Evaluating OCIOs & Solutions Providers: A Groundbreaking New Holistic Framework

Chestnut's New Holistic Value Measurement Approach Enables Asset Owners to Evaluate All Dimensions of Providers' Value-Add Services and Capabilities

NAPLES, Fla., March 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The massive growth in OCIO and investment solutions is being driven by investors seeking holistic solutions addressing complex needs that fall well beyond the traditional risk/return goals. The Chestnut Solutions Institute has created a new Holistic Value Measurement ("HVM") framework that enables investors to move beyond traditional two-dimensional performance and fee assessments toward a holistic view of the provider's ability to ensure the investor achieves their desired outcome.

The Institute's new HVM framework allows investors to assess all the capabilities and services required to deliver the complex and fully customized solutions investors are seeking today. The Institute's HVM approach provides existing and prospective OCIO/solutions clients a multifaceted view of OCIO/solutions provider value and performance across three critical dimensions: investment management, operations and service. 

"This new holistic evaluation framework is needed for the betterment of the investment ecosystem, and to ensure and monitor the achievement of client outcomes," remarks Ravi Venkataraman, Managing Partner. "Current solutions evaluation techniques are two-dimensional because they are derived from traditional single strategy evaluation methods."

The Chestnut Solutions Institute's HVM framework targets both asset owners and providers, with the following core objectives:

• Enhanced governance
• Resisting anchoring bias
• Encouraging long-term evaluation
• Mutual understanding of success measures

We believe that this governance framework had a broad range of applications by both investors and providers, from due diligence and selection to evaluation and monitoring of OCIO and solutions providers and is compatible with other narrower performance monitoring tools such as the CFA's performance disclosure guidelines for OCIO. The Institute is available to facilitate a discussion of the HVM framework and its adoption by investment committees.

The new Holistic Value Measurement framework is detailed in the Institute's Evaluating OCIOS & Solutions Providers report, published today. The full report is available to all Members of the Chestnut Solutions Institute.

The Chestnut Solutions Institute Is Expanding its Reach 

The Chestnut Solutions Institute's engagement with stakeholders across the solutions industry is broadening and deepening as we approach the end of our second year. Highlights of our marketplace engagement include:

Thought Leadership & Research, in addition to today's HVM report: 

• Our recent OCIO is Bigger Than You Think article is the Institute's first step toward creating an industry standard for OCIO AUM.
• Our inaugural Defining Investment Solutions report drew on Chestnut's proprietary market research with over 100 senior professionals across the solutions ecosystem to address a foundational issue facing the marketplace: what, exactly, is an 'investment solution?'

Public Education and Industry Engagement:

• The Institute has presented a wide range of public webinars discussing investment (alternatives, capital markets outlook) and client (non-profits, pensions) issues facing the solutions marketplace. Our speakers include leading asset owners, providers and evaluators.
• The Institute is convening a working group of solutions industry leaders to help create a proposed definition of OCIO AUM. We will publish our findings in 2026.
• We engage regularly with the CFA and others regarding the recently proposed GIPS investment performance reporting guidelines for OCIOs.

Peer-to-Peer Forums: The upcoming Spring Member Forum in Boston on April 24 marks our fourth bi-annual gathering of senior investment and business leaders from our Member firms.  We hear from leading independent experts and discuss key issues facing the industry in a candid, confidential roundtable format. We also set the agenda for future Institute research and marketplace engagement.

We would like to publicly thank all our Members for their leadership, engagement and support of the Institute, and are grateful that all of our founding members renewed for our second year. Members who have given us permission to share their names: Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Key Bank, LCG Associates, Mercer, MFS, Morgan Stanley, State Street Global Advisors, and Telus.

About Chestnut Advisory Group and The Chestnut Solutions Institute

Chestnut Advisory Group ("Chestnut") is a boutique, practitioner-led management consulting firm dedicated to asset managers and investment solutions providers. Since its founding in 2013, Chestnut has provided bespoke advisory services in the areas of strategy, products and solutions, go-to-market strategy, M&A, implementation and distribution leadership coaching and training.

The Chestnut Solutions Institute is an independent forum for investment solutions providers (OCIOs, asset managers, investment consultants) and their partners, dedicated to advancing the future of the investment solutions industry. Institute membership is at the firm level.

For more information, please visit www.chestnutadvisory.com  or email [email protected].

Media Inquiries:
For additional information regarding this report or to learn more about the Chestnut Solutions Institute, please email [email protected] or call us at (941) 212-0298.

SOURCE Chestnut Advisory Group