Good portfolio managers need an inquiring and analytical mind, according to Leigh Harrison, head of equities at Threadneedle. They also need interpersonal skills to elicit information from people, and persistence. He said: “In this job, you have to put up with a lot of pressure and disappointment, so you have to roll with the punches, remain stoic and continue to be able to think. If you’re superficial or prone to panic, asset management is not for you.”

Malcolm Smith, head of research at Inalytics, a firm that specialises in rating managers, said: "You can identify a good manager by their hit rate - the proportion of investment decisions they get right - their tendency to hold on to their winning stocks and their tendency to cut their losing positions. Those three take you straight to the nub of it."