Align Before You Sign

Girard Miller, CIO of the $12 billion Orange County pension plan (OCERS), is championing alignment of interest beginning with the basics of manager selection: a request for proposals (RFP). OCERS’ two most recent RFPs averaged 50 pages, demanding from potential managers all-custom responses and total transparency. Minimum required qualifications for the alternative income strategy request, for example, were hyper-specific on management and performance fees, track records, and operational risks. Miller tells CIO the rules; managers must play by them.