Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
At Garcia Hamilton & Associates, L.P. (GH&A), diversity is a mindset and philosophy that permeates everything we do from the management of the Firm to the management of investments. We believe the commitment to diverse, inclusive, and transparent corporate governance starts with the asset manager and its own internal practices, not just the securities the manager evaluates for the portfolio. At GH&A we practice what we preach, to ensure corporate governance and D&I is reflected in our professionals, investments, vendor relationships, stewardship, and community engagement.
Firm Overview
GH&A is proud to be 100% employee owned and operated as well as MBE/HUB certified in several states and cities with 88% of the Firm ownership held by minority and women partners and 64% held by minority partners. Diversity is reflected at all levels – ownership, senior management, investment team, and overall staff – and across all departments – investment team, marketing and client services, operations, and administration – of the Firm. We always look for “reasons to make diversity work” rather than “reasons to eliminate diversity.” Our efforts have led to approximately 69% of the Investment Team and 88% of all Firm staff being minority or women.
We strive to set an example as an industry leader in fixed income solutions for institutional clients, as well as a leader in corporate D&I. We believe diverse backgrounds lead to better solutions. The Firm has promoted women and minorities into leadership and executive management roles across all departments including Named Partner, Portfolio Manager, Director of Marketing and Client Services, Chief Compliance Officer, Operations Manager, and Client Relations Manager.
We feel strongly that our employees are some of the hardest working and dedicated professionals in the business. The contribution of our women and minority team members to the Firm’s success and industry has been profound. Companies that provide good jobs and offer better wages, benefits, and career advancement should perform better, and we believe fostering a diverse and inclusive work culture is a major competitive advantage and brings significant benefit to our clients.
GH&A MBE/HUB Certifications
| City/State/Agency | Type of Certification |
|---|---|
| California Public Utilities Commission | MBE |
| City of Houston, TX | MBE |
| City of Philadelphia, PA | MBE |
| City of Rockford, IL | MBE |
| Delaware | MBE |
| Illinois | MBE |
| New York City | MBE |
| New York State | MBE |
| North Carolina | HUB |
| Port Authority of New York & New Jersey | MBE |
| Texas | HUB |
Awards & Recognition
Each third-party award/ranking about Garcia Hamilton & Associates, L.P. (GH&A) or its representatives was given based upon various criteria and methodologies. GH&A paid no fee to be considered for awards/rankings, and they may not be representative of actual client experiences. Go to www.garciahamiltonassociates.com/awards for additional information on each award.
GH&A has received numerous industry recognitions including 2019 Fixed Income Manager of the Year, 2018 Fixed Income Manager of the Year, and 2010 Core Fixed Income Manager of the Year by Emerging Manager Monthly. The Firm most recently received Pensions & Investments’ Best Places to Work in Money Management for the seventh year (2023, 2022, 2020-2016). Houston Business Journal recognized GH&A as an Outstanding Diverse Organization in 2021. Other awards include 2014 Fixed Income Investment Grade Manager of the Year, 2015 Intermediate-Term Fixed Income Manager of the Year, and 2016 Intermediate-Term Fixed Income Manager of the Year by Institutional Investor.
Diverse Talent
We actively seek a pipeline of quality, diverse candidates in our recruitment and hiring practices. It is the policy of GH&A to provide equal opportunity in employment to all employees and applicants for employment. We believe in promoting from within, which has led to a high concentration of minority and women in senior leadership and management roles across all departments including Investment Professionals (69%) and Senior Executives/Management (83%). We recruit, hire, train, and promote individuals in all job titles without regard to race, color, creed, religion, ancestry, sexual orientation, national origin, age, gender, disability, military status, or any other characteristic.
We recruit the best, but more importantly, we retain the best by offering a competitive salary, superior benefits, annual bonuses, and equity ownership. First, we offer a very competitive salary based on an individual’s experience and expected contribution to the Firm. Second, all employees are eligible for a general annual bonus that is tied directly to the overall performance of the individual as well as the profitability of the Firm. Lastly, all GH&A senior professional staff are eligible for equity ownership with the most equity distribution occurring annually.
