Once a plan sponsor makes the important decision to replace a current money manager with a new investment manager, serious consideration should be given to the selection of a transition or interim manager. A transition manager will act as project coordinator to ensure that the portfolio of the outgoing manager is restructured efficiently into the portfolio requested by the new manager, either in cash or selected equities.

Many transition mandates involve the liquidation of the previous portfolio and the delivery of cash to the new manager. Other mandates might involve the conversion of the previous portfolio into an indexed portfolio. On occasion, a client might request that the transition manager implements the reinvestment of proceeds from the liquidated portfolio into the new manager's portfolio before delivery to the new manager.