UK – Watson Wyatt has today released a four-year track record of its manager research performance, saying that in which all 13 model portfolios outperformed their benchmark.

“We are pleased with the figures as they reinforce our assertion that good manager research is capable of adding value,” said Nick Watts, the firm’s European head of investment consulting. “This is particularly important now, given the imperative to reduce pension fund deficits.”

The firm has run notional portfolios of investment managers for four years to monitor the quality of its manager research and selection. The data is reviewed by Deloitte & Touche and covers 13 asset classes.

Watts added: “The performance figures are gratifying even though they are over a relatively short period because they are a justification of our strategy to commit substantial resources to providing quality manager research on a global scale.”

Watson Wyatt now has over 130 investment consultants worldwide involved in manager research - they conduct more than 2,000 formal research meetings a year with investment managers globally.

In 2003, 57 billion dollars of assets were awarded to investment managers by the firm’s clients worldwide, an increase of 27% over 2002.

The model portfolios show how an institutional investor might have performed had they placed assets with investment managers recommended by the firm in key asset classes.

It did not name the underlying asset managers.