Hedge Funds
Hedge Fund Recruitment & Executive Search
Retained search built around your investment strategy, not our candidate inventory.
For a hedge fund hiring a Portfolio Manager, investment professional or established team, the search should begin with what the fund needs, not with which candidates a recruiter already happens to represent.
Imperium works the other way round. A client retains us against a defined requirement. We map the relevant market, identify the people whose experience fits and approach them directly, including professionals who are performing well and are not actively looking to move.
Our background across commodities, energy, natural resources, derivatives and global macro markets also gives us access to talent beyond the traditional hedge fund pool, including trading houses, banks, proprietary firms and other specialist market participants.
You are paying for the search. The search should be built around you.
A Different Model for Hedge Fund Search
The mandate comes first. The market is mapped around it.
Senior hedge fund recruitment can become highly candidate-led. A successful Portfolio Manager enters the market, several funds are approached and the process develops around that individual.
Imperium starts with the hiring fund.
Once retained, we define the strategy, markets, track record, risk profile, capital allocation and team structure required, then map the people most relevant to that mandate.
That includes professionals inside competing funds and, where appropriate, adjacent markets. Some will already be considering a move. Many will not. Availability does not define the search. Relevance does.
The Search Belongs to the Client
When we approach somebody for a retained mandate, we are approaching them for that fund and that opportunity.
We are not simultaneously marketing the same individual across competing funds to create several potential transactions.
The client commissioning the work receives the benefit of the work: market mapping, direct approaches, search intelligence and access to the people identified specifically against its requirement.
One mandate. One client. A search of the market built around them.
What Your Retainer Actually Buys
A dedicated search of the market, built around your requirement.
A retained search should deliver more than introductions to people who are already considering a move.
Imperium uses the mandate to define the market we search, the people we approach and the information we bring back to the client. From the first briefing through to candidate representation, the work is focused on one hiring business and one defined investment requirement.
Define the Mandate
We start with the strategy, not the job title.
We establish the investment approach, asset classes, capital allocation, risk parameters, track record required, team structure, geography and wider environment in which the successful hire will operate.
Map the Relevant Market
The search universe is built around your requirement.
We identify the funds, platforms, desks, teams and adjacent businesses most likely to contain the experience you need, including direct competitors where appropriate.
Identify the People
Availability is not the filter.
The strongest Portfolio Manager, trader or investment professional may have no intention of moving. If their experience fits the mandate, they belong in the search.
Approach Them Directly
The market is actively headhunted.
We approach relevant individuals confidentially, introduce the specific opportunity and establish whether there is a credible basis for a conversation with your fund.
Assess Against the Mandate
A strong track record is only part of the picture.
We look at investment process, strategy fit, P&L and risk ownership, market exposure, team structure, motivation and the environment in which performance has been generated.
Represent Them to You
The work stays with the client who commissioned it.
People engaged through your retained mandate are being approached for your opportunity. We are not simultaneously taking the same individual around competing funds to manufacture alternative transactions.
The Difference Is Where the Process Starts
Candidate-led recruitment begins with an individual and asks which firms might hire them.
Our retained model begins with the client and asks who in the market could solve this particular requirement.
That changes who gets identified, who gets approached and, ultimately, who the fund gets the opportunity to meet.
The retainer is paying for a search of the market, not priority access to a candidate list.
Where Our Commodity Heritage Gives Us an Edge
Specialist investment talent does not exist solely inside the hedge fund industry.
Some of the most relevant people for a hedge fund strategy have built their careers outside traditional fund structures.
A Portfolio Manager may have developed their market knowledge inside a physical trading house before moving into investment management. An energy analyst may understand supply, infrastructure and flows because they have worked alongside the physical market. Traders in metals, agriculture, freight and derivatives can develop specialist knowledge across banks, proprietary trading firms, brokers and commodity businesses long before a hedge fund becomes part of their career.
These are markets Imperium already searches.
Our existing work across global commodities gives us a practical understanding of the companies, trading desks, products, benchmarks, market participants and commercial relationships surrounding many of the strategies that hedge funds invest in.
