How To Become A Lead Portfolio Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a lead portfolio manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Lead portfolio managers handle a team of portfolio managers, responsible for overseeing the various task of each team member and providing advice whenever necessary. They may work in different financial services, such as hedge funds, private investment firms, and pension plans, just to name a few.

One of the primary duties of a lead portfolio manager is to create strategies to meet their team's goals. They communicate regularly with their team members to ensure that they are performing according to set standards. On top of that, they may also manage their own clients, as well as communicate with other members of management.

If you are interested in becoming a lead portfolio manager, you would need to have at least a bachelor's or master's degree in finance, business, marketing, or a similar field. And since this is a leadership role, extensive experience as a portfolio manager or supervisor is a common requirement. Time management skills, communication skills, and leadership skills are also paramount for this position.

In the US, the average salary of a lead portfolio manager ranges from $91,000 to $214,000 a year, depending on the industry they work in.

ScoreLead Portfolio ManagerUS Average

Salary

8.4

Avg. Salary $131,603

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.5

Growth rate 17%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.34%

Asian 10.13%

Black or African American 7.55%

Hispanic or Latino 14.46%

Unknown 4.10%

White 63.41%

Gender

female 30.99%

male 69.01%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

9.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.3

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a lead portfolio manager

Explore lead portfolio manager education requirements

Most common lead portfolio manager degrees

Bachelor's

59.8 %

Master's

29.9 %

Associate

4.3 %

Start to develop specific lead portfolio manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Project Management	21.38%
Financial Models	19.14%
Customer Satisfaction	17.87%
ROI	15.40%
Portfolio Management	4.63%

Complete relevant lead portfolio manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New lead portfolio managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a lead portfolio manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real lead portfolio manager resumes.

Research lead portfolio manager duties and responsibilities

Manage internal pricing system for exchange trade securities and over-the-counter instruments by verifying all instruments have valid daily closing exchange price.
Push accountability to appropriate levels through transparent dashboards and KPIs accessible across the dispersed organization.
Collaborate with cross sector portfolio managers on overall public fix income allocation decisions and deep dives into pertinent global macro issues.
Start a consistently profitable duration-neutral credit arbitrage portfolio invest in investment grade corporate bonds.

Prepare your lead portfolio manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your lead portfolio manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a lead portfolio manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable lead portfolio manager resume templates

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