Episode 342: Kirsty Gibson of Baillie Gifford: The complex (yet elegant) choreography of active equity management.

Kirsty Gibson is an investment manager at Baillie Gifford, where she has spent over 13 years.  She is currently focused in particular on investing in US equities with a growth orientation. Our conversation starts with Kirsty’s roots and her training in classical ballet. This was an unusual yet direct route to Baillie Gifford as she first came across the firm when she saw that they were sponsoring a ballet performance they had attended – evidence that sponsorship of similar events does in fact get noticed and yield returns!

We move then to her investment beliefs, her Masters in carbon management and what she derived from it and her approach to stock picking. We dive into the cultural aspects that make a firm a rewarding place to work, and about the mindset needed to thrive as an active equity manager today. 

This podcast is kindly sponsored by Evanston Capital and Alvine Capital. For over 20 years Evanston Capital has had a key focus in identifying early-stage investment managers it believes are capable of generating long-term, value-added returns in complex, innovative strategy areas. Alvine Capital is a specialist investment manager and placement boutique with a particular focus on alternative assets with significant presence in London and Stockholm.