Resolutions for year that has to be better

After the tumult that characterized 2020, asset owners, money managers, consultants and other investment industry executives have resolved to apply the lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic to help their organizations thrive in 2021.

Common themes among the executives Pensions & Investments contacted about their resolutions include a sharp focus on increasing diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, in their workplaces and ensuring that portfolio companies held in investment strategies do the same; integration of ESG principles into investment policies and portfolios; and strong engagement and empowerment of employees as the world returns to safer, more normal conditions.

What follows are their responses, received in writing and edited for clarity:

Shawn T. Wooden, Connecticut state treasurer and principal fiduciary of the $37 billion Connecticut Retirement Plans & Trust Funds, Hartford:

"One of my resolutions for 2021 is to transform the 2020 racial reckoning pain into focused purpose to help our nation address fundamental racial economic disparities. I specifically want the Corporate Call to Action Working Group, that my office formed in partnership with the Ford Foundation and leading financial services firms, to take on measurable commitments that will address the need for deep, structural changes in order to advance social change, racial justice and greater economic prosperity for all."

Personally, Mr. Wooden said he will "try to be less competitive with my sons while playing board games."

James H. Grossman, chief investment officer of the $55.8 billion Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System, Harrisburg

"I resolve to continue, with the approval of our Board, PSERS' long-term strategy of holding a diversified asset portfolio given the future is uncertain as we saw last year with the global pandemic and the health and market responses to it."

In private life, "I resolve to attend several live sporting events, such as Philadelphia Phillies baseball games, when fans are allowed to attend and the quantum of mortal risk from the pandemic has passed."

Pattie Featherston, executive director of the $915.9 million Austin (Texas) Police Retirement System

"The highest priority is the uphill challenge to address our actuarial funding status. The APRS Board is committed to working diligently with the system plan sponsor, the City of Austin, to develop a path forward that brings greater stability for the fund and certainly for its members and retirees. My goal is to remain diligent and to move the ball forward … as quickly and as far as possible."

The system's most recent recent actuarial valuation as of Dec. 31, 2019, found that APRS' funded ratio was 58.4%, she said.

On a personal note, Ms. Featherston said, "I bet I have the No. 1 goal that everyone else has — to remain healthy and free of COVID. That is the most significant resolution because it impacts everything else and everyone else in my life."

Jose Gonzalez, investment officer of the emerging manager program for the $53.5 billion Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois, Springfield

"I need to get better at professionally stating my opinion and speaking my mind. When it comes to (diversity and inclusion), it's not easy to talk openly about potential behavioral biases and preconceived perceptions. I also have to work on tempering my expectations and accept that the process will take time and initially come with some resistance. Regardless of the challenges ahead, I have to have the courage to stay strong in my convictions."

Mr. Gonzalez added that it's important for him to create a better work-life balance. "E-learning and working from home as a result of COVID has really opened my eyes to what's really important in my life. It helped me recalibrate (my work-life balance) ... and allowed me to teeter from one to other as priorities changed. But no work-life balance is perfect. So I need to work on making it better."

Scott Davis, CIO of the $32 billion Indiana Public Retirement System, Indianapolis

"Our team had a rallying cry for 2020 that still carries over for 2021, which was to build up the team's foundation so that our culture and success continue for decades and (to) provide a well-researched, thoughtful and transparent recommendation on the asset allocation and target-rate return to our board. I think it is easy to lose focus with countless micro goals and objectives … if you boil it down to what are the most important determinants of our plan's success, I believe it ultimately comes down to these two items for the investment team."

Mr. Davis also told of a personal goal for 2021 that he is hoping to achieve, seeking "to cut my golf handicap in half and help my son so his is even lower thanmine."

Jase Auby, CIO of the $162.7 billion Teacher Retirement System of Texas, Austin

"I resolve to spend more time with our people over Zoom while necessary. If there is one thing we took for granted pre-COVID, it was seeing each other in person every day."

To give himself a breather, Mr. Auby said "I resolve to take a little break from thinking so intently about U.S. politics."

