Ten Mistakes in Investment Policy Development

May 09, 2024

Since GEM’s inception, we have probably seen over five hundred Investment Policy Statements. Though they’ve varied in length, style, and level of detail, we’ve observed that there is a consistent and recurring set of issues related to Purpose, Governance, Construction, Evaluation, and Alignment.

With this framework, we further explore the ten mistakes we most often see in investment policy development:

  1. An undefined purpose
  2. Vague investment goals
  3. Unclear roles and responsibilities
  4. Under- or over-diversification
  5. Assuming historical correlations will hold
  6. Mistaking legal structures for investment strategies
  7. Confusing beta and alpha
  8. Lacking specific benchmarks and time periods
  9. Too much backseat driving
  10. No linkage between the institution, the spending policy, and the IPS

Read our whitepaper to learn more about the importance of carefully crafting an Investment Policy Statement to ensure successful execution of your investment program into perpetuity.

 

Read More

Recent Insights

GEM 2026 Investment Policy Review

Three years after our last Investment Policy review, the regime has shifted: higher rates, sticky inflation, and a positive stock-bond correlation. In this conversation, GEM’s CIO Matt Bank revisits not just capital market assumptions but the framework itself, from methodology to implementation and risk management.

GEM Closes Inaugural Seed & Micro Venture Fund at $82 Million

The firm announced the final close of GEM Seed & Micro Venture Fund, LP. The Fund closed with $82 million in commitments—exceeding its hard cap and fundraising target—and marks GEM's first vehicle focused specifically on seed- and micro-stage venture capital.

Independent sponsors are beating the buyout funds

Kelly Barofsky, a Managing Director in GEM’s Investment Research Group, spoke with PitchBook about the continued momentum behind independent sponsors and why deal-by-deal structures can create strong alignment between sponsors and investors.

Connect with us

Let’s start a conversation about how we can help.