Our thought leaders

Vanguard’s Investment Strategy Group (ISG) is an internal research team of economists, investment strategists, behavioral researchers, household finance experts, and quantitative analysts. This lead in-house think tank produces relevant and rigorous insights on economics, markets, portfolio strategies, retirement matters and investor behavior.  The group also develops and oversees Vanguard’s proprietary modeling and forecasting tools.

Vanguard researchers collaborate with academics at institutions including Carnegie Mellon University, Columbia University, Georgetown University, the University of Michigan, New York University, Stanford University, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University—as well as industry associations, including the Investment Company Institute and the European Fund and Asset Management Association. This research includes work on retirement-plan design trends, investor behavior, and surveys of investor views and beliefs.

Vanguard shares empirical research-based perspectives with policymakers, academics, retirement-plan sponsors, financial intermediaries, and other investment professionals to inform industry dialogue and practice. 

Vanguard provides disciplined investment management across index and active strategies, spanning equity and fixed income assets classes, multiasset approaches, private investments and quantitative strategies. Our investment professionals evaluate, select, and oversee investment approaches to help ensure they remain aligned with our long-term investment philosophy and investor objectives.

Through ongoing analysis and comparison of investment strategies and vehicles, Vanguard seeks to clarify how different approaches work, the trade-offs among them, and how evolving market dynamics may affect portfolios over time.

Vanguard’s investment management approach is rooted in discipline, long-term thinking, and a focus on what investors can control.

Explore how these principles guide our decision making in our investment story.

Vanguard produces research and analysis focused on the retirement landscape and the factors that influence retirement outcomes at scale. This work examines retirement systems, plan design, participant behavior, and policy considerations that shape how individuals prepare for and experience retirement.

Drawing on data and long-term research, Vanguard explores trends and trade-offs related to savings behavior, retirement readiness, and income sustainability to inform investors, advisors, plan sponsors, and policymakers.

Vanguard provides research-driven wealth management insights to help investors and advisors navigate complex financial decisions over time. Our perspective integrates long-term investing principles with guidance on topics such as retirement income, tax-aware planning, philanthropic planning, and personal finance decision-making.

Through ongoing research and analysis, Vanguard seeks to support more informed choices across the full spectrum of wealth management considerations, grounded in discipline, trade-off awareness, and an understanding of investor goals.