Research – GSS Product Specialist - Associate

About The Team:
The Global Stock Selection (GSS) group is responsible for the portfolio management and research of AQR's strategies relating to individual equities and equity related securities across all global liquid markets. GSS models are applied to market-neutral long/short portfolios in AQR hedge funds as well as to long-only and equity extension portfolios for institutional equity mandates, taxaware mandates and mutual funds.Within GSS, the Product Specialist team is central to communication with and support of our existing and prospective investors, and often serves as the external face of equity portfolio management. The team educates investors and prospects on our strategies through written 
answers to client questions, new business presentations, and review discussions of existing investments. Additionally, the team is involved in different stages of the investment process, including product development, performance monitoring and analysis. The team interacts closely with the rest of the firm including, most notably, business development, research, and portfolio implementation, as well as trading, legal, compliance, risk and marketing. Product specialists have in-depth knowledge of the strategies they cover and are expected to be in-house experts on those products. They are an integral part of initiatives to create, manage, and sell AQR products.

Your Role:
We are seeking an exceptionally talented individual to join GSS’s product specialist team in AQR India, providing research, analytical and product support to global AQR teams. The role offers exposure to the portfolio management process and the ongoing evolution of AQR’s equity products, with opportunities to support and collaborate with senior investment professionals across the firm. The role does not involve making investment decisions or providing investment advice or recommendations directly to clients. Responsibilities include:

• Client communication:
  • Support the preparation of draft responses to client questions on investment philosophy, investment processes, performance drivers and portfolio characteristics, for review and approval by the relevant global teams before external use.
  • Assist global teams in developing and refining presentations, review materials and collateral to support new business discussions.
  • Compile information and conduct supporting analyses for Requests for Proposals (RFPs), under the direction and review of the relevant global teams.
• Investment monitoring and analysis:
  • Support portfolio performance monitoring and analysis using existing tools and contribute to the development of monitoring tools under the direction of the relevant global AQR teams.
  • Conduct supporting portfolio analyses in response to requests from global AQR client-facing teams or senior investment professionals, with outputs subject to 
    review and interpretation by the relevant global AQR teams before use in client communications or investment decisions.
  • Contribute to strategic projects, with a focus on scaling investment capabilities, streamlining processes and identifying operational efficiencies

What You’ll Bring 
• Bachelor’s degree in a business or quantitative discipline
• 2-6 years of investment management experience, ideally related to equity and equity linked products.
• Superior analytical ability with a deep understanding of investments, particularly equity strategies; experience with quantitative strategies preferred.
• Programming skills (Python and SQL) or a willingness to learn programming is essential
• Proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint is required
• Ability to communicate and position complex strategies effectively to a broad range of investors both verbally and in writing.
• Entrepreneurial spirit with a demonstrated work ethic, competitiveness and tenacity required to achieve top performance.

Who You Are
• Well-organized, detail-oriented; able to multi-task and keep track of various deadlines in a fast- paced, high demand environment
• Mature and thoughtful, with the ability to operate in a collaborative, team-oriented culture 
• Creative, resourceful, and driven - an intelligent risk taker and someone who does not grow complacent with success
• Hard-working and eager to learn in a highly intellectual, innovative environment
• Highest level of integrity, empathy and character