Report on AMF/Greenwich Operations Study
At the AMF Quarterly Business Meeting on September 21, 2005 David Skrodanes of GM Asset Management (Chair of the Benchmarking Committee) and Jennifer Sneath of Greenwich Associates reported on the preliminary findings of a study that was conducted with operations professionals at AMF member firms. The purpose of the study was to address the efficiency, timeliness, and effectiveness of broker-dealers' operational efforts, as well as the knowledge base and support provided by its staff. The objective was to provide feedback to the broker-dealer community regarding operational performance in fixed income and to possibly establish "best practices" from the feedback received.
A total of 24 member firms of The Asset Managers Forum, representing over $6 trillion in assets under management participated in the study. The majority of the participants stated that operational capabilities have become more critical in their firms' decision-making process as it relates to trading practices.
As a follow-up presentation, Jean Ebbott of Morgan Stanley Investment Management led a panel discussion between asset managers and broker/dealers on managing business relationships. The dealers on the panel stated that they welcome and encourage feedback from their asset management clients relating to their operational performance.
If you are interested in obtaining the report and learning about industry efforts underway that discuss cross-market operations matters, please contact Douglas Taggart of The Bond Market Association at 646-637-9273. Also, please consider attending The Bond Market Association's Fixed Income Operations Conference November 3- 5, 2005.