Have you known a bank teller or grocery store cashier you really like? Have you gotten in line at your local branch or store hoping the familiar, trusted person is working the cash till so you can smile, connect and say hi, and maybe ask how their kids are?
Your pension fund investment teams are interested in those kinds of authentic relationships, too. That includes money managers who are starting to grow their business and can show their investment talents. That’s why TRS supports a successful program to identify and nurture these so-called emerging managers. In fact, TRS has placed $6.2 billion and backed more than 230 emerging managers over the last 18 years. The idea is as those management firms grow, so will TRS’ investments — money that’s destined for your pension fund.
During his annual update in February, Emerging Manager Program Director Kirk Sims told TRS trustees, “What we’ve tried to do is push the TRS brand and engage (future investors) at an earlier level.”
In 2023, Sims led two teach-ins aimed at finance students at the University of Texas (UT), Austin and UT Dallas for a campus investment club.
“(There’s real value in) just engaging with the students and letting them know what TRS is, what we do, why in my opinion we might be a better (career) option than the investment bank (they've) been focused on,” Sims said.
What’s truly special about TRS’ Emerging Manager Program is that over time, 14 of those once-small managers have consistently shown their worth and graduated from the program. That distinction has earned them a place to invest your pension dollars in the main investment program.
Recognizing the value of emerging managers is just another innovative way TRS builds a solid financial foundation for its members’ future.