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The Pension and Endowments Department (PEN), which is part of the Treasury Vice Presidency, is responsible for the financial management and administration of the World Bank Group's funded benefit plans, including the retirement scheme - the Staff Retirement Plan, the retiree medical and life insurance programs - the Retired Staff Benefits Plan, and other ancillary benefits (the Plans).  The Pension Finance Committee (PFC), appointed by the Bank Group President and chaired by the Chief Financial Officer, has oversight responsibility for the financial management of the plans.  

The Pension Investments (PENIN) team is responsible for the investment management of the pension plan assets. The key responsibilities include developing the investment strategy, outlined in the policy framework and strategic asset allocation and approved by the PFC, and executing the investment strategy through external fund management, ensuring the integration of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors. PENIN manages approximately US$45 billion across various asset classes such as fixed income, public equities, private equity, real assets, private credit, and absolute return strategies. 

Staff in PENIN are allocated to a particular team upon entry. They may be reassigned to other PENIN teams at the discretion of the Manager of PENIN in response to business priorities. This Principal Portfolio Manager position is intended as Team Lead for PENIN’s Credit Strategies team. 

Roles & Responsibility:

The Principal Portfolio Manager/Team Lead for the Credit Strategies team will manage a team responsible for investing PENIN’s Credit Strategies portfolios, which are externally managed private market strategies focused on direct lending and asset-based lending. The Principal Portfolio Manager will lead the team’s portfolio construction, investment due diligence, identification of new managers or investment ideas, and will oversee the investment of the portfolio in addition to presenting to the Investment Committee. He/she will also be responsible for monitoring the performance, valuation, liquidity, and risk of different private credit funds in the portfolio, including pacing of commitments.

The Team Lead will work closely with the PENIN Manager and liaise with the other PENIN Team Leads and other units such as information systems (ITS), legal (LEGFI), and the pensions middle office (PENMO).

The main responsibilities of the Team Lead include but are not limited to the following: 

1. Lead the portfolio construction process and enhancements to the portfolio:

• Formulate ideas and approaches to portfolio construction to manage and monitor the risk and return drivers in the private credit portfolio 
• Enhance the necessary quantitative and qualitative analysis in support of investment decisions, including cash flow modeling
• Demonstrate full understanding of analytical and other resources and systems applicable to Credit Strategies fund investing, manager analytics, valuation, and performance reporting; and enhance the investment process as appropriate.

2. Portfolio management and strategy implementation:

• Oversee the day-to-day operations of the private credit investment portfolio, ensuring alignment with the approved investment guidelines and risk parameters
• Oversee the management of relationships with external private credit managers (GPs)
• Monitor the performance and risk characteristics of current funds in the Credit Strategies portfolio and keep track of recent trends and developments in the industry 
• Ensure all investment activities comply with internal policies, regulatory requirements, and industry best practice 
• Have a comprehensive understanding of the risk and return patterns across the private credit asset class and across a broad set of strategies and managers 
• Enhance quantitative and qualitative analysis in support of investment decisions, including assessing underwriting discipline
• Demonstrate full understanding of analytical and other resources and systems applicable to respective strategies and enhance processes and resources (including cash flow forecasting and risk and performance analytics) 
• Maintain a forward-looking view on risk and return across a broad set of private credit investment strategies and market cycles, including covenant trends and documentation strength
• Manage the risk of the portfolio as appropriate, including through regular rebalancing of commitments by strategy, liquidity management, and mitigation of concentration risk
• Effect changes to the asset class portfolio as appropriate, including engaging with the PENIN Manager and presenting it to the Investment Committee for approval
• Propose and implement changes to investment processes.

3. Market monitoring, identification of new managers and investment due diligence:

• Keep abreast of market developments affecting the asset class including market trends, economic developments, and regulatory changes that may impact the portfolio. Identify investment opportunities and implications for existing portfolios under management
• Recommend updates to the investment guidelines and objectives as necessary to adapt to changing market conditions and strategic objectives, ensuring alignment with the benchmark characteristics and the Plan’s private credit mandate 
• Independently manage the due diligence process of external managers across the asset class, including assessment of sourcing/origination, underwriting discipline, documentation/covenant strength, portfolio construction, leverage usage, valuation policy, reporting, and operations (aligned with established private credit due diligence best practices)
• Fully understand the legal, business, operational, and regulatory risks across a broad set of private credit strategies and managers (including LPA terms, side letters, and GP-LP governance) 
• Independently and effectively negotiate with investment managers.

4. Lead engagement with senior management and active participation in Investment Committee (IC) decision making process:

• Prepare and present investment recommendations, risk assessments, and scenario analyses to inform IC decisions for Credit Strategies portfolio
• Prepare and present investment recommendations, risk assessments, and scenario analysis to inform IC decisions
• Document key IC deliberations, decision rationales, and follow-up actions
• For other private markets asset classes, actively participate in IC meetings, contributing well-researched insights, challenging assumptions constructively and supporting robust debate to improve decision quality and resilience of investment outcomes
• Prepare and present regular investment performance reports to senior management and relevant committees
• Present proposed changes to investment processes to the Investment Committee for approval and lead the implementation.

5. People management, collaboration and mentorship:

• Promote a culture of high performance, inclusion, and continuous learning; set clear expectations and link individual objectives to team and organizational strategy
• Drive proactive performance management for staff in the Credit Strategies team, setting SMART goals, conducting regular check-ins, mid-year and year-end reviews, and maintaining career development plans
• Mentor and guide junior-level team members
• Contribute to additional projects as needed within the department.