Manager Financial
Resume:
THOMAS R. WILLIS
*** *. ******, *******, ** *****
**********@*****.*** 847-***-****
Profile Summary
I am a highly competent, focused and results oriented Portfolio Manager with over 10 years of Institutional Investment experience. As a multi-talented leader who promotes diversity of ideas and concepts, I possess a deep understanding of the commodity markets and look to draw upon that experience to bring an analytical approach to an institutional trading desk.
Professional Experience
Mesirow Financial Chicago, IL
Portfolio Manager/Senior Vice President April 2007 – January 2015
Co-founder of Commodity Division at Mesirow Financial, a diversified financial services firm focused on managing alternative assets
Portfolio Manager of Absolute Return Strategy, a commodity-focused fund which consistently ranked as one of the best performing risk-adjusted products in the space
Successfully managed $1 Billion in client accounts across multiple asset classes and various business cycles
Performed independent analysis on various commodity and financial markets as part of a differentiated investment process
Executed and managed trades
Led quarterly investor calls and created monthly market commentary for clients and prospective investors
Handled client facing PM responsibilities during investor due-diligence process
Brought diversification to product offerings by creating a 40Act and UCITS fund
Responsible for assembling and managing the Operations and Business Development teams; established performance metrics, goal setting criteria, and developed practices and procedures to provide training to new hires
Worked with Senior Management to develop group’s long term strategic outlook
Featured in many industry publications and investor conferences
Facilitated group collaborative input and authored comprehensive organizational business plan, presented to CEO and Director of Corporate Strategy, to clarify, and focus the objectives and goals of the Commodities group
Kottke Associates Chicago, IL
Fund Manager February 2002 – May 2007
Managed customer and proprietary funds for a grain based Commodity Trading Advisor (CTA) with a $300 Million trading level
Responsible for managing soybean, soybean meal and corn markets within a diversified commodity portfolio
Formed Willis Trading Group, a Delaware LLC, organized to manage client accounts with respect to commodity futures and option contracts
Negotiated the acquisition of Willis Trading Group, LLC by Mesirow Financial
CMT Capital Markets Trading Chicago, IL & Frankfurt, Germany
Proprietary Trader September 2000 – January 2002
Used in house software to arbitrage between various index and fixed income products on EUREX, CME and CBOT exchanges
Developed a market-making strategy in the 5 Year Treasury Notes that generated a bid/ask spread based on the intra-day directionality of the yield curve
Created and implemented a profitable directional trading strategy
Hedged deltas for equity derivatives team
Registered trader on EUREX exchange
Chicago Board of Trade Chicago, IL
Independent Futures Trader May 1998 – July 2000
Purchased membership in April 1998
Registered floor broker with NFA
Honed skills as a strength-weakness/relationship trader in the grain complex
Elected to the Agricultural Pit Committee in April 2000
Chicago Board of Trade Chicago, IL
Assistant to an Independent Broker May 1997 – August 1997
Managed the grain desk for an independent broker employed by Linnco Futures Group (LFG)
Monitored markets and performed risk analysis on trader’s futures and options positions
Reconciled trade profit and losses on position statements
Ensured accuracy of trades and resolved trade discrepancies with pit traders and clearing firms
Floor Clerk June 1993 – August 1993
Trade checker for prominent “local”/broker on the grain floor
Financial Licenses & Registrations
FINRA Series 3
Organizations and Affiliations
Member – Chicago Board of Trade
Board Member – Culinary Care
Education
Lake Forest College December 1999
Bachelors of Arts – Economic
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