fund governance for nearly 15 years. This guidebook, which combines these articles into one easy-to-access place, provides a wonderful education for fiduciaries charged with the oversight of a public or corporate pension plan, an endowment, a foundation, or any other type of institutional investment program. Assessing investment managers' business, operational and compliance risks (PDF) Investors are familiar with research and due diligence focused on money managers' investment risks. But given recent events and market ups and downs, what about managers' financial viability, regulatory issues and other non-investment risks? How can investors bring together manager due diligence focused on investment and non-investment risks to make well-informed investment decisions? The date debate: Should target date fund glide paths be managed "to" or "through" retirement? (PDF) Target date funds have become increasingly popular tools, but differ significantly in design. There's a debate about how target date fund glide paths are constructed post-retirement. When financial security at and during retirement is paramount, which approach can help investors meet (or exceed) their retirement income needs? Investment governance: A pragmatic update (PDF) The key principles of investment governance are well-established, but they are not necessarily well known or widely followed. This paper reminds readers of these principles and reviews the latest thinking on improving the processes involved in making decisions, so that those decisions can themselves be better. Will the inflation genie be kept in the bottle? (PDF) Learn why arguments for higher inflation—above 2 to 3 percent—tend to be hollow when examined closely. Enterprise risk in the real world (PDF) Russell's Enterprise Risk Report helps corporate defined benefit plan sponsors more clearly understand how the funded status of their pension liabilities affects their organization's overall financial health. Liability-responsive asset allocation LRAA is a dynamic asset allocation approach for pension plans that is tied to changes in funded status. What are the potential benefits? Russell's model portfolio framework for endowments and foundations (PDF) Building the right investment structure for an endowment or a foundation is a complex challenge. Russell uses a model portfolio framework that helps institutional investors such as endowments and foundations address the choices systematically, and create well-structured portfolios that take into account their specific objectives resources and circumstances. Responsible Investment: Five Tests of an SRI/ESG Policy (PDF) For a number of reasons - legislation, organized lobbying or simply the desire to do the right thing - responsible investment is growing and becoming harder for many institutional investors to ignore. In this paper we describe a framework - built around five key areas of consideration - for assessing a responsible investment policy within the context of established investment best practices and the broader investment program. The defined benefit plan of 2017 (PDF) It's an environment of change for DB plans. How might changes in regulations, accounting standards and sentiment impact the DB plan of the future? An introduction to Russell Global Style Indexes (PDF) Russell is extending its global index family to include style indexes for each regional and country index within each market cap tier (large, mid, small). Learn about the principles behind the construction of these global style indexes. Twelve observations on Target Date Funds (PDF) In the industry today, plan sponsors will find a wide selection of target date funds to choose from. Josh Cohen, a senior consultant who has worked with plan sponsors to help select and implement target date fund solutions, believes these funds require a different type of analysis than what plan sponsors are used to. His 12 observations provide some insight into various target date fund constructions and strategies. Is LDI consistent with ERISA diversification requirements? (PDF) The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued an advisory opinion that asset allocation strategies which take liability characteristics explicitly into account are broadly consistent with ERISA. Research available by request View our latest research  » Asset allocation Capital budgeting By James Gannon October 2009 Asset class strategy Climate change: From Kyoto to Copenhagen By Greg Liddell December 2009 A preferred benchmark for evaluating the performance of long-only, active commodity managers By Mark Paris November 2009 Active commodity investing By Lee Kayser September 2009 Transitioning fixed income assets in fractured markets By Travis Bagley August 2009 New frontiers in equity investing By Scott Crawshaw, Braam Hanekom & Wenling Lin November 2008 Defined Contribution Will I have enough to retire? By William Madden June 2008 Endowments and foundations Update: Are 5% distributions an achievable hurdle for foundations? Were they ever? By Steve Murray, Ph.D., CFA November 2009 Endowments and foundations and defined benefit pension funds: Heading for convergence? By Don Ezra October 2007 Governance and decision making Corporate bonuses and the error of EROA By Bob Collie December 2009 There is nothing normal about risk By Bruce Curwood September 2009 The T Ratio for transitions By Matthew Clay December 2006 To find out more about our research contact David or Gerry:     West Coast David Rothenberg Managing Director 866-926-5934 East Coast Gerry Lillis Director 866-459-4128 USI-0131 (USIRC2811)