Principal, Investment Operations - Global Head of Asset Servicing

Over the last 20 years, Ares’ success has been driven by our people and our culture. Today, our team is guided by our core values – Collaborative, Responsible, Entrepreneurial, Self-Aware, Trustworthy – and our purpose to be a catalyst for shared prosperity and a better future. Through our recruitment, career development and employee-focused programming, we are committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive work environment where high-performance talent of diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives can build careers within this exciting and growing industry.

SUMMARY Ares is seeking a Principal of Investment Operations to join our team in either Los Angeles or New York as Global Head of Asset Servicing. This role is responsible for overseeing global asset servicing functions and collaborating with stakeholders across business lines and corporate functions. The ideal candidate will lead the global asset servicing team, manage relationships with fund administrators and custodians, and drive systemic and procedural process improvements. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in corporate actions and loan servicing, with advanced proficiency in Wall Street Office. This role requires strong capabilities in managing complex operational workflows and fostering effective partnerships with asset servicing teams in Los Angeles and Mumbai, as well as with cross‑functional stakeholders across Ares. A strong background in bank debt is essential, along with experience supporting a global client base that includes pensions, insurance companies, and institutional investors. Given Ares’ diversified alternative asset platform—heavily concentrated in bank debt—the successful candidate will be comfortable operating across multiple business lines and asset classes. This position demands a dynamic, adaptable, and hands‑on leader who thrives in a fast‑paced, rapidly growing environment and is committed to driving operational excellence and best‑in‑class servicing practices. PRIMARY FUNCTIONS & RESPONSIBILTIES Provide strategic leadership to the Global Asset Servicing team, optimizing manual processes and establishing scalable, efficient workflows. Act as the primary escalation point for asset servicing inquiries and high‑risk breaks, proactively diagnosing root causes and driving timely resolution. Manage and oversee fund administrator relationships, identifying recurring issues and partnering to design and implement sustainable long‑term solutions. Assess, adopt, and integrate emerging industry technologies to strengthen operational effectiveness and scalability. Lead automation and process enhancement initiatives, ensuring accuracy, consistency, and continuous improvement across key workflows. Review and analyze daily reconciliations between internal systems and external parties to identify and remediate systemic discrepancies. Coordinate asset servicing audit activities with internal teams, external auditors, consultants, and regulatory bodies such as the SEC. Develop, track, and present key asset servicing metrics (KPIs) to senior leadership and cross‑functional stakeholders. Develop and communicating asset management strategies and loan servicing policies. Engage in asset and transaction underwriting, due diligence, and post-closing asset management. Collaborate across functions and teams to set and execute strategies for evolving operations. Ensure compliance with regulations and maintaining strong communication with asset owners. Uphold rigorous quality control standards, incorporating feedback and performance insights to refine and enhance operational processes. Partner closely with finance, offshore teams, deal teams, investment accounting, middle office, treasury, and trustees to ensure seamless communication, alignment, and issue resolution.

Education Bachelor’s degree in finance or other business related discipline MBA, CFA and/or CPA preferred but not required