Portfolio Controlling
The aim of diversified investment management is to manage and implement a given strategy across a range of portfolios; at the same time, real estate investments often show only a small degree of standardisation, meaning that the possibility of influencing them often depends on the extent of the stake held, the legal entity in question, and the basic principles defined as business objectives by corporate governance. Differing uses and investment categories in real estate also have their own characteristics, such as the amount of services outsourced, the communication practices established, and reporting quality.
In order to examine the contribution of each individual investment to the opportunities and risks of a broadly-spread portfolio, a suitable accounting system is indispensible. For us, a system is fit for purpose when it can gather and produce the information required to take decisions without effort. A full range of revenues therefore needs to be collated in order to make the overall income structure clear, and then needs to be made suitable to standardised processing. A regular, timely comparison between the portfolio as is and the goals set for it, along with plausible explanations for any deviation from the course, improves the investor’s trust during yearly changes to the business plan.