Volatility Researcher

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Volatility Researcher

Barclays Global Investors (BGI) is America's largest money manager, providing structured investment strategies such as indexing, risk-controlled active products, and exchange traded funds to investors worldwide. For 35 years, BGI has been at the forefront of developing innovative investment ideas, applying science and technology to the investment process. Headquartered in San Francisco and recently named one of the SF Business Times' "Best Places to Work in the Bay Area," the Barclays PLC subsidiary employs over 2,600 people globally and manages $1.5 trillion in assets.

Overview
BGI is the world's leader in scientifically-based, process-driven active investing. Our research process begins with economically sound hypotheses, which we then test with empirical data. We include all validated insights into a process that broadly and systematically applies those insights. We are well aware of the challenges in capturing the spirit as well as the letter of our insights with quantitative rules. Successful investing is not mechanical. We use our experience to constantly improve our investment process.

BGI's Active Equity products have been the key drivers of firm growth. The newly-formed Advanced Equity Strategies Group seeks to identify and develop new sources of commercial growth for BGI in equities, with the specific goal of significantly impacting BGI's bottom-line over a 3+ year horizon.

We seek an equity volatility researcher with the talent, drive, and entrepreneurial spirit to help us develop equity volatility strategies. The successful candidate is passionately interested in investing: from researching ideas and testing them on historical data, to monitoring portfolio trades resulting from those ideas. This candidate has considerable experience and success in this approach to investment research. This candidate approaches all new ideas with an open mind, and a reliance on the scientific research process.


Responsibilities
Lead our efforts to develop equity volatility strategies. Help with hiring a team dedicated to this effort.
Identify equity volatility ideas. While the main focus is on ideas to be implemented with options, we also have an interest in implications for equity portfolios.
Rigorously research new ideas to determine their investment value in principle, and their commercial value to BGI.
Seek out new sources of data to support this effort.
Work with an entrepreneurial team looking to quickly develop new products.
Communicate with other active equity researchers, to help BGI Active Equities broadly achieve best practices.



Requirements
Substantial equity option research and market experience.
Excellent quantitative skills, as evidenced by formal training in econometrics or statistics, and extensive experience in utilizing those skills in a research environment.
A great "nose" for investment ideas, and a strong understanding of equity options markets, including drivers of return, risk control and portfolio construction techniques.
Strong academic training (graduate level, up to and including Ph.D.) in finance/economics, or the sciences/engineering.
Effective communication skills, both written and verbal. The successful candidate must have the confidence and credibility to persuasively interact with colleagues, management, and clients.
Strong understanding of the use of computer technology in financial research, with strong programming skills.
Strong understanding of data available in the equity options segment of the investment management industry, ability to ferret out relevant data, and construct databases that are useful for validating research results.
Passion for investing.
Business acumen/entrepreneurial spirit.

To apply, please email a Word or PDF resume to ResearchAdvancedEquityStrats@iq.barclaysglobal.com

BGI's San Francisco headquarters is located at 45 Fremont (near Market Street) and is easily accessible by BART and Muni. More information about careers at BGI can be obtained at http://www.barclaysglobal.com/about/careers/?r=19&a=34.



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