In our discussions with institutional investors, intermediary distributors and investment consultants, we frequently get feedback that investment managers don’t do enough to differentiate their firms and offerings from competitors. With dozens and dozens of managers to choose from, successful investment managers will be those who develop differentiated value propositions that stand out from the crowd.
This is not easy, as agreeing, articulating and demonstrating a differentiated value proposition is hard work, requiring input and execution by people across the firm. In this report, we consider three broad strategies for differentiating an asset management firm, as well as a framework for implementing a differentiated strategy.