From: Oricia Smith, President, SLGI Asset Management Inc. and Anne Meloche, Head of Institutional Business

SLGI Asset Management Inc. will be celebrating its 11^th birthday this Fall – and what a time it has been. With over $35 billion in AUM, we have grown to become the largest provider of actively managed Target Date Funds and one of the fastest growing institutional investment managers in Canada. We’ve used the last decade to build and evolve and are confident and excited for what the future holds.

Part of our evolution has been the development of our purpose and focus – what sets us apart. We are a company that is built to achieve long-term results for Canadians, and are better equipped to help them close the retirement gap. We have a truly open architecture which gives us the agility to solve more problems. We are committed to investing in our portfolio management team, building a team and platform to deliver best-in-class risk-adjusted returns with a clear focus on the future of asset management.

Over the last two months, we have taken the opportunity to review the Portfolio Management organizational structure in light of the next phase of our evolution and our journey to deliver a better retirement outcome for Canadian investors. We are pleased to announce that Chhad Aul, Vice-President, Portfolio Management, has been named CIO and Head of Multi-Asset Solutions, SLGI Asset Management Inc. Chhad’s deep expertise in quantitative strategies, asset allocation and investing with derivatives will continue to help build our capabilities as we manage increasingly sophisticated solutions for Canadian investors seeking broadly diversified portfolios. With over 17 years of portfolio management experience, Chhad will be a key player on the SLGI Asset Management Inc. leadership team and will continue to lead the team that manages our multi-asset solutions including the Granite, Milestone and Multi-Strategy/OCIO solutions.

At SLGI Asset Management Inc., we’re focused on creating a high-performing culture, where we build top investment talent internally, aligned with our proven philosophy and process for managing multi-asset solutions. With this in mind, we are also excited to announce three internal promotions: 

• AlyKhan Somani, Associate Portfolio Manager, has been promoted to Portfolio Manager.
  
• Anthony Wu, Associate Portfolio Manager, has been promoted to Portfolio Manager.
  
• Mark Chiaravalle, Manager, Investment Research, has been promoted to Director, Manager Research. 

With these changes, we’re broadening our team of Portfolio Managers while ensuring clear accountability as our AUM and number of strategies increase to meet our expanding client demand. These promotions signal that we have the people, teams, and infrastructure in place to develop our talent and strengthen our culture. Chhad will also be posting for an additional senior Portfolio Management role to join the expanded investment team.

These changes are effective September 1, 2021.

We would also like to announce that Kathrin Forrest, Vice-President, Portfolio Management will be leaving SLGI Asset Management Inc. to take on a new opportunity outside of Sun Life. Kathrin’s last day will be on September 10.

Kathrin started her investment career at Sun Life 17 years ago. Prior to joining SLGI Asset Management Inc. in 2016, Kathrin held different Investment Research and Product Specialist roles. Kathrin’s contributions to SLGI Asset Management Inc. have reached far beyond her work with our asset allocation strategies. She has been instrumental in leading the charge in evolving our manager research and environmental, social and governance (ESG) integration efforts. In her new role, Kathrin will use her deep insights and breadth of experience to continue to be a champion for ESG and diversity, equity, and inclusion in the investment management space.
 
We’re well positioned to build off the great work that has been accomplished to establish streamlined processes for manager research and ESG integration. Mark Chiaravalle will be responsible for manager research, leveraging Sun Life’s 12-person International Investment Centre manager research team. We are also excited to share that Adelina Romanelli, Manager, Investment Research will now hold the title of Manager, Responsible Investing to better reflect her ESG and Sustainability focus and accountabilities. This title change further solidifies our commitment to responsible investing. It underscores the critical importance we see in making ESG factors and Sustainability a key part of our investment strategy. Both Mark and Adelina will be reporting directly to Chhad in the interim as we post for a new leadership role encompassing Manager Research and Responsible Investing.

Building a secure financial future in a world of ongoing uncertainty has never been more difficult. We are confident that these changes will propel SLGI Asset Management Inc. into the future and help achieve our goal of being the most forward-looking investment manager in Canada.

Should you wish to discuss this change in more detail, please do not hesitate to let me know, or you can reach out to the Director, Business Development and Relationship Management for your region: