Agile and Resilient: Alternative Investment Reports for New Realities

KPMG has released a new report, "Agile and Resilient - Alternative Investments for a New Reality," based on a survey of 144 hedge fund managers around the world and estimated assets under management at $840bn. The survey was conducted throughout the pandemic.

Key findings:

Attracting and retaining talent, 57 per cent of managers said they had either recruited or were actively seeking to recruit new talent since the outbreak began.

Embracing the new reality, nearly two-thirds (61 percent) said the flexibility employees get from working remotely is positive, and 46 percent stressed the benefits of reducing commuting.

Smart sourcing, 71% of respondents cited the success of operations in today's remote work environment as a catalyst to increase outsourced operations and technology solutions, increase efficiency, save costs, and manage profit margins more effectively.

Innovative IT environment, more than 80% of respondents are investing in their digital infrastructure and IT capabilities. Half of companies are investing in cyber security measures, and one-third are building a central database to facilitate data analysis and reporting.

Back in the office, the company is taking a flexible and collaborative approach to developing a plan to return to the office, requiring changes to physical workspaces (64 percent), training staff on new protocols such as health (44 percent), and identifying commuting issues (42 percent) as key issues.

Investor Relations 2.0, with face-to-face meetings now almost impossible, 58% of hedge fund managers are optimizing their digital tools to improve their IR models.

In pursuit of efficiency, hedge funds, like most companies, have had to make tough decisions to manage their business more effectively during this time. More than 25 percent of respondents plan to increase efficiency by investing more in technology.