Alman Partners Investment Committee
The Alman Partners Investment Committee plays a vital role in setting the implementation and monitoring of the fiduciary framework for Alman Partners and our clients. The Investment Committee meets quarterly and has the following framework which includes, but is not limited to the following key agenda items:
- Governance;
- Maintenance of CEFEX accreditation;
- Review of investment performance and returns ensuring an appropriate level of return is delivered in the prevailing market environment;
- Seek to minimise investment costs;
- Review of Asset Allocation and portfolio strategy;
- Research of available markets, services and products, and
- Investment manager update.
Strategy decisions are guided by the findings of a significant body of academic research. We believe three key conclusions can be drawn from this research.
- After accounting for investment costs, most individual and professional investors underperform broad market benchmarks.
- Investors who happen to outperform the market in one period have no greater likelihood of repeating that performance in the next period.
- The majority of investor focus should be placed on portfolio allocation design and the implementation of that allocation through liquid low-cost diversified investment strategies.
Alman Partners Investment Committee
Niyati Khanna
Investment Committee Chair
CFP® Professional, CA, MBA (Finance & Strategy)
Niyati has been one of Alman Partners’ most highly qualified Senior Financial Advisers since 2016 and became a Partner in 2021. Niyati's financial acumen and analytical prowess are second to none. She has 6 years of experience in Investment Banking and a further 8 years in the global financial sector. She currently Chairs the Alman Partners’ Investment Committee and is passionate about delivering strategies based on proven scientific methodologies.
Dr Steve Garth
Independent Investment Committee Member
PhD (Applied Mathematics), MAppFin, GradDipBA, BSc (Mathematics & Physics), BA (History & Politics)
Dr Steve Garth provides his expertise, insights, academic rigour and experience to our Investment Committee around areas such as asset allocation, implementation and the evaluation of investment strategies and investment managers. For nearly two decades, Steve has played a key role in helping grow the Australian arm of global asset manager Dimensional Fund Advisors. During his career, he has managed Australian and global equity portfolios, managed the Asia Pacific trading team and oversaw the introduction of direct market access trading, and for the last 10 years, he specialized in managing the firm’s fixed interest strategies.
Paul Shepherd
Committee Member
CFP®️ Professional, BEng, DipMgt, DFS(FP)
Paul is the Managing Partner of Alman Partners, and Senior Financial Adviser with over 11 years of experience in the profession. Paul brings with him a wealth of knowledge from his previous Project Management Career & Engineering degree. He continually seeks improvement opportunities and enjoys the challenges that this brings. Paul is a founding member & currently holds an executive role in the Global Association of Independent Advisors (GAIA) representing Australasia.
Mehak Advani
Committee Member
MAdvFin, CFA Level III Candidate, MCom (Bus. Admin + Acc.), BMgt (Fin)
Mehak aspires to become a successful Financial Adviser. Mehak has completed her Masters of Advanced Finance from Monash University, alongside being a Level 3 Candidate of the CFA Programme. She has previous experience in Wealth Management working as a Client Relationship Manager at a well-known firm in Mumbai. Mehak also holds a Masters of Commerce in Business Management & Accounting.
James Alexander
Committee Member
MFinP, GradDipFP, BBus (Fin, Mgt)
James spent almost a decade working for a global investment management firm across both their Sydney and Melbourne offices. His key responsibilities as Client Relationship Management saw him primarily focusing on privately licenced, wealth management/financial planning businesses. James consulted with wealth management businesses on building efficient practices whilst providing a successful investment experience to clients. He has a thorough understanding of investment capabilities, investment theory, and performance. James became a Partner in 2023.
Qualitative & Quantitative Assessment via CEFEX
As a certifying organisation, CEFEX provides independent recognition of a firm’s conformity to a defined Standard of Practice. It implies that a firm can demonstrate adherence to the industry’s best practices and is positioned to earn the public’s trust. This registration serves investors who require assurance that their investments are being managed according to commonly accepted best practices.
The assessment typically includes document review, client file sampling, on-site visits, and interviews with senior representatives at the firm.
CEFEX certification helps determine the trustworthiness of investment fiduciaries.
Alman Partners is a founding member of GAIA. Members firms share best practices in order to better serve our clients in a fiduciary capacity.
Highest Fiduciary Standards ~ Academic Research ~ Global Reach
CEFEX Accredited, Alman Partners is one of only a handful of Certified Fiduciary Financial Advisers in Australia.
To learn more about our association with CEFEX & GAIA, visit Our Approach.
The Alman Partners Investment Committee is supported by Consilium NZ which provides support in the form of valued research, benchmark performance reviews and best practice guidance.
Consilium is an independent funds management and administration firm based in New Zealand that provides specialist asset allocation and investment monitoring services to support the Alman Partners Investment Committee. As both businesses are CEFEX certified, this ensures the complete Alman Partners investment proposition is crafted and maintained in accordance with best-practice global standards of fiduciary excellence.
Consilium have a very experienced investment team and they were selected to help support the Alman Partners’ offering because their client-first values and strict adherence to evidence-based investment principles were highly aligned with our own. In particular, we are utilising their expertise in all facets of strategic asset allocation analysis, rigorous investment and portfolio monitoring, benchmarking and enhanced due diligence reporting.
Read on here as to what value Consilium provides to our firm, and ultimately our clients.
If you would like to learn more about our highly-skilled Investment Committee, contact our office today.
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