By David G. Barry
Institutional investors have traditionally hired individuals
to deploy capital in specific asset categories, whether it be equities, private
equity, real estate or perhaps credit.
Jason Perlioni, chief investment officer at Johns
Hopkins University, appears to be interested in taking a different tact. According
to a job description posted by the Baltimore university earlier this month, it
is seeking a director of investments to focus exclusively on healthcare. According
to the
posting, the new hire will be an “integral member” of JHU’s investment
office and will lead its healthcare investment activities. The person will
“play a key role conducting due diligence on new and existing investment
managers across public and private equity and credit, with a particular focus
on biotechnology, pharmaceutical, healthcare and related technology investment
opportunities.”
JHU is seeking a person with “demonstrable success in prior
healthcare work experience, which may include roles in investment management,
investment banking, management consulting and/or corporate strategy, and/or as
a physician taking care of patients.” A Johns Hopkins spokesperson declined to
comment about the posting, saying the university “does not typically comment on
hiring plans.”
One institutional investor said he is aware of a few other
institutions that have assigned investment professionals to spend some of their
time focused on a particular segment. What Johns Hopkins may be seeking to do
sounds “newish,” the source said. He, as well as several other investors spoken
to by Markets Group, said the question is whether Johns Hopkins – a world-renowned
medical school – is just adding this position because of its expertise or
whether it will add industry professionals that also focus on, for example,
energy, financial services or technology.
One industry observer, who called Perlioni “innovative,”
said they would not be surprised if JHU eventually did add other investment
segments. Perlioni joined JHU in 2017 as its second-ever CIO. He previously
spent 10 years as CIO of Pritzker Group Asset Management. The investment office
is responsible for investing the endowments for the university, Johns Hopkins
Hospital, and other related endowed entities totaling more than $8 billion,
among many other assets,
Another institutional investor said she has not “seen people
hiring industry experts” and that such a move would “make sense if the person
was doing a lot of direct investing or co-investing.” She, as well, as others
spoken to by Markets Group, expressed concern about the future job prospects of
the person taking the role. Focusing exclusively on healthcare would enable
them to “get into the weeds,” said one. But, asked another, would that
knowledge be of value if the person sought to go to another institutional
investor or wanted to become a CIO?
Clearly, segmentation is a key part of the investment world
with many venture capital, private equity and hedge fund firms focused exclusively
on such segments as technology, healthcare and energy. But, as one individual
pointed out, the Yale Investments Office has long backed healthcare-specific
firms and has not felt a need to add a dedicated healthcare person to its team.
The search for a healthcare-specific director of investments
comes on the heels of Mark Rooney joining the investment office as
director of investments. The school’s spokesperson said that Rooney’s hiring is
separate from the search for the healthcare-focused investment director.
Rooney, according to a university statement, will work across the entire
investment portfolio and will focus on its public and private investments in
value-oriented strategies, including public equity, distressed credit and
opportunistic value investments.
He will report to Christopher Lenox, managing director of investments,
who joined the investment office in 2018. Rooney was most recently the lead
portfolio manager/analyst on the international equity value team at Lazard
Asset Management. His background includes serving as a portfolio manager at LRV
Capital and a partner at Millgate Capital.
Another member of the JHU investment team, Joanna Pratt, left in February. She had joined the investment office at the same time as Lenox, also as a managing director. Her future plans are not known. Prior to Johns Hopkins, she was an investment team director at Stanford Management Co. at Stanford University.