Energy & Commodities
Oil · Natural Gas · LNG · Power · Environmental Markets
We search across physical and financial energy markets, giving us access to traders, analysts and commercial specialists whose understanding extends beyond price screens into supply, demand, infrastructure and global trade flows.
Metals & Natural Resources
Base Metals · Precious Metals · Bulk Commodities · Mining
Our network spans trading houses, producers, merchants, banks and other market participants across metals and mining, creating adjacent talent pools for commodity, resources and macro investment strategies.
Agriculture & Soft Commodities
Grains · Oilseeds · Sugar · Coffee · Cocoa · Livestock
Agricultural markets combine physical fundamentals, weather, geopolitics, logistics and derivatives. We already map the businesses and individuals operating across those interconnected markets.
Freight & Shipping
Dry Bulk · Tankers · FFAs · Chartering · Freight Markets
Freight is both a physical cost and a tradable market. Our shipping expertise gives us access to professionals who understand vessel economics, trade flows and freight derivatives alongside the underlying commodity movements.
Commodity Derivatives
Futures · Options · Swaps · OTC · Structured Risk · Analysts
Our work extends across brokers, banks, trading houses, proprietary firms and derivative markets, including professionals whose careers sit between physical commodity knowledge and financial risk-taking.
Global Macro & Cross-Asset
Commodities · Rates · FX · Equities · Relative Value
Commodity markets do not operate in isolation. Inflation, interest rates, currencies, geopolitics and capital flows all influence the opportunity set, creating natural crossover into global macro and broader cross-asset strategies.
The Search Can Extend Beyond the Obvious Competitors
For a hedge fund building a specialist strategy, the right hire may already be running money at another fund.
But they may also be sitting inside a trading house, investment bank, proprietary trading firm, market maker, asset manager or specialist commodity business where they have developed knowledge that is directly relevant to the investment mandate.
Imperium’s starting point in commodities means we already understand many of those adjacent markets.
We are not entering hedge funds by walking away from what we know. We are extending that market knowledge into the investment businesses that trade many of the same risks.
Investment Strategies We Search Across
Search built around the strategy, risk and investment process.
Hedge fund talent cannot be mapped effectively by job title alone. We define the market around how capital is deployed, where returns are generated and the experience required to run the strategy.
Commodity
Energy · Metals · Agriculture · Freight
Portfolio Managers, traders and analysts investing across physical and derivative commodity markets, from specialist single-sector strategies to broader commodity portfolios.
Global Macro
Rates · FX · Commodities · Equities · Cross-Asset
Discretionary and thematic investors trading macroeconomic shifts, policy, geopolitics and relative opportunities across global markets.
Multi-Strategy
PM Pods · Specialist Books · Platform Strategies
Portfolio Managers and investment teams operating within diversified funds and multi-manager platforms, including established pods and new strategy builds.
Quantitative
Systematic Macro · CTAs · Quant Trading · Data
Quantitative Portfolio Managers, researchers and traders developing systematic strategies across futures, commodities and wider financial markets.
Equities
Fundamental · Sector · Thematic · Market Neutral
Portfolio Managers and analysts generating returns through company research, stock selection and active risk management across public equity markets.
Relative Value
Spreads · Basis · Volatility · Options
Investment professionals trading pricing dislocations between related instruments, curves, markets and structures.
Credit
Corporate · Distressed · Structured · Relative Value
Portfolio Managers, traders and analysts investing across liquid credit, stressed situations and specialist credit strategies.
Digital Assets
Crypto · Derivatives · Systematic · Relative Value
Investment professionals operating across institutional digital assets, including discretionary, quantitative and derivatives strategies.
Strategy Defines the Search
A Portfolio Manager title tells us very little on its own. Strategy, markets traded, investment process, risk ownership and capital allocation determine where the relevant talent actually sits.
Portfolio Managers, Teams & Investment Talent
From individual risk-takers to complete investment capabilities.
Our searches span the people directly responsible for generating returns and the research, quantitative, risk and leadership talent around them.
Portfolio Managers & Sub-PMs
The core of many hedge fund mandates. We search for proven and emerging investment professionals with the strategy, market exposure, risk ownership and performance responsibility relevant to the fund.
