Pulling Back the Curtain on the People Pillar Rating of Bond Funds

Measuring the strength and weakness of an investment team is one of the core responsibilities of Morningstar’s Manager Research team. Good investment teams are appropriately staffed for the strategies they manage, demonstrate good judgment over time, and act in the best interests of their clients. A poor investment team may be mis-staffed, misaligned, or misbehaving. The difference can have a material impact on investment outcomes.

Indeed, the People Pillar rating is an integral part of the Morningstar Analyst Rating. The score we assign to the People Pillar accounts for 45% of the overall Analyst Rating, equal in importance with the Process Pillar rating. The Parent Pillar receives a 10% weight, while performance is not scored at all.