SMA Trade Operations Specialist

Lord, Abbett & Co. • Jersey City, NJ

5d • $85,000 - $110,000

About The Position

The Role The SMA business within Lord Abbett is growing and we are seeking a unique individual to join as an SMA Trade Operations Specialist. Integrated with Investments, the SMA Operations group is part of the larger Global Investment Platform Integrity team which is essential to ensuring our investment professionals can drive investment performance with accurate and timely access to data. As a member of the SMA Trade Operations team, you will have a unique opportunity to not only support a growing and thriving SMA business but also be empowered to play a key role in developing our future state operating model focused on delivering scale and efficiency. This role supports daily trading, account onboarding, model delivery, reconciliation, and operational oversight for our Separately Managed Account (SMA) platform. The ideal candidate brings strong product knowledge, exceptional attention to detail, and a passion for operational excellence in a fast-paced environment. You will also be tasked to collaborate with our strategic partners to ensure exceptional service delivery. We'll trust you to: Trade Support & Processing• Validate and process daily SMA trades across multiple custodians, sponsors, and platforms.• Monitor order flow and ensure accurate trade execution, settlement, and allocation.• Coordinate with traders to resolve trade discrepancies, breaks, and unmatched items.• Support model delivery workflows, ensuring updates are transmitted correctly to all SMA sponsors.• Review and reconcile trading activity against SEI/APL, sponsor feeds, and internal systems.Account Onboarding & Maintenance• Ensure new SMA accounts are set up accurately in trading systems, including restrictions, tax lot details, cash targets, and strategy assignments.• Validate investment guidelines and ensure coding aligns with client mandates.• Monitor account readiness and resolve missing or incomplete data (e.g., cost basis, cash positions, restrictions). Reconciliation & Exception Management• Perform daily reconciliations of cash, positions, tax lots, and trade activity.• Investigate and resolve reconciliation breaks across custodians, SEI, APL, and internal platforms.• Support daily exception reporting and coordinate resolutions with internal teams and external partners.Client & Sponsor Support• Work directly with SMA sponsors, custodians, and internal business partners to ensure timely and accurate delivery of trade files and account data.• Assist in handling inquiries from advisors, relationship managers, and internal stakeholders.• Support customized SMA requests (e.g., restrictions, DTLH, ESG filters, cash management rules).Operational Oversight & Controls• Ensure operational activities comply with firm policies, industry regulations, and best practices.• Maintain and update procedures, workflows, and control documentation.• Identify opportunities to streamline processes and implement operational improvements.Cross-Functional Collaboration• Partner with Portfolio Management, Trading, Technology, Compliance, and Risk to support SMA strategy execution.• Assist with new sponsor/platform integrations and large-scale operational projects.• Support testing of system enhancements, sponsor feed updates, and platform changes.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree (Finance, Economics, Business, or related field preferred).
• 2-5 years of experience in operations, trading support, or account administration—preferably at an asset manager, SMA sponsor, or custodian.
• Strong understanding of equity and/or fixed income trading workflows.
• Experience with SMA platforms or vendor systems.
• Strong Excel skills (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, data validation).
• Excellent analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities under tight deadlines.
• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with OMS/PMS systems.
• Knowledge of tax-lot accounting, cost basis management, and restricted account handling.
• Series 7/66 or interest in pursuing licenses.
• Experience with broker/dealer trade settlement workflows (DTCC/Omgeo).
• Familiarity with reconciliation engines or operational workflow tools.

Responsibilities

• Validate and process daily SMA trades across multiple custodians, sponsors, and platforms.
• Monitor order flow and ensure accurate trade execution, settlement, and allocation.
• Coordinate with traders to resolve trade discrepancies, breaks, and unmatched items.
• Support model delivery workflows, ensuring updates are transmitted correctly to all SMA sponsors.
• Review and reconcile trading activity against SEI/APL, sponsor feeds, and internal systems.
• Ensure new SMA accounts are set up accurately in trading systems, including restrictions, tax lot details, cash targets, and strategy assignments.
• Validate investment guidelines and ensure coding aligns with client mandates.
• Monitor account readiness and resolve missing or incomplete data (e.g., cost basis, cash positions, restrictions).
• Perform daily reconciliations of cash, positions, tax lots, and trade activity.
• Investigate and resolve reconciliation breaks across custodians, SEI, APL, and internal platforms.
• Support daily exception reporting and coordinate resolutions with internal teams and external partners.
• Work directly with SMA sponsors, custodians, and internal business partners to ensure timely and accurate delivery of trade files and account data.
• Assist in handling inquiries from advisors, relationship managers, and internal stakeholders.
• Support customized SMA requests (e.g., restrictions, DTLH, ESG filters, cash management rules).
• Ensure operational activities comply with firm policies, industry regulations, and best practices.
• Maintain and update procedures, workflows, and control documentation.
• Identify opportunities to streamline processes and implement operational improvements.
• Partner with Portfolio Management, Trading, Technology, Compliance, and Risk to support SMA strategy execution.
• Assist with new sponsor/platform integrations and large-scale operational projects.
• Support testing of system enhancements, sponsor feed updates, and platform changes.

Benefits

• Lord Abbett is committed to offering a competitive total rewards package to all eligible employees.
• Offerings include competitive total compensation, retirement plans, competitive health and well-being plans.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Number of Employees: 501-1,000 employees