STRATEGY CONSULTING FOR

ASSET MANAGERS

Chestnut guides asset managers through the rapidly changing and challenging industry landscape

OUR Services

Products & Solutions

We provide thoughtful reviews of product lines, positioning, and the design and evaluation of solutions capabilities

Distribution Strategy

We recommend team and organization structure, custom market research, sales roadmaps and segmentation

M&A Strategy

We help identify best-fit acquisition targets, analyze disposition candidates, and offer post-acquisition integration planning

Brand Strategy

We help you define your firm’s value proposition, create valuable messaging, and grow marketplace visibility via thought leadership and brand building

Implementation and Coaching

We assist in implementing go-to-market strategies, coaching distribution leaders, and designing programs to help you build trusted client relationships

Chestnut Solutions Institute^TM

Our Institute is the preeminent peer forum and voice for the asset management solutions
industry Learn more

OUR FIRM

Chestnut Advisory Group is a boutique, practitioner-led management consulting firm dedicated to asset managers and investment solutions providers. Since its founding in 2013, our deeply experienced team of industry practitioners has provided bespoke advisory services in the areas of growth strategy, M&A, products and solutions, brand, implementation and distribution leadership coaching and training.

The Golden Circle of Asset Management

Chestnut aims to put our clients in what we call the “Golden Circle” of asset management, by answering three critical questions:

What do your investors want? Understanding your target investors’ key needs, ensuring your products address those needs and your messaging articulates your ability to meet those needs creates the foundation for a strong, long-lasting relationship with your clients. Investors’ needs are constantly evolving. Custom market research is a hugely valuable tool to ensure your growth strategy is on target.

How can your firm deliver? This is where strategy - Product, Brand, M&A, Marketing - and the ongoing successful implementation of those strategies - come in.

Why you? Articulating how a relationship with your firm will benefit your clients, as well as the distinct role each of your products will play in investors’ portfolios will get your firm into the bullseye of the Golden Circle. A strong ‘why you’ that is embedded across a manager’s growth strategies - Product, Distribution, Brand and M&A - will develop the trust that is necessary to raise, retain, and - over time - continue to raise and retain more capital from your target investors.
Outer Ring – What

Most manager messaging focuses on the ‘What’ story: what asset classes you manage, what your historic investment results have been, etc. There are several problems with this approach.

First, the widespread use of manager databases has made detailed descriptions largely unnecessary, and widely ignored.

Second, even the best ‘What’ story alone will not motivate an investor to hire an asset manager.

Finally, it is extremely difficult to craft a ‘What’ story that is focused on a manager’s target investors. A ‘What’ story by itself largely treats all investors as the same - the antithesis of the targeted approach to the highly fragmented investor marketplace that Chestnut recommends.
Middle Ring – How

No manager will be hired without a deep explanation of their ‘How.’ Investors today want to understand much more than just the inner workings of a manager’s investment process, however.

Winning asset managers clearly explain how their target investors will benefit from having a relationship with that manager. Most investors - both institutional and retail - are seeking to reduce the number of manager relationships they have. Investors expect much more than just a risk/return stream on their capital from their manager relationships today.

Winning asset managers also ensure they can deliver on their ‘How.’ Again, an auditable, repeatable investment process is just the start of a winning ‘How.’

Chestnut helps asset managers identify, articulate and implement a unique ‘how’ that is authentic to their firm and culture and will resonate with their client inventors.
Golden Circle – Why

The key to attracting and retaining investor capital is to clearly address the ‘Why’ - i.e. why that investor will benefit from building a relationship with that manager.

Chestnut’s research among inventors and investment consultants has shown time and time again that historic investment performance is NOT the primary reason driving the asset manager or OCIO hiring decision. There are a wide range of ‘whys’ that work for different investors, such as risk management advice or technology that can be used for portfolio analysis beyond the managers’ products, access to and a relationship with a firm that delivers outstanding and relevant investment insights, working with a firm that is a champion for their asset class, access to direct investing opportunities going forward, governance advisory (a leading ‘Why’ for investors hiring OCIOs), and many more.

Winning asset managers each have their own unique set of ‘Whys’ that are authentic to the firm’s product mix, culture and philosophy, and that resonate with the firm’s target investors. In addition, these winning asset managers ensure they can actually deliver on these ‘Whys’.

Chestnut helps our clients identify their winning ‘Whys’ and then implement this ‘why’ across the firm’s growth strategies.

Our Approach

Outer Ring – What

Middle Ring – How

Golden Circle – Why

OUR INSIGHTS

Webinar

The Chestnut Solutions Institute hosted a public webinar with three leading OCIO search consultant as part of the Institute's mission to help educate and inform investors and other solutions industry professionals. It is a lively, informative discussion of key issues...

Article

As the OCIO market continues to expand with an ever-wider range of providers and capabilities to choose from, investors are increasingly retaining third-party evaluators, also known as OCIO search consultants, to help them evaluate and select OCIO providers. Please...

Webinar

Chestnut's Ravi Venkataraman discusses key issues facing the OCIO and Solutions Industry with Lisa Shalett, Chief Investment Officer at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, Dan Farley, Chief Investment Officer - Investment Solutions at State Street Global Investors, and...

STRATEGY CONSULTING FOR

ASSET MANAGERS

Chestnut guides asset managers through the rapidly changing and challenging industry landscape

OUR Services

Products & Solutions

Distribution Strategy

M&A Strategy

Brand Strategy

Implementation and Coaching

Chestnut Solutions Institute^TM

OUR FIRM

The Golden Circle of Asset Management

Outer Ring – What

Middle Ring – How

Golden Circle – Why

Our Approach

OUR INSIGHTS

Webinar

Article

Webinar

OUR latest INSIGHTS

Evaluating OCIOs: The Search Consultants’ Role

Evaluating OCIOs: The Search Consultant’s Role

Defining Investment Solutions

Defining Investment Solutions

Investors Seeking Solutions Turn To OCIOs

Why Trust Matters

Sign Up For Chestnut’s Insights

STRATEGY CONSULTING FOR

ASSET MANAGERS

Chestnut guides asset managers through the rapidly changing and challenging industry landscape

OUR Services

Products & Solutions

Distribution Strategy

M&A Strategy

Brand Strategy

Implementation and Coaching

Chestnut Solutions InstituteTM

OUR FIRM

The Golden Circle of Asset Management

Outer Ring – What

Middle Ring – How

Golden Circle – Why

Our Approach

OUR INSIGHTS

OUR latest INSIGHTS

Sign Up For Chestnut’s Insights

Chestnut Solutions Institute^TM