Investment Policy
Investment Policy adopted by the Board of Directors on August 3, 2022.
DES MOINES MAKER SPACE
Investment Policy
Date of Board Resolution: August 3, 2022
Purpose
This policy establishes investment objectives, policies, guidelines and eligible securities related to all assets held by DES MOINES MAKER SPACE, primarily for investment purposes (‘organizational funds”). In doing so the policy:
• clarifies the delegation of duties and responsibilities concerning the management of organizational funds.
• identifies the criteria against which the investment performance of the organization’s investments will be measured.
• communicates the objectives to the Board, staff, investment managers, brokers, donors and funding sources that may have involvement.
• confirms policies and procedures relative to the expenditure of organizational funds.
• serves as a review document to guide the ongoing oversight of the management of the organizations’ investments.
Delegation of Responsibilities
The Board of Directors has a direct oversight role regarding all decisions that impact DES MOINES MAKER SPACE’s organizational funds. The Board has delegated supervisory responsibility for the management of our organizational funds to the Investment Committee. Specific responsibilities of the various bodies and individuals responsible for the management of our organizational funds are set forth below:
Responsibilities of the Board
The Board shall ensure that its fiduciary responsibilities concerning the proper management of DES MOINES MAKER SPACE’s organizational funds are fulfilled through appropriate investment structure, internal and external management, and portfolio performance consistent with all policies and procedures. Based on the advice and recommendations of the Investment Committee, the Board shall:
• select, appoint and remove members of the Committee.
• approve investment policies and objectives that reflect the long-term investment-risk orientation of the endowment.
Responsibilities of the Investment Committee
Members of the Investment Committee are not held accountable for less than desirable outcomes, rather for adherence to procedural prudence, or the process by which decisions are made in respect to assets. In consideration of the foregoing, the Committee is responsible for the development, recommendation, implementation and maintenance of all policies relative to DES MOINES MAKER SPACE’s organizational funds an shall:
• develop and/or propose policy recommendations to the Board with regard to the management of all organizational funds.
• recommend long-term and short-term investment policies and objectives for our organizational funds, including the study and selection of asset classes, determining asset allocation ranges, and setting performance objectives.
• determine that organizational funds are prudently and effectively managed with the assistance of management and any necessary investment consultants and/or other outside professionals, if any.
• monitor and evaluate the performance of all those responsible for the management of organizational funds.
• recommend the retention and/or dismissal of investment consultants and/or other outside professionals.
• receive and review reports from management, investment consultants and/or other outside professionals, if any.
• periodically meet with management, investment consultants and/or other outside professionals management, investment consultants and/or other outside professionals.
• convene regularly to evaluate whether this policy, investment activities, risk management controls and processes continue to be consistent with meeting the goals and objectives set for the management of organizational funds.
Responsibilities of Management
Management shall be responsible for the day-to-day administration and implementation of policies established by the Board and/or the Investment Committee concerning the management of organizational funds. Management shall also be the primary liaison between any investment consultants and/or other outside professionals that may be retained to assist in the management of such funds. Specifically, management shall:
• oversee the day-to-day operational investment activities of all organizational funds subject to policies established by the Board and/or the Investment Committee.
• contract with any necessary outside service providers, such as: investment consultants, investment managers, banks, and/or trust companies and/or any other necessary outside professionals.
• ensure that the service providers adhere to the terms and conditions of their contracts; have no material conflicts of interests with the interests of DES MOINES MAKER SPACE; and, performance monitoring systems are sufficient to provide the Investment Committee with timely, accurate and useful information.
• regularly meet with any outside service providers to evaluate and assess compliance with investment guidelines, performance, outlook and investment strategies; monitor asset allocation and rebalance assets, as directed by the Investment Committee and in accordance with approved asset allocation policies, among asset classes and investment styles; and, tend to all other matters deemed to be consistent with due diligence with respect to prudent management of organizational funds.
• comply with official accounting and auditing guidelines regarding due diligence and ongoing monitoring of investments, especially alternative investments. Prepare and issue periodic status reports to the Board and the Investment Committee.
