After the 2008 crisis, 95% of new hedge fund allocations went to firms with over $5B AUM. This made organic growth for smaller managers nearly impossible. Acquiring other GPs became the only viable strategy to achieve necessary scale, track records, and LP relationships.

A core tenet of Collette Chilton's investment philosophy is the principle of explainability. If she cannot clearly articulate a manager's strategy and what could go wrong to her investment committee, she will not approve the investment, leading to a portfolio of understandable strategies.

The firm found that positions growing beyond 8% of the portfolio did not add enough value to justify the increased concentration risk. This disciplined approach prevents overconfidence in single ideas from jeopardizing overall fund performance.

Mohnish Pabrai argues against trimming winners. He believes that over decades, a truly skilled fund manager should let their best idea run until it dominates the portfolio, potentially reaching 95% concentration. Selling a rare, generational compounder just to rebalance is a critical mistake he calls "desecration of the temple."

To meet its 60% budget support obligation without holding excess cash, the Williams endowment obsesses over liquidity. Weekly cash flow reviews and credit lines allow them to keep only 1-2% in cash, ensuring the vast majority of the portfolio is always in the market and compounding.

Due to strong performance, Williams' venture capital portfolio has ballooned to nearly 18%, far exceeding its 6% policy target. The team resists changing the target, prioritizing long-term liquidity needs over chasing recent performance or rebalancing aggressively.

The Williams College investment team's strength lies in balancing deep institutional knowledge with fresh external perspectives. Long-tenured members provide historical context, while new hires from other offices introduce new best practices and challenge complacency, preventing stagnation.

Before hiring a CIO, Williams' alumni committees built the portfolio. Collette Chilton notes a key flaw in this model: committees love adding new investments but find it difficult to reach a consensus on what to cut, resulting in portfolio bloat and too many managers.

Instead of relying solely on an internal team, Williams uses advisory committees of successful alumni investors. This structure provides invaluable, unbiased feedback and sourcing, as the alumni are motivated by loyalty to the school, not by selling a product.