Former Schroders COO Markus Ruetimann has called on fund managers to use the pandemic to assemble a more diversified workforce with greater emphasis on IT specialists and data scientists.
Writing in the latest edition of the FundsTech quarterly report, Ruetimann stated that the move to remote working had shown the need for “new, more inclusive hierarchical structures and communication channels”.
“Future talent pools will need diversifying. IT pioneers and data scientists are likely to play a bigger role than fund managers and data administrators going forward,” stated Ruetimann, chief executive of advisory practice Hardy London and also chair of Aprexo, a data management provider.
However, while the institutional asset management industry has talked about the need to reinvent itself in view of the ever-expanding digital economy, few firms have replaced their legacy systems with new technology or hired talent from outside the industry to cater for a more tech and data-dominated operating environment.
“There are clear signs that the asset management industry has been shaken by the operational, commercial and social impacts of the pandemic. Now is the time to lay the foundations for a gradual metamorphosis into a talent- and technology-led organisation,” said Ruetimann.
“The barriers to entry into retail and institutional asset management have never been lower, with e-commerce and global technology providers gradually stirring up traditional operating models. They have the technology, they have the data, they have the money to invest and all they need now is to acquire the talent,” he added.
The full article can be read here: Inside view: Now is not the time to stand still
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