Typical searches include:
Portfolio Manager · Senior Portfolio Manager · Sub-PM · Sector PM · Commodity PM · Macro PM · Quant PM
Traders & Investment Specialists
Specialist risk-takers operating within discretionary, systematic and relative-value strategies across global markets.
Typical searches include:
Trader · Senior Trader · Execution Trader · Derivatives Trader · Options Trader · Systematic Trader · Investment Strategist
Research & Quantitative Talent
Investment decisions depend on the quality of the research underneath them, whether that edge comes from fundamental markets, company analysis, data or systematic modelling.
Typical searches include:
Investment Analyst · Senior Analyst · Quant Researcher · Quant Developer · Data Scientist · Commodity Analyst · Macro Strategist
Investment Leadership & Risk
Senior hires responsible for capital allocation, investment oversight, risk frameworks and the wider performance of the investment business.
Typical searches include:
CIO · Head of Investments · Head of Trading · Head of Risk · CRO · Investment Director · Senior Risk Manager
Individual Hire or Wider Investment Build
Some mandates begin with one Portfolio Manager. Others involve a PM with analysts, an established pod, a specialist trading team or the foundations of a completely new strategy.
Our search can be structured around the individual appointment or around the wider capability the fund is trying to build.
The PM Market Is Bigger Than the People Currently Moving
Availability should not define the search.
The most relevant Portfolio Manager for a mandate may be performing well, properly capitalised and entirely comfortable at a competing fund.
That does not remove them from the market we map.
Imperium builds the search around who fits the requirement, then establishes who can realistically be engaged.
Proven PMs
Relevant strategy · Track record · Risk ownership
We identify Portfolio Managers whose current and historic experience fits the mandate, whether or not they are actively considering a move.
Emerging Talent
Sub-PMs · Senior Traders · Developing Risk-Takers
Not every successful future PM is already carrying the title. Where appropriate, we map professionals with meaningful risk responsibility and evidence that they may be ready for greater capital.
Adjacent Markets
Prop Firms · Banks · Trading Houses · Asset Managers
For specialist strategies, relevant investment talent may sit outside another hedge fund. We search adjacent markets where the underlying risk, products and decision-making experience genuinely transfer.
Search the Market, Then Decide Who Is Available
Starting with a list of movable candidates limits the search before it has begun.
We establish who the fund should know about first. Availability, motivation and commercial feasibility come next.
The Right Person Can Change What a Fund Is Capable Of.
Global Hedge Fund Talent
The market is global, but specialist talent remains concentrated in a small number of investment centres.
Portfolio Managers and investment teams move internationally, while the funds competing for them increasingly operate across several financial centres. We therefore map talent by strategy and track record first, geography second.
New York & Connecticut
New York · Greenwich · Stamford
One of the deepest hedge fund talent markets globally, spanning multi-manager platforms, macro funds, equity strategies, credit, commodities and quantitative investment businesses.
London & Europe
London · Geneva · Zurich · Paris
London remains Europe’s principal hedge fund centre, supported by specialist investment talent across Switzerland and other continental financial markets.
Chicago & US Trading Hubs
Chicago · Boston · San Francisco
Deep pools of quantitative, systematic, derivatives and specialist trading talent, alongside established investment-management and research communities.
Miami & Florida
Miami · Palm Beach · South Florida
An increasingly important base for hedge funds, Portfolio Managers and investment businesses relocating or building additional US investment capability.
APAC
Singapore · Hong Kong · Sydney
Major regional pools of macro, equities, commodities, quantitative and multi-strategy talent, with Singapore particularly important for international investment firms covering Asian markets.
Middle East
Dubai · Abu Dhabi · Riyadh
A rapidly developing market for hedge funds, alternative investment businesses and global managers establishing investment and trading capability closer to regional capital.
Talent Moves More Easily Than Strategy Expertise
The strongest candidate for a mandate may currently sit thousands of miles from the hiring fund.
A commodity PM in Singapore may be relevant to a London platform. A macro investor in New York may be open to Dubai. An established pod may consider moving as a team rather than as individual hires.