Lori Heinel, deputy global chief investment officer of State Street Global Advisors, Boston

"I really want to empower my team members. As I assume the role of global CIO, it will be tempting to get involved in everything and that approach will ultimately fail. I can get the best out of the team and drive the organization better by supporting and empowering leaders to make decisions and rallying around them. (I will) use more stories and personal experiences in my communications. The current work-from-home environment has enabled us all to share experiences, learn about each other and connect in a more human way."

Outside of work, Ms. Heinel said she intends to "read more books for fun and not just the highbrow stuff. I just finished "The Hellbound Heart" by Clive Barker which terrified me!" SSGA managed $3.15 trillion as of Sept. 30. Ms. Heinel will become global chief investment officer of the manager by the end of the first quarter.

Mark McCombe, senior managing director, chief client officer, BlackRock Inc., New York

Mr. McCombe said he intends to "make a positive impact on issues around racial equity in this country and in the industry, especially through increasing the flow of capital toward minority-owned businesses and diverse communities; help clients navigate the decoupling of the world's largest two economies, the U.S. and China; and do fewer Zoom and WebEx calls in 2021."

BlackRock managed $7.81 trillion as of Sept. 30.

Tracy K. McHale Stuart, managing partner and CEO, Corbin Capital Partners LP, New York

"My intention on the business front is to maintain my strong focus on ESG and DEI. Hedge funds have been the laggards in this arena, but our partners are now committed to working with us and ready for progress. The industry's sad profile on DEI won't improve overnight, but many firms are now committed to progress and we want to engage with managers to be a driver of that change."

Ms. McHale Stuart said she's become an advocate in her personal life, noting "I'm committed to putting my frustration with our dysfunctional political system into action. As a start, I've joined No Labels, a group that created the Problem Solvers Caucus in Congress ... (that is) building a bipartisan governing coalition capable of solving America's toughest problems. They need better female representation so I'm engaging and proactively trying to get more women involved."

Corbin managed $7.8 billion in hedge funds of funds as of Dec. 31.

Kevin Charleston, chairman, president and CEO of Loomis, Sayles & Co. LP, Boston

"Diversity, equity and inclusion are strategically important to Loomis Sayles and our clients and this year we will be continually striving to make additional improvements in these areas. We will (also) continue to invest in our investment infrastructure despite a challenging environment for asset managers. (And) as we emerge from our isolation, I will make a concerted effort to re-engage with a wider swath of our employee base."

Loomis Sayles managed $328 billion in assets as of Sept. 30.

David G. Eichhorn, CEO and head of investment strategies, NISA Investment Advisors LLC, St. Louis

"My resolution is to relentlessly develop the human capital at NISA and preserve our unique culture as we look forward to welcoming all employees back to our offices. As we hopefully near the end of the pandemic, we need to make a strong final push in the work-from-home world, continue to develop our many 2020 and other recent hires and incorporate all the positive elements we have learned from the 2020 working environment."

He also resolved to "think more. The daily nature of markets and news flow is ... just a bully. It is all too easy to become a victim of the present and spend too little time thinking about the future. NISA's best ideas have always come from listening intently to clients and spending the time to do the deep work to provide value."

In terms of personal grooming, Mr. Eichhorn said he is "in desperate need of a haircut" after promising his family in April that he wouldn't cut his hair "until after COVID. For the record, my wife hates the new look."

NISA managed a total of $421 billion as of Sept. 30, of which $248 billion was managed in physical assets.

Richard L. Nuzum, the New York-based global president of Mercer LLC's investments and retirement business

"(We need to) stay proactive on (the) mental health of our employees. Professionally, this means trying to find ways to support our colleagues … (who) are dealing with more stringent lockdowns, remote schooling and increased incidents of physical illness in their families. Fatigue is real at this point and the challenges of the pandemic are not showing signs of letting up despite the start of vaccinations."

Mercer managed $321.4 billion in outsourced assets as of Sept. 30.

Alan M. Johnson, managing director of compensation consultant Johnson Associates Inc., New York

Mr. Johnson set three resolutions for himself in 2021: "to not think of ancient history when I hear a value manager once again describe how the markets don't make sense anymore; (to) recognize (that) too much of societal ills come from an inability to save and invest wisely; (and to) maintain a modicum of sanity when addressing the endless acronyms, abbreviations, folklore and mysticism of the investment industry."