Job Description

Sophisticated Work. In a Great City. Making a Difference.

The State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB) manages more than $178 billion in assets, including those of the fully-funded Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS). SWIB operates at a level more often seen in top-tier global asset managers than in typical public pension funds. SWIB is a home for top talent. Approximately 61 percent of SWIB’s investment professionals are Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholders.

The City of Madison, the state capitol and home of Wisconsin’s flagship university, makes regular appearances on lists of best places to live, eat, and play. SWIB offers a modern workspace, hybrid work options, and competitive compensation and benefits.

Serving over 703,000 WRS beneficiaries, SWIB is driven by a clear mission: securing the financial future of those who serve Wisconsin. When you work at SWIB, you know your work matters.

About the Team

The Fixed Income Strategies team manages over seventeen billion across five portfolios spanning rates, investment grade and leveraged credit, and structured products. The team integrates fundamental and quantitative insights and manages both long-only and long/short strategies. We emphasize disciplined portfolio construction, rigorous risk management, and collaborative decision-making across asset classes.

We are seeking an experienced Senior Portfolio Manager to join our investment team. This role is responsible for conducting in-depth fundamental credit analysis across high yield and leveraged loan issuers, producing investment recommendations, and supporting portfolio construction. The ideal candidate brings strong analytical rigor, market awareness, and a proven ability to identify relative value opportunities in below-investment-grade debt.

Key Responsibilities

• Perform investment research inclusive of credit analysis, deal write-ups, and financial modeling
• Evaluate relative value across bonds, loans, and other credit instruments
• Monitor existing portfolio holdings and provide ongoing risk assessments

• Collaborate with portfolio managers on trade ideas and portfolio positioning
• Engage with traders on market dynamics, liquidity, new issue
• Track market trends, sector developments, and macroeconomic factors impacting credit markets
• Generate written research reports and present investment recommendations to the investment team
• Establish and maintain working relationships and dialogue with sell-side analysts, company management, industry experts and rating agencies,
• Lead, mentor, and develop less seasoned credit analysts
• Partner with quantitative and technology teams to build and enhance research and analytics platforms
• Provide leveraged finance expertise across the firm and participate in cross-market strategies and trades

Qualifications

• Minimum 10 years of experience in leveraged finance analytics, including advanced financial modeling and valuation skills
• Demonstrated success identifying relative value opportunities within covered sectors
• Strong understanding of credit markets, capital structures and distressed situations
• Broad understanding of global fixed income and capital markets
• Strong ability to collaborate effectively within a small team and across investment disciplines
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strategic mindset paired with exceptional attention to detail
• Team-oriented professional with a positive, constructive approach
• Familiarity with CLOs and private credit preferred
• Proficiency with Bloomberg, Aladdin, or similar tools

SWIB Offers:

• Competitive total cash compensation, based on AON (formerly McLagan) industry benchmarks
• Comprehensive benefits package
• Educational and training opportunities
• Tuition reimbursement
• Challenging work in a professional environment
• Hybrid work environment

The position requires U.S. work authorization.Pursuant to our Hybrid Remote Work Policy, all staff have the flexibility to work remotely, but are required to have a weekly presence in our offices, the frequency of which is dependent on their distance from office. Staff are not required to reside locally; however, we offer relocation reimbursement to the Dane County area per our policy.All SWIB employees are subject to SWIB’s Ethics Policy and Personal Trade Approvals Policy. These policies include restrictions on outside business activities and employment and have limits on personal trading. You may request copies of these policies from SWIB’s talent acquisition team and any questions can be answered by SWIB’s compliance team.