Fund managers coached like Olympians
The star cycling coach who steered Britain to victory at the 2012 London Olympics has been enlisted by the world’s second-biggest hedge fund company to help enhance investment performance.
Shane Sutton, who trained Tour de France winner Sir Bradley Wiggins and Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy, has joined forces with investment consultancy Inalytics to offer motivational advice to its fund management clients.
Inalytics, which is known for its statistical analysis, has developed a training academy with Mr Sutton in the hope of providing fund managers “with the same mentality as athletes so they cope better with pressure and endurance”.
GLG, a division of Man Group, is the first fund company to sign up to the Trading Peaks academy. Man Group also recently signed up to a new software program that aims to create the perfect environment to help individual fund managers produce their best trades.
Mr Sutton is confident that the methods perfected by British Cycling will help fund managers to change entrenched patterns of behaviour.
“We work in a system that collates data and outputs on a daily basis,” he said. “Everything we produce is based on evidence – the numbers don’t lie – and that way you can’t fail.”
Although at first glance cycling and fund management do not seem particularly alike, Mr Sutton believes they are “near enough identical”.
There is doubt, however, about how effective the academy will be in the long term.
Amin Rajan, chief executive of fund consultancy Create Research, said: “These motivational speakers create a momentary glow, but it’s business as usual when people return to their desks. These sessions tackle the symptom but not the cause of demotivation at today’s workplace.”
Rick di Mascio, founder and chief executive of Inalytics, said: “The world of sport is 20 years ahead in terms of coaching techniques and use of data.”