Collaborative Partners with Global Investment Expertise

CornerStone’s principals collaborate with each client to develop a diversified, long-term investment portfolio. Client portfolios are well integrated with their broader organizational mission and strategy.  We are focused on generating investment outperformance and effectively managing the portfolio operations.

The advantages of a leading investment platform with the benefits of an internal investment office.

Established Investment Processes

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  • Investment Policy Toggler

    CornerStone collaborates with clients' Board of Directors, Investment Committee, and Staff to develop customized investment policy guidelines. Reflecting each client’s specific objectives – such as return requirements, risk tolerance, payout rates, regulatory considerations, liquidity constraints, and mission-related investing – the Investment Policy Statement is the foundation for the portfolio that CornerStone will build and manage. Other key components of the investment policy include roles and responsibilities and governance.

  • Asset Allocation Toggler

    CornerStone leads the Board and staff of each client through the process of translating the investment objectives into a long-term strategic asset allocation framework. Our process is valuation-based and incorporates historical data, forward-looking analytics, and our collective experience and judgment. Together we integrate the strategic asset class targets, allowable ranges, and appropriate benchmarks into the investment policy.

  • Manager Selection Toggler

    Manager selection alpha, net of fees, is important to achieving our clients’ investment goals. CornerStone employs a comprehensive manager research and due diligence process refined over many years. Our team uses its expertise and professional networks to identify talented investment managers across asset classes and geographies, including less efficient, niche markets. We invest client capital with managers exhibiting consistent, transparent investment practices grounded in fundamental research and analysis. Integrity and alignment of interests are key considerations.

  • Portfolio and Risk Management Toggler

    CornerStone's robust portfolio construction and risk management activities facilitate an investment portfolio with a risk profile customized to the policy guidelines and investment objectives of each client. We incorporate a range of quantitative and qualitative inputs to manage risk, adjust allocations, and implement rebalancing. Our analytical processes are grounded in valuation analysis, and oriented toward prudent long-term decision-making rather than short-term market timing.

  • Fiduciary Excellence Toggler

    CornerStone facilitates client participation in programs designed to ensure our collective goal of achieving and maintaining fiduciary excellence. These activities also enable the Board and staff to validate effective oversight of the investment program to their constituents.

Comprehensive Operations and Administration

In addition to managing investment portfolios for clients, CornerStone offers full-scale back office operational and administrative support as part of our OCIO service. Often considering CornerStone Partners’ operations staff an extension of their own, clients rely on CornerStone for support in a variety of capacities, including, but not limited to:

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  • Performance Reporting Toggler

    We tailor performance reports for each client and provide detailed manager-level data, portfolio-level exposure data, private fund performance data, and a variety of risk metrics.

  • Accounting and Tax Support Toggler

    We assist clients with accounting, audit, and tax support, including confirmation management, investment-related financial statement footnote preparation, and K-1/tax documentation. Our operations professionals include a number of Certified Public Accountants and former auditors, and typically engage directly with client staff and client auditors.

  • Investment Administration Toggler

    CornerStone conducts essential back-office activities, including investment processing, preparation of contracts and subscription documents, and assistance with AML/KYC queries and forms.

  • Portfolio Reconciliations Toggler

    CornerStone regularly verifies custodian-generated values by reconciling data to independently provided manager statements and recalculating performance.

  • Document Management Toggler

    We maintain a library of each client's investment documentation, including performance reports, custodial statements, manager statements, capital calls, offering and subscription documents, audited financial statements, and K-1s.

Important Disclosure
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Portfolios of CornerStone Clients are broadly diversified and invested for the long-term across all the major asset classes, including equities, bonds, hedge funds, and private equity, except where noted. It is not known whether the clients approve or disapprove of the adviser or the advisory services provided. This is neither an offer to subscribe nor a solicitation to invest. Investment advisory fees are described in Part 2 of Form ADV for CornerStone Partners.

FAQs

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  • Do clients invest in a separate account or through a pooled structure? Toggler

    Each client holds a separate account with an institutional custodian. Some CornerStone clients invest entirely with external investment managers directly and investments are held in the name of the client. Other clients invest in a combination of CornerStone-managed asset class commingled fund-of-funds and directly with external investment managers.
  • Are client funds invested in CornerStone-managed investment products? Toggler

    Some CornerStone clients invest entirely with external investment managers directly and investments are held in the name of the client. Other clients invest in a combination of CornerStone-managed asset class commingled fund-of-funds and directly with external investment managers. We invest client portfolios and the CornerStone-managed fund-of-funds with third-party investment managers only. CornerStone does not receive any form of compensation from these third-party external investment managers.
  • How does CornerStone work with client Boards and Investment Committees? Toggler

    A senior member of our firm leads each client relationship, including regular on-site meetings and conference calls. Every meeting agenda is customized with topics that are relevant to the individual client, and we prepare timely and transparent reports in advance.
  • How does CornerStone work with client staff? Toggler

    Our clients have a wide range of staff sizes and organizational resources. We work closely with each client’s internal staff and tailor our services to their needs: from reporting and meeting preparation, to client audit and custodian and document management support. We encourage client staff to think of us as “their investment office down the hall.”
  • Does CornerStone act as a custodian? Toggler

    No. Each client maintains a direct relationship with a custodian. Our team typically works with clients to assist with their custodial relationship and implement the investment program.
  • Does CornerStone work with clients on mission-related or socially responsible investing? Toggler

    Yes. We assist our clients throughout the process to consider mission-related and socially responsible investing. Ultimately, the outcome of these deliberations is determined by the client. Our separate account structure enables us to implement mission-related and socially responsible investing policies for one client without impacting the portfolio of another.
  • Does CornerStone act as a fiduciary for the client accounts it manages? Toggler

    Yes. As an SEC-registered investment adviser and fiduciary, we act as a co-fiduciary for each CornerStone client. We formally acknowledge this status in the Investment Management Agreement with the client.