2015 Investment Management Awards: Greg Williamson

Greg Williamson joined Amoco Corp., a predecessor company to BP America, in 1991. The MBA graduate of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management honors program gained the experience he would need to manage a complex pension portfolio through his earlier work in investment banking, proprietary trading and strategic planning at firms like Northern Finance and O’Connor & Associates. Named to the CIO role at BP America in 2008, Williamson, now 52, until recently oversaw $8 billion each in defined benefit and defined contribution plans, plus $2 billion in assets that include the BP Foundation’s. Williamson, who on May 1 started a new job as CIO of the American Red Cross in Washington, leaves the BP fund with a 40 percent allocation to fixed income and 60 percent in equities (one third of it in private equity). Although BP as a matter of policy does not invest in hedge funds or real assets, “the investment office was a first mover in a portable-alpha philosophy, seeking effective alpha wherever it exists and using derivatives [if necessary] to introduce the desired beta allocation,” Williamson explains. BP’s pension plan has a five-year annualized return of 13.52 percent through December 31, 2014.

The 2015 U.S. Investment Management AwardsClick to View Profile

Large Public PensionJagdeep Singh Bachher Small EndowmentJason Matz Large FoundationShawn Wischmeier Manager Lifetime AchievementHenry Kravis

Small Public PensionFadi BouSamra Large Corporate PensionGreg Williamson Large EndowmentMark Schmid Investor Lifetime AchievementSandra Urie

Small FoundationClara Miller Small Corporate PensionMarie Pillai