Rene Canezin will join the Internal Investment team of the Harvard Management Company as managing director of its portfolio management team, the University announced yesterday.

Canezin will be responsible for building and heading a portfolio management team that will strive “to generate superior investment returns across debt markets,” according to a press release.

“The Harvard Management Company has a reputation for innovation and market-beating performance,”  Canezin said in a statement. “I look forward to joining their team and building additional investment capability that contributes further to supporting the crucial research and teaching happening at Harvard.”

Canezin, who graduated from Boston College with a degree in finance,  previously worked for Barclays Capital as a managing director, and for 18 years at Lehman Brothers, where his responsibilities included running the company’s treasury-bond investment group in Asia.

“I am delighted to have Rene join the team,” said HMC Head of Internal Management Stephen Blyth, to whom Canezin will report directly. “His market insight, wisdom and proven leadership skills will be great assets to HMC.”

HMC oversees the University’s endowment, investments, and other financial assets. It came under fire after the 2008 financial crisis, when the Harvard endowment plunged by almost 30 percent.

Jane L. Mendillo, HMC President and CEO, joined HMC in July 2008 amidst the economic downturn. Since her arrival, she has and made efforts to reduce the risk in Harvard’s investments, including expanding the internal investment team while reducing the number of external money managers.

“With over 20 years of experience across a broad range of financial markets, Rene brings deep investment management experience to HMC,” Mendillo said in a statement. “He will play an important role as we continue to grow our investment capability to explore opportunities in the evolving market landscape.”

—Staff writer Zoe A. Y. Weinberg can be reached at hrouse@college.harvard.edu.