Best in Class



Last August, I had the great pleasure to meet Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Chief Judge Emeritus Ed Gilbertson. Ed has been involved in the classic car and motorcycle hobby for over 40 years, and still serves on the very prestigious Pebble Beach Concours Selection Committee. He also serves as the Chief Judge Emeritus for the Palm Beach Cavallino Classic and the Ferrari Club of America, as well as having been the Chief Judge for the Legend of the Motorcycle International Concours. To say he knows his stuff is an understatement.

When Ed began judging the Ferrari Club of America Concours in 1985, he found the judging criteria inconsistent from meet to meet. That led to the adoption of scoring sheets and the 100-point system, a formal standard he continues to champion as Chairman of his group the International Chief Judge Advisory Group (icjag.org).


For those not familiar with concours protocol, the judging duties are usually split between Chief Judges and Class Judges. The Chief Judge commands an overview of the whole show field, recognizing an array of special or standout cars. Class Judges are specialists who get into the best cars in their category on a nut-and-bolt level, and report up to the Chief Judge.

“Trust between the Chief Judge and Class Judges comes as a result of following standard forms and guidelines,” says Gilbertson.

Of course, my mind immediately went to parallels in the wealth management world. Like Ed, Brinker Capital has its own “Chief Judge,” Chris Hart. As Senior VP and Head of Platform Manager Research, Chris finds and enlists the best money managers (“Class Judges”) who together assemble a portfolio (show field) of winners tailored to the client’s needs. “As part of the due diligence process and the process for all of the funds in which we invest, it is mandatory that our team travels onsite to visit the fund manager and ‘kick the tires’ of the new or existing firm annually,” said Hart.

Chris looks for the following criteria in funds/managers:
  •  Consistency of performance is paramount.
  • What is the fund’s differentiator or edge?
  • Who is the key decision maker on the strategy?
  • Assess the team and culture of the parent organization.
  • Remain flexible and opportunistic to new ideas.
Like cars, mutual funds must be judged on both an absolute and relative basis. Are its qualities technically verifiable, and do they rise to the level of “Best in Class” against its competing funds? “Best in Class funds have strong corporate culture in combination with a financially supportive environment in which the fund managers can work,” said Hart.

But unlike a concours judge, Chris’ work doesn’t end when the blue ribbons are awarded. Our “Chief Judge” remains diligent: constantly re-evaluating the performance and integrity of those specific fund managers within the client’s overall portfolio. “The investment industry is constantly evolving and innovating, and turnover of investment professionals is a constant as top-tier talent changes firms.  When talented investment professionals either launch new and innovative products, or decide to move to a new firm, we must remain open to these changes,” said Hart.




Barby Barone of Biltmore Advisors has used Brinker Capital almost as long as Ed Gilbertson has been judging cars.



Investment Advisory Services offered through Mutual Advisors, LLC DBA Biltmore Advisors, an SEC registered investment advisor.