Overview
Each case study provides an opportunity to consider some of the investment themes relevant to investors with a long investment horizon.
These cases are currently being taught at Harvard Business School, London Business School, the University of Cambridge and other leading business schools.
This case captures the experience of Clare College, one of the 31 Colleges within Cambridge, and its search for real return opportunities in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. At the time, the fund’s investment committee restructured part of the endowment to maximise the probable return over a 40-year investment horizon. The case explores the arguments for and against this innovative investment transaction, and examines the challenges faced by long-term investors when investing in volatile markets.
This case captures the experience of Kings College, Cambridge. This particular case focuses on the investment strategies important to long-horizon investors including decisions to pool assets or not; whether to follow an active versus passive management strategy; and the size of allocation placed in private equity and hedge funds.
This case captures the experience of Christ Church, Oxford. Cambridge and Oxford Colleges have their own endowments, independent from their respective university endowments, and these support current and future generations of students and fellows. Christ Church, like many of the Oxbridge colleges, regard real estate as an important asset class and have experience extending back several centuries, in owning and transacting properties. The development of this case study aims to understand better the role of real estate in a long-term portfolio.
This case captures the experience of the Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG). One of the largest asset owners globally, it is highly rated for its professional, low-cost, transparent and socially responsible approach to asset management. This case study presents the strategies followed by the Fund and draws out lessons that investors can take from Norway’s approach to asset management.
Publications
Chambers, D., Dimson, E. and Viceira, L., 2016, Clare College, Cambridge: Seeking Investment Opportunity in a Financial Crisis, HBS Case 9-216-05
Chambers, D., Dimson, E. and Viceira, L., 2016, Models of endowment asset management: King’s College, Cambridge, HBS Case 9-216-023
Chambers, D., Dimson, E., Segel, A. and Steiner, A., 2016, The role of real estate in endowment portfolios: The Case of Christ Church, Oxford, HBS Case 9-216-086
Chambers, D. and Dimson, E., and Foo, J. (2015) Keynes, King’s and endowment asset management. In Jeffrey Brown and Caroline Hoxby (Eds.) How the Financial Crisis and Great Recession Affected Higher Education, University of Chicago Press, 127–150.
Takaki, S., 2014, “Stakeholders perspectives on Norwegian investment responsibility”, Journal of Investment Management, 12(1): 33-44
Towner, M., 2014, “Norway’s summit on responsible investing”, Journal of Investment Management, 12(1): 20-32
Chambers, D., Dimson, E., and Ilmanen, A., 2012, “The Norway model”, Journal of Portfolio Management, 38(2): 67–81. (Bernstein Fabozzi/Jacobs Levy Outstanding Article Award)
Chambers, D. and Dimson, E., Segel, A., and Steiner, E. (2016) “The role of real estate in endowment portfolios: the case of Christ Church, Oxford” HBS Case 9-216-086
Chambers, D. and Dimson, E., and Foo, J. (2015) Keynes, King’s and endowment asset management. In Jeffrey Brown and Caroline Hoxby (Eds.) How the Financial Crisis and Great Recession Affected Higher Education, University of Chicago Press, 127–150.