Building strong foundations: Mission clarity

We have long argued that good governance is a key factor that distinguishes the very successful asset owner funds of the world. In 2007, Roger Urwin (Willis Towers Watson’s Global Head of Investment Content) and Professor Gordon Clark (Oxford University) conducted a landmark study of investment governance. The study was carried out by examining ten exemplar funds which were selected on the basis of their reputations for strong decision-making accompanied by performance success. The key conclusion of the study was that strong governance is a critical requirement to allow organisations to achieve above average investment outcomes on a sustainable basis.

This note is part of our Building Strong Foundations series which address these 12 factors in turn. Here our focus is on mission clarity: What does having mission clarity involve? Why is it important? What are some of the nuances worth exploring further? And how might organisations go about building and embedding this mission clarity in their funds?