Dan is a Portfolio Manager at TAM Asset Management, specialising in Sustainability focused investing. Dan was highly commended as a Rising Star in Wealth Management in 2022 and included in Citywire’s Top 30 under 30. 

Prior to TAM, Dan’s career started after completing a degree in Economics at the University of East Anglia. He then worked as a research analyst at an independent IFA, where he met end-clients and developed solutions to £100m worth of client assets. This is where Dan started his journey in both fund research and sustainability focused investing. Since then, Dan has progressed to a portfolio Manager where he manages £65 million of sustainability focused client assets as well as leading TAM’s stewardship and engagement work, notably raising awareness on mental health and nutrition. Recently, he led the process of TAM becoming the first DFM to signup to CCLA’s AdviserAction initiative while developing TAM’s Sustainability hub with his own blog where he works to educated clients and advisers on the industry’s role in driving real world change. He holds the IMC and the CFA ESG qualifications.

Q1. Why is corporate culture becoming more important to you when deciding who you allocate assets to? 

Firstly, from a risk management perspective it is logical to extend the high governance standards that play a part in our investment decisions, to the companies we pay to invest it. An environment of poor corporate culture is the harbinger of  bad processes, bad decision making and bad headlines for the company and therefore the industry as a whole.

By allocating our clients’ money to an asset manager we are trusting that they will not expose it to any unnecessary risks. Factors associated with the broader company pose risks that fund selectors do not always have the expertise or resource to analyse. Therefore, the ACT frameworks quantifies this previously unquantifiable and under researched risk. This promotes better outcomes for clients by not only reducing risk but also providing opportunities for better outcomes. Just as Deloitte’s research found a positive multiplier effect for productivity levels from investment in employee mental health, I envisage a similar return to investment in corporate culture. Strong governance encourages diversity of thought, entrepreneurial behaviour and pride in your role, all conducive to better service to clients.

Q2. In your view, why is it important to set a higher standard of stewardship and behaviour within the investment industry?

We are all fortunate enough to be the guardians of our clients assets, and we must strive for all those who are in the same position to be held to the highest standards. It’s my belief that being proactive in setting standards for company behaviour means we will not have to be reactive to negative outcomes which have somewhat muddied our industry’s reputation in previous years. Promoting trust in this way can only be a positive, making sure that every player in a client’s wealth journey is aligned to their goals and their values.

Q3. Why did you decide to sit on the ACT Stewardship Council and what does it mean to you personally?

What grabbed my attention from the ACT movement was that it was positioned to be a catalyst for change. I believe many actors within our industry, and our wider economy, can do better than they currently are and the ACT Stewardship Council, to me, heralds that improvements is needed and it is coming. We are privileged to all play a role in each client’s journey to financial security, but also to be in a position to educate and drive change. This is just as critical in company governance as it is in investment decisions.