Our searches therefore combine global market mapping with a clear understanding of where particular strategies and specialist talent actually concentrate.
Relevant talent is searched globally. Geography should narrow the practical options, not the quality of the initial market map.
Portfolio Manager Teams & Pod Builds
Sometimes the value sits in the team, not one individual.
A successful investment capability is rarely built around a Portfolio Manager in isolation.
Experienced PMs may work with analysts, traders, quantitative researchers or other specialists who understand the strategy, investment process and risk framework around the book. In some cases, keeping that capability together can be considerably more valuable than hiring each component separately.
Imperium can search for individual Portfolio Managers, established pods and complete investment teams, depending on what the fund is trying to build.
PM + Analyst Team
Portfolio Manager · Fundamental Analysts · Research Specialists
For strategies where the investment edge depends on established research capability around the Portfolio Manager.
Established Pod
PM · Sub-PMs · Traders · Analysts · Quant Support
We can map functioning investment pods where the fund wants to acquire a broader capability rather than make a single appointment.
New Strategy Build
Leadership Hire · Investment Team · Supporting Talent
For funds entering a new asset class, geography or strategy, the search can be structured around the people required to build the capability from the ground up.
Trading & Quant Teams
Traders · Quant Researchers · Developers · Data Specialists
Particularly relevant across systematic, relative-value, derivatives and data-driven strategies where performance depends on several closely connected skill sets.
One Conversation Can Become a Much Bigger Opportunity
A Portfolio Manager conversation may reveal that the strongest move involves a wider team, supporting analysts or an established pod.
Where that happens, we can assess the commercial and practical viability of the group as a whole rather than treating each person as an unrelated candidate.
The objective is not simply to move people. It is to understand what investment capability the fund is actually acquiring.
How We Support Hedge Funds
Different mandates require different levels of search, intelligence and market access.
A single Portfolio Manager appointment, an established pod move and a longer-term build programme are very different hiring problems.
Our services can be structured around one critical appointment, a complete investment team or an ongoing requirement to understand and access a specialist talent market.
Retained Search
Dedicated search for a defined investment mandate.
We map the relevant market, approach passive talent directly and represent candidates specifically against the requirement for which we have been retained.
Search Partnership
Ongoing search support across multiple appointments.
For businesses building several strategies, teams or functions, Search Partnership provides continuous access to Imperium without treating every hire as an isolated mandate.
Imperium Edge
Market intelligence before the hiring decision is made.
Talent mapping, competitor intelligence and market research can help a fund understand who sits where, how teams are structured and where relevant capability exists before committing to a search.
Team Moves
Portfolio Managers, pods and established investment teams.
For funds looking beyond an individual hire, we can assess and approach established groups whose value sits in the capability they have built together.
The Structure Should Fit the Hiring Problem
Not every requirement needs the same search model.
A fund hiring one senior PM may need a tightly controlled retained mandate. A new strategy could require several interconnected searches. A leadership team considering its next move may first need visibility of the competitor landscape.
We structure the work around what the fund is trying to achieve, rather than forcing every requirement through the same recruitment process.
Hedge Fund Search, Built Around the Client
If you are paying for the search, it should be your search.
Imperium works with hedge funds, multi-manager platforms and alternative investment businesses on Portfolio Manager, investment, trading, quantitative, risk and leadership appointments, as well as established pods and wider strategy builds.
Our approach begins with the mandate. We define the market, map the relevant people and approach them specifically around what your fund is trying to achieve.
For Hedge Funds
Whether you are looking for a proven Portfolio Manager, building a new strategy or assessing the possibility of acquiring an established team, we can structure the search around the investment capability you actually need.
The process is confidential, targeted and designed around the business commissioning the work.
For Investment Professionals
We also speak confidentially with Portfolio Managers, traders, analysts, quantitative professionals and investment leaders who may be considering their next move.
Many of those conversations begin long before somebody is actively looking for a seat. All conversations are handled in the strictest of confidence. We do not speculate to market.
A Search Model Built for the Firm Paying the Fee
The fund defines the requirement. We search the market around it.
That is the model.