Regarding diverse brokerage, GH&A executes transactions with a broad group of broker/dealers and will always solicit at least one bid or offer from a woman, minority, or veteran-owned firm for each transaction. Our brokerage goal is a firm-wide initiative and is implemented for all accounts even if there is no client-directed mandate to do a certain percentage of transactions with diverse firms. We are proud to have executed in competition approximately 65% of all trades over the last 5-year period to MWVD firms.
We also seek MWBE firms when selecting all vendors. We believe in paying-it-forward and also support minorities and women at large organizations. Currently, we have contracts with five MWBE vendors (not including brokerage) and work with several other firms where our primary contact is a woman or minority.
Click here to learn more about our staff.
Mentoring the Next Generation of Leaders
We train and prepare all employees, including women and minority employees, for promotion through mentorship and pairing employees with senior team members to educate them on the industry as well as to serve as a sounding board and extra layer of support. Many of our Partners started at GH&A as junior team members and were mentored and developed for senior level positions. We challenge junior team members by assigning a diverse set of both client and investment-facing projects to expose them to different key areas of the Firm and to present more opportunities and tools to succeed. Furthermore, we encourage all our team members to participate in client and consultant outreach and meetings to build confidence in their role as a representative of GH&A. These practices have led to 14 of our 18 Partners being women and/or minority.
We are committed to mentoring future generations of women and minority youth in the industry and host a robust summer, paid internship program for 20 undergraduate and high school students each year – for which we recruit minority and women applicants – to give them exposure to the highly competitive investment industry. Interns gain valuable exposure and hands-on learning from senior staff in the highly competitive investment industry.
We understand the value and impact of minority and women youth seeing and hearing from diverse senior leaders in the asset management industry. The Firm mentors youth throughout the Houston community by participating in career days and speaking engagements at college campuses, high schools, and conferences.
While we do not source team members through our mentorship initiatives, we are proud that five of our current employees participated in our internship program, including two Partners who are senior members of our investment team.
Contact us for more information regarding our internship program or community mentoring.
Industry & Non-profits
As a leader in the investment management industry, GH&A seeks to serve as a positive example for other women- and minority-owned firms and to leave a legacy of impactful change to close the inequality gap in the industry. As such, GH&A is committed to a more transparent and diverse corporate citizenship within the industry. The Firm has collaborated with a variety of organizations to promote corporate governance and diversity and inclusion (D&I) initiatives in the industry including the recruitment and retention of women and minorities. Our outreach efforts are robust and include the involvement of our Firm Partners and professionals in senior level positions and advisory roles with National Association of Securities Professionals (NASP), Diverse Asset Managers Initiative (DAMI), Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO), the CFA Institute, and the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) through FACA Committees: Fixed Income Market Structure Advisory Committee (FIMSA), and Asset Management Advisory Committee (AMAC).
In addition to sharing our time and knowledge, we believe in giving back to the community financially. The Firm has contributed over $4.1 million to many charitable organizations with a focus on education, diversity, and veterans over the past several years. Additionally, GH&A is a significant sponsor of the Robert Toigo Foundation Fellows Program, which supports diverse MBA candidates committed to careers in finance.
Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) Reporting
GH&A become a signatory to the United Nation's supported PRI June 2019. Our most recent Transparency Report was filed September 2023 for the 2021 reporting year.
Click here to view our latest PRI Transparency Report.
A copy of our PRI Assessment Report is available upon request.
Disclosure
Any information contained in this correspondence is for informational purposes only and is not intended as an offer or solicitation with respect to the purchase or sale of any security. Rankings and recognitions by unaffiliated publications should not be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that GH&A will provide a certain level of results in client accounts, nor should they be construed as current or past endorsements of GH&A by clients. Such publications base their selections on information prepared and/or submitted by the sponsor organization. Investments in securities involve the risk of loss. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Do not rely upon this information to predict future investment performance or market conditions. This information is not a substitute for consultation with a competent financial, legal, or tax adviser and should only be used in conjunction with their advice.
