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How Threadneedle Investments have Engaged Fund Managers in Training & Development
by Richard Fuller, Director HR Threadneedle Investments
Threadneedle Investments is a global asset management company with more than 600 staff members. Founded in 1994, today the company manages more than £70 billion of assets. Threadneedle’s distribution reach covers four continents and more than 15 countries.
Threadneedle’s Investment team comprises more than 120 highly talented individuals who are empowered with the freedom to interact with every one of their peers. The business actively promotes debate and encourages innovation.
The entire investment team is centrally located in an open plan office in London. Equity, bond and hedge fund managers all work together, sharing research and information and working towards the common goal of out performance. Threadneedle continues to invest in talented individuals and over the last five years has grown its Investment team by 40 percent.
New Training & Development and Organisational Design activities have influenced every Threadneedle Department from Operations and HR to Distribution and Investment. Here, the changes within the Company’s Investment Department are highlighted.
Background Issues
Two years ago, the investment team had little engagement with the HR and Training department. There was no designated contact within the investment function to channel training requirements and investment professionals typically sourced their own training via external parties and training providers, leading to a highly inefficient allocation of resources. Appetite within the investment department for training interventions was largely limited to technical skills and regulatory training. Indeed, 80% of the allocated training budget was spent in these two areas.
There was no external benchmarking with competitors and external management information and training evaluation measures were limited to training ‘happy sheets’ and qualification passes.
The faults were not all on the investment team’s side, however. There was no dedicated training resource. Training & Development was managed within the HR Generalist Team and therefore on occasion, training & development objectives tended to suffer when other more pressing activities were prioritised.
What have we done to engage the Investment Team?
The first step was to create a dedicated training and development function. Members of this team then met with Executive Directors (including the Chief Executive Officer) and Senior Managers in each function within Threadneedle to discuss and identify key learning and organisational issues linked to their Departmental objectives and deliverables.
The T&D team then conducted a robust ‘top down’ training needs analysis in each function and collated training data. They also carried out a training trend analysis exercise and sourced training providers to design in-house tailored solutions. Next, a robust training tendering exercise was undertaken and a limited number of training providers were selected to work as an extension to the HR Team. This allowed us to create a preferred supplier list and to negotiate substantial discounts.
It was also important to enshrine the new approach in writing, so the team designed a Training & Development Strategy and policy statement explaining that training would respond to the dynamic business environment, would move the business forward to achieve company objectives, be client-led, tailored and linked to Threadneedle valued behaviours. These valued behaviours were identified, positive and negative indicators written and training solutions sourced and designed to meet each of these at all levels.
To allow measurement of the success of the new approach, we redesigned the performance appraisal process and forms and worked with the Chief Executive Officer and Senior Managers within Investment and the business to gain the buy-in for an on-line and blended learning solution. The new performance appraisal and on-line learning systems were launched in October 2005.
With the regulatory environment becoming tighter but time pressures on fund managers also increasing from a number of other sources, it was crucial to gain buy-in for on-line delivery of induction and awareness training. To this end, the team launched on-line modules covering Market Abuse, Anti-Money Laundering, Health & Safety, Information Security and Data Protection to ensure delivery in a more timely fashion and at a pace which suited the individual and the team.
To ensure that the new approach remained focused and aligned to the investment team’s needs, quarterly reviews were introduced of the Training Needs Analysis data. We also set up an Investment Training Steering Group comprising all key roles within investment function from Desk Heads through to Graduates. This ensured engagement, sponsorship and partnership, the timely communication of key messages, and that buy-in and ownership were achieved, decisions made and feedback given on training interventions.
These measures helped to align training and development solutions to the investment department’s objectives and to create specialist bespoke training solutions.
Looking to the future, we developed and improved the learning management system to provide more meaningful reporting information including budget spend. We also redefined how we communicate with the investment department to ensure appropriate, timely and effective communication channels. This entailed the production of a hardcopy training brochure and posters for the department to act as a third medium to e-mail and the Threadneedle intranet as a means of communication.
Within the overall improvements to the training process, we wanted to focus on nurturing our managers. To this end we designed a Management Development Programmes at two levels - first line managers and experienced managers. We also designed a Constructive Conversations Programme in partnership with a business school and representatives from Investment ‘road tested’ the programme and gave feedback on improvement points.
The Training and Development Team used Investment Managers Association (IMA) Benchmarking data of how competitors spent their training budget to influence how the investment team could spend its training budget and to change the ‘shape’ of training in the future.
The Changing Shape of
Training Budget Spend
The Continuum of Training and Change in Approach
In engaging with the Investment Department, the step change along the continuum is noticeable as follows:-
| From...... |
To ..... |
| Driven by Individual’s Needs |
Driven by Departmental and Organisational Needs |
| Management Skills |
Management Behaviours |
| Allows Opt Out from Development |
Focuses on Lifelong and Self Learning |
| Functional Management |
Business Leadership |
| Appraisal |
Performance Management and Personal |
| |
Development Plans |
What are the Benefits and Outcomes in Engaging Fund Managers in Training and Development?
- There has been a step change in the training and development focus from Regulatory, Technical and Professional Skills to Leadership and Management Development.
- Improved cross-functional knowledge and interaction leading to improved processes and methodology.
- More efficient ways of multi-functional problem solving.
- The Training & Development matrix is used to create a more effective appraisal system and learning & development and career pathways within the investment team.
- Management information has been improved.
- Communication between the investment and training & development/HR teams has been enhanced.
" Training is not just about staying current with regulations and market innovations, it’s about the on-going development of all of us and through this, the future of our business. By re-engaging with the Investment Department and aligning a ‘training matrix’ with the competencies and skills necessary for us to grow successfully, our Training and Development Department is now helping us move forward into that future." Andrew Crawford, Executive Director, Fixed Income, Investment Team.
Funds under management figure as at 30 September 2006
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