Ellen Ellison discusses governance restructuring after becoming Chief Investment Officer at the University of Illinois Foundation in 2013.
Insight
Hedge funds are a fee structure, not an asset class, Ellison says
“Hedge funds are a fee structure or a legal entity so that I don't care if it's a hedged equity, directionally long hedge fund or private equity, it's equity.”
Opinion
Mastering asset classes takes too long for under-40 CIOs, Ellison argues
“I'm always amazed when I see people under age 40 who are CIOs because, let's face it takes a long time to get reasonably good at all those different asset classes.”
Prediction Held up
Japan has exited deflation, an economic shift apparent soon, Ellison predicts
“I think that most people still don't believe that Japan has moved out of this deflationary period, but I think they have, and this will be really apparent maybe a year from now.”
Insight
GP reaction to LP term feedback reveals long-term partnership ability, says Ellison
“And I find the way a GP reacts to term suggestions to be highly revelatory in terms of their ability to be a great partner going forward.”
Insight
Ellison: Direct portfolio management provides essential training for future allocators
“I think direct management of portfolios is a wonderful training for someone who ultimately becomes an allocator because you get used to pulling the trigger, you get used to being wrong and having to extricate yourself from mistakes and understanding the nature…”
Disclosure
Illinois Foundation targets first-time funds over tier-two managers, Ellison notes
“We've decided, instead of hiring, you know, B, C, and D, we're setting off to try to find smaller groups, first-time funds, smaller funds, so everything is kind of skewed towards smaller as a result, one way to handle that issue.”