Both are highly trained and skilled.
Both work within some form of established guidelines. For the investment manager it’s an investment policy. For the chef it’s a recipe. Both allow for creativity and flexibility, but ensure discipline and consistency in the process.
Both know the value of quality ingredients and the difference they make in the final result. Great investment managers trust their experience, research and instincts to pick great investments from the thousands of choices available. The great chef will insist on the very best of every ingredient when preparing a meal. Great chefs would not buy a crate of tomatoes without knowing what lies beneath the top layer nor would the great investment manager buy the “market” by purchasing index funds and all of the underperforming companies included in the mix.
Great chefs usually specialize in a particular style or region of the world. Likewise, great investment managers tend to specialize in certain categories or markets.
Although great talent and ingredients don’t come cheap, the results are usually worth the price.
The big difference is that the chef’s creation is placed before his guest and the results are immediate and visceral. There is no waiting for the performance evaluation.
The money manager must endure economic cycles and market volatility over extended time periods before performance may be fairly measured and compared to appropriate benchmarks.
Legacy Trust designs and implements high quality, well-diversified portfolios and employs great investment managers to assure that only the best ingredients are brought to the table.