Resilience, Reinvention, and Responsibility: What’s Defining Investment Operations For Alex Shaik in 2025
In an era defined by disruption, investment operations leaders are confronting change not as a season—but as the new default state.
Ahead of the second annual InvestOps Asia, we’ve been speaking with senior operations executives across the buy side to shape a conversation rooted in today’s realities: shifting regulations, evolving workforce expectations, and a complex “build vs buy” landscape. The recent conversation with Alex Shaik (Partner, ADM Capital) is already pointing to key themes that will dominate the discussion this year.
1. Navigating Regulatory Uncertainty with Purpose and Clarity
“If I were to think of one word to sum up this year, it would be ‘change.’ ”
That was the opening reflection from Alex —and it sets the tone for the year. From geopolitical realignments to divergent ESG and anti-bribery (ABAC) policies across jurisdictions, regulatory complexity is rising. But rather than chase compliance on a country-by-country basis, firms are instead focusing on their internal compass.
“It is important to focus on consistent application of your firm’s policies in a way which helps position your firm as a leader with clients and employees.”
With AI’s growing influence and cross-border capital dynamics evolving—especially with the rise of intra-Asia flows—investment ops teams are tasked with absorbing this volatility while reinforcing operational clarity. Those who succeed are doing so by doubling down on core principles, embedding compliance into operational culture, and implementing supervisory safeguards over emerging tech.
2. Redefining the Investment Operations Team of the Future
The evolution of the investment operations role is not just about technology—it’s about people.
“A strong firm needs to invest in training and career progression for its employees, as well as giving them responsibility to learn through practical experience in the field.”
In a competitive hiring market, career development and exposure to real-world operational challenges are non-negotiables for retaining top talent. Leaders are also prioritizing cross-functional agility—equipping their teams with the strategic understanding to partner across risk, compliance, and data functions.
Expect the conversations at InvestOps Asia to go beyond process automation, and delve into how firms are building teams that can thrive in ambiguity, adapt quickly, and lead operational transformation.
3. Balancing Outsourcing with Control and Resilience
Few questions spark as much ongoing debate in investment operations as the outsourcing dilemma.
“Few outsourcing solutions are perfectly suited to your platform… Even if you choose to ‘build’ internally, it is important to keep current on new alternative offerings.”
The key takeaway? Whether firms lean in-house or rely on third parties, the focus is squarely on resilience. Portability of data, ease of migration, and avoiding over-engineered platforms are all becoming must-haves in outsourcing evaluations. Operational simplicity—where internal teams can manage systems without constant technical intervention—is now seen as a strategic differentiator.
Framing the Future: A Collective Challenge
What’s clear from these early conversations is that investment operations is no longer a behind-the-scenes function. It’s becoming a cornerstone of strategic agility—where regulatory fluency, talent development, and operational resilience intersect.
Whether it’s managing the impact of AI, adapting to fragmented compliance landscapes, or reassessing outsourcing models, leaders are being asked to make decisions that will shape not only how their firms operate—but how they grow.
As the year unfolds, continuing to share and compare these perspectives will be essential. Because in times of rapid change, it’s the strength of our collective insight that helps define the path forward.
Are you interested to hear more leaders discuss the future of investment operations? The conversations continues at InvestOps - download the agenda to see who else is attending.