There are a number of steps you can take to review portfolios and investment managers. As we said earlier, the review process is aided by the drafting of an investment policy statement at the outset. The first step in monitoring portfolios is to decide when the statement and objectives need to be reviewed. In reviewing investment objectives, check whether your personal or financial arrangements have changed and has the asset allocation or managers been changed.

There are numerous questions that aid the monitoring of portfolios. These include:  has the portfolio achieved its stated objectives? Has it tracked the benchmark throughout the period? Is there a maximum downside risk that has been agreed and have the managers breached this?

Have the managers achieved returns in line with expectations? Have they met the criteria to date? Have they managed the assets as instructed? Can the assets easily be tracked and monitored? Have any restrictions placed on the investments been acknowledged and adhered to? Does the asset allocation reflect the stated investment strategy? Finally, you need to decide whether to change any investment managers in your portfolio.