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Robert P. Ball
, CFA
- Director, Client Platform
- Rob oversees numerous aspects of the client platform at Wellington, and manages one of the firm’s largest subadvisory relationships. He joined Wellington in 2004.
United States, Institutional
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Insights Posts
DC investing themes: Our big three for 2023
Defined contribution director Kristin O'Donnell and Account Manager Ryan Mullaney highlight three investment ideas to help DC plan sponsors navigate today's uncertain landscape.
Article
2024-04-30
Small-cap value: Strong past, bright future?
While equity markets have had a challenging recent past, history teaches us that there may be several reasons to be optimistic about small-cap value.
Article
2024-01-31
After the UK sell-off: what’s next for global markets and investors?
Co-Head of Investment Strategy Natasha Brook-Walters and Head of Macro Strategy John Butler discuss the implications of the recent sell-off in UK markets for global markets and investors.
Article
2022-12-30
Why collective investment trusts are gaining traction within DC plans
Growing interest in CITs within the DC space is being driven by lower fees and other benefits — a trend our DC team expects to continue.
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Article
2023-08-31
Making the money last: Research insights on the decumulation challenge
Our Investment Strategy team considers the unique challenges of decumulation strategies, including sequencing and longevity risk, and offers thoughts on best practices in portfolio construction, process design, and implementation.
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Quick Take
2023-04-30
Demystifying decumulation: A practical guide
Investors seeking a sound decumulation strategy must consider a host of variables, including risks that weren’t on the radar when they were accumulating assets. Members of our Investment Strategy team consider the interaction between portfolio withdrawals and specific characteristics of the portfolio’s realized return. They also offer thoughts on successful decumulation strategies, focusing on portfolio construction, process design, and implementation.
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Article
2023-04-30
DC plans: Three timely themes that probably aren’t going away anytime soon
Our DC plan specialists highlight three big-picture investment themes that are not only top of mind for many plan participants in today’s environment, but are also likely to have staying power in the months ahead.
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Article
2023-03-31
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Why partner with Wellington
Independent and historically stable
- Private partnership focused solely on clients’ goals
- Track record of low portfolio-manager turnover
- Fiduciary mind-set that aligns with plan sponsors’ role
Investment-focused and collaborative
- Singular focus on investment management
- Open investment platform helps us avoid internal silos as we create solutions tailored to our clients’ needs
Experience and scale
- We have managed assets for some of the largest DC plans in the world for over 20 years
- One of the world’s largest subadvisers
- CIT onboarding tool that greatly streamlines and facilitates the process of adopting a CIT
Our DC philosophy
Research shows that historically there has been a meaningful shortfall in the returns of defined contribution plans versus those of defined benefit plans. Best practices in institutional investing can potentially help close this gap. Central to our investment philosophy is the belief that diversification, downside risk mitigation, and active management at compelling fees can be key drivers of retirement success.
DIVERSIFICATION
Whether using premixed investment options or constructing portfolios from a core menu, participants may be better served by having access to a broader set of asset classes.
DOWNSIDE MITIGATION
We think it is important to consider strategies that help diversify a portfolio by economic environment, asset class, and return source, including strategies with the potential to perform independently of the markets.
ACTIVE MANAGEMENT
DC plans have scale to obtain active management at compelling fees. Even modest incremental returns may have a meaningful impact on retirement outcomes. Wellington has a long history of successful active management and we believe DC plans should ensure they offer quality active choices to their participants.
Client solutions
We offer a comprehensive selection of core investment approaches:
• A broad range of high-quality core menu options
• Niche strategies that can be sleeves of a multi-manager, custom approach
• Multi-asset solutions for inflation hedging, preretirement/retirement
Our DC options
Collective investment trusts
Wellington Trust Company, NA, an affiliate of Wellington Management Company LLP, offers a variety of investment approaches through daily valued collective investment trusts that are available solely to certain qualified employee retirement plans.
Separate accounts
Wellington Management Company LLP offers management of separate accounts for DC plans interested in bespoke strategies with customized guidelines.
Mutual funds
Many of our strategies are available in mutual funds offered by our subadvisory clients.
Meet some of our DC professionals
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Brendan M. MacKenzie
, CFA
- Consultant Relations Manager
- Brendan focuses on establishing and developing relationships with both institutional and DC-focused consulting firms across the United States. He joined Wellington in 2017.
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Kristin O’Donnell
, CFA
- Director of Defined Contribution
- Kristin oversees the Defined Contribution effort at Wellington; acting as a key partner to some of the firm’s largest institutional relationships. She is an active member of industry events and thought leadership – also serving as a Vice Chair on the board of DCIIA’s Global Committee. She has been with Wellington since 2011.
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Ryan Mullaney
- Account Manager
- In addition to being a member of the Defined Contribution strategy team, Ryan also manages relationships with a number of the growing DC-focused consulting firms and aggregators across the country. Ryan joined Wellington in 2018.
Contact us
To learn more about our defined contributions plans investment options, please complete the following request.
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