→ The Great Resignation Continues. Turnover among chief investment officers in the endowment and foundation world has increased in the last two years, with leadership changes occurring across several high-profile institutions, including Princeton, Rice, and the MacArthur Foundation.

Now, most of these vacancies and subsequent leadership changes are the result of retirements. And while this level of turnover is on the high end, it’s still within the normal range of senior investment staff turnover.
 

But still — this turnover is high. Following Princeton’s decision to replace Andrew Golden with MIT’s Vince Tuohey, Rice University has been seeking a successor for Allison Thacker, CIO and president of Rice Management Co. Meanwhile, Johns Hopkins is replacing Jason Perlioni, and Mark Baumgartner is assuming Bill Reeser’s roles at UFICO. Over on the foundation side, the MacArthur Foundation is seeking a new CIO to succeed Susan Manske, and Katharine “K.C.” Krieger recently took over at the J. Paul Getty Trust following James Williams’ retirement.
 

These changes represent billions of dollars in assets now being entrusted to new leadership — a generational handoff reshaping the E&F investment landscape. And this wave of turnover isn’t confined to endowments and foundations — large asset managers including PGIM, Principal, Schroders, and Natixis have also recently made leadership changes, adding to what feels like a broader reshuffling across the investment world.
 

CIO turnover is nothing new, especially when many departures stem from planned retirements. However, there may be other factors. Jim Scheinberg, founder of North Pier Search Consulting, told me this week that the CIO role has become “an increasingly high-profile position with non-investment-related pressures attached to it.”
 

“The level of scrutiny placed on that CIO position has never been higher,” he added. University endowments, for example, are facing mounting pressure to align their portfolios with stakeholder demands on issues like environmental sustainability, human rights, and geopolitics. Navigating those tensions can be precarious.
 

“If you respond in your portfolio, inevitably there’s going to be a period when combustible energy does well," Scheinberg said. “And if you don’t respond, there’ll be a set of stakeholders who think this is an irresponsible way to run a portfolio.” It’s a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” role.
 

(To be clear, Scheinberg did not claim — nor am I suggesting — that any of the above-mentioned CIOs retired earlier than planned due to any of these non-investment-related pressures. He was just explaining that the increased pressures that E&F CIOs face could be contributing to turnover.)
 

Social media has also played a crucial role in a way it hadn’t a decade prior. "Ten years ago, you didn't have this direct community response," he said. "Now, every decision is immediately scrutinized."
 

And all of this is on top of the overall move to OCIOs. So, as CIOs are retiring and (mostly) being replaced by external hires, Scheinberg said that foundations and endowments should make sure they document their best practices. "We're often brought in during regime changes to review everything — from governance to cost structures," he said. "Sometimes to memorialize the process before a transition even happens."
 

CIOs also face the challenge of balancing the often-competing priorities of stakeholders, such as achieving strong returns while maintaining risk tolerance and addressing mission-driven goals. “You have to get it right every day in an environment in which getting it right is practically impossible," Scheinberg said.
 

Anyway, that’s it for this edition of EA. We’re off next week — hope everyone who celebrates Thanksgiving has a happy one!