Capital Allocators – Inside the Institutional Investment Industry Sloane Payne and Dave Joerger – Why Culture Matters (EP.500)
22 snips
May 4, 2026 
Dave Joerger, CCO who moved from big law to build compliance with a trust-first approach. Sloane Payne, COO who scaled WCM with a people-first, values-driven playbook. They discuss hiring for character, treating trust as operational, making mistakes survivable, generous pay and equity, rituals and offsites that sustain culture, balancing kindness with accountability, and practical succession rules.
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Hire For