Trustees of the Philadelphia

Board of Pensions & Retirement

The Philadelphia Board of Pensions has long been focused on the advancement of racial equity both internally and externally. A diverse Board of Trustees focused on achieving their goal of a diverse and inclusive workforce have been central to their success. Longtime trustee Carole Stukes-Baylor is just one of the members behind the $7 billion pension fund’s results which rival any pension plan, big or small, in the nation. She has been fighting for what is right for over two decades and her working knowledge of the system and its history has guided the implementation of their diversity agenda. As of December 2022, the Board’s overall workforce was 67% diverse by race/ethnicity and 67% diverse by gender. While the internal results are impressive, the results in the portfolio merit recognition. The Board actively promotes an inclusive manager selection process. Approximately 57% of total fund assets are managed by diverse investment managers. Chris Difusco is responsible for the oversight of the Philadelphia Municipal Employee Retirement System’s $7 billion defined pension plan and the $1.7 billion deferred compensation plan. He supervises the investment staff of six professionals and had overall responsibility for the portfolios including recommending investments and monitoring investments across various asset classes. He leads the Investment Committee meetings and works with Marquette Associates, the plan’s general consultant on asset allocation. DiFusco has a tough job in a tough city but his legal training, judgement, and long history of employment with the fund make him one of the most successful CIOs the city has seen in some time. Given the level of diverse manager utilization it’s hard to see how he can top what may be the best results ever achieved for a public pension plan.