Episode Description

In this episode of Fund Selectors, host Lucy Walker speaks with Shakhista Mukhamedova, Head of Global Manager Research Europe at RBC Brewin Dolphin. Shakhista shares insights from her unique career path, starting in structured products before moving into fixed income and alternatives. The discussion explores the evolution of fund research, the challenges of professionalising manager selection, and the importance of investment philosophy and behavioural analysis in fund research. Shakhista also reveals how her team distils complex information to identify high-conviction fund managers and why gut instinct can sometimes be as crucial as data. Plus, she shares her favourite book recommendations and discusses the behavioural biases fund selectors need to overcome.

[0:03] – Introduction by Lucy Walker
[0:22] – Guest introduction: Shakhista Mukhamedova’s career path into fund research
[1:40] – How Shakhista became interested in markets and investing
[5:09] – Career journey at RBC Brewin Dolphin: from structured products to fund selection
[9:54] – Expanding into infrastructure, property, and alternatives
[13:02] – Leading a global manager research team: defining the team’s purpose
[17:02] – Evolution of manager research: from informal selection to professionalisation
[22:31] – The four pillars of fund research: people, philosophy, process, and performance
[23:45] – Why investment philosophy is often overlooked but crucial
[26:08] – The importance of understanding behavioural finance in fund research
[31:38] – When a fund “feels” wrong: the role of gut instinct in research
[37:01] – How Shakhista’s team collaborates across asset classes and investment solutions
[40:23] – Refining the due diligence questionnaire: from 50 pages to a distilled focus
[47:00] – Why Brewin Dolphin reduced its recommended fund list to high-conviction picks
[51:35] – Book recommendation
[57:22] – A past fund research mistake and lessons learned
[1:04:26] – Shakhista’s question for the next guest