Art by Steve WacksmanThe Employees Retirement System of Texas’ (ERS) director of
investments is leaving for an endowment, CIO
has learned.
Robert Lee will join Texas Tech University System as deputy CIO come October, working as Associate Vice Chancellor and CIO Tim Barrett’s right-hand man.
Lee—who was named on the Forty Under Forty and Power 100 lists—has been at the $26 billion pension fund for five years, largely overseeing the hedge fund, liquid alternatives, and hybrid allocations.
He also implemented ERS’ new hedge fund program since 2011, which has grown to include a variety of portfolios across traditional and nontraditional asset classes.
Since joining the Austin, Texas-based pension plan, Lee has been active in a number of organizations bridging the hedge fund industry with allocators. He is an investor advisory board member of the Alternative Investments Forum, and a member of the board of directors of the Texas Hedge Fund Association and the Alignment of Interest Association.
Prior to his role at ERS, Lee worked as the associate director of portfolio management for HFR Asset Management and Riverside Portfolio Management (an HFR spinout). He began his career as a hedge fund analyst at Switzerland-based 47 Degrees North Capital Management.
Lee holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics from Texas State University and a master’s degree in economics from the University of Konstanz in Germany.
Related: 2012 Power 100: #94 Robert Lee & 2014 Forty Under Forty