Investment Considerations
In accordance with DES MOINES MAKER SPACE’s understanding of the Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act (UPMIFA), the Investment Committee must consider the purposes of both DES MOINES MAKER SPACE and our assets in managing and investing organizational funds. All individuals responsible for managing and investing DES MOINES MAKER SPACE’s organizational funds must do so in good faith and with the care that an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would exercise under similar circumstances. In making any decision relative to the expenditure of organizational funds, each of the following factors must be considered, and properly documented, in the minutes or other records of the applicable decision-making body:
general economic conditions;
possible effect of inflation or deflation;
expected tax consequences, if any, of investment decisions or strategies;
the role that each investment or course of action plays within the overall investment portfolio of the fund;
expected total return from the income and appreciation of investments;
other resources of the organization;
the needs of the organization and the fund to make distributions and preserve capital; and,
an asset’s special relationship or special value, if any, to the organization’s purposes.
Guidelines for Investing
The investment goal of the total return fund is to achieve a total return (income and appreciation) of 5% after inflation, over a full market cycle (3-5 years). The following guidelines apply to the three main investment asset classes:
Money Market Funds:
Allowable range: Minimum 0%; Maximum 50% of total assets
A quality money market fund will be utilized for the liquidity needs of the portfolio whose objective is to seek as high a current income as is consistent with liquidity and stability of principal. The fund will invest in “money market” instruments with remaining maturities of one year or less, that have been rated by at least one nationally recognized rating agency in the highest category for short-term debt securities. If non-rated, the securities must be of comparable quality.
Fixed Income:
Allowable Range- Minimum 0%; Maximum 50% of total assets
Bond investments will consist solely of taxable, fixed income securities that have an investment- grade rating (BBB or higher by Standard & Poor’s and Baa or higher by Moody’s) that possess a liquid secondary market. If the average credit quality rating disagrees among the two rating agencies, then use the lower of the two as a guideline. The maximum maturity of the fixed income portfolio will be 30 years. Prohibited securities include: private placements, derivatives (other than floating-rate coupon bonds), margined transactions and foreign denominated bonds.
Performance Measurements Standards
The benchmarks to be used in evaluating the performance of the main asset class will be:
• Fixed Income: Lehman Brothers Government/Corporate Index- Goal: exceed the average annual return of the index over a full market cycle (3-5 years).
It will be the responsibility of the Investment Committee of the Board of Directors to regularly review the performance of the investment account and investment policy guidelines, and report to the Board of Directors at least quarterly with updates and recommendations as needed.
Expenditure Considerations
The Board of Directors and the Investment Committee are responsible for the establishment of a balanced reserve fund spending policy to:
a) ensure that over the medium-to-long term, sufficient investment return shall be retained to preserve and grow its economic value as a first priority; and,
b) to provide funds for the annual operating budget in an amount which is not subject to large fluctuations from year-to-year to the extent possible.
Expenditure of Organizational Funds
All decisions relative to the expenditure of organizational funds must assess the uses, benefits, purposes and duration for which the institutional fund was established, and, if relevant, consider the factors:
the duration and preservation of the organizational fund;
purposes of DES MOINES MAKER SPACE and the fund;
general economic conditions;
possible effect of inflation or deflation;
expected total return from income and appreciation of investments;
other organizational resources;
all applicable investment policies; and
where appropriate, alternatives to spending from the organizational fund and the possible effects of those alternatives.
For each decision to appropriate organizational funds for expenditure, an appropriate contemporaneous record should be kept and maintained describing the nature and extent of the consideration that the appropriate body gave to each of the stipulated factors.
Donor Restrictions
In all instances, donor intent shall be respected when decisions are rendered concerning the investment or expenditure of donor restricted funds. If a donor, in the gift instrument, has directed that appreciation not be spent, DES MOINES MAKER SPACE shall comply with that directive and consider it when making decisions regarding the management and investment of the fund. Any attempt to lift restrictions on any fund shall be conducted in full compliance with the law.
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