Chief Investment Officer Job Description

Chief investment officers perform a wide variety of functions within their financial institutions. They design the investment process for their companies, and above all perform the critical function of asset management. Chief investment officers also help develop the asset allocation levels aimed at creating a balanced portfolio of investments. Additionally, chief investment officers help in conducting traditional investment research as well as technical analysis research to help their firms make trading decisions.

Chief investment officers are board-level managers for their firms. They are also referred to as CIOs; a CIO performs critical functions, in charge of making very important decisions regarding his firm's asset management obligations. The chief investment officer position is undoubtedly one of the highest-ranking executives in a firm or organization. His primary obligation is to the board of trustees, and he is in charge of implementing the goals and policies of the firm as well as the decisions reached by the board.

One of the vital responsibilities of chief investment officers is to design and implement a working investment process for their firms. This is a broad function that is very critical to the success or failure of investment firms. Good and efficient investment processes often maximize the level of investment returns. This role must also be reconciled with the chosen investment strategies. There are well over 30 different investment strategies. Each investment company must decide on the strategies that it hopes would maximize the profits for its shareholders; the chief investment officer makes such determinations for her company.

The chief investment officer makes decisions about the asset management strategies used for investment purposes. Some hedge fund managers perform the function of chief investment officer, although larger hedge fund companies designate a special position for the chief investment officer. Hedge funds that manage billions of dollars' worth of assets for investors often not only hire the chief investment officer but also designate an assistant to help the chief investment officer in day-to-day investment decisions of the company.

Chief investment officers are responsible for day-to-day decisions about what levels of assets should be allocated to different investment vehicles. Oftentimes, in difficult market conditions, fund managers may decide to stay on the side and hold cash until market volatility levels off. Chief investment officers are also responsible for overseeing portfolio allocation levels under certain market conditions.

Chief investment officers perform and or supervise investment analysis for their companies. Investment companies need lots of investment analysis prior to allocating assets to specific portfolios. Some firms have dedicated investment analysts, and others assign such functions to chief investment officers. Firms have to decide which investment strategies must be used for trading. They conduct either traditional or technical analysis or research to help them identify unfolding trading opportunities. These duties also assigned to chief investment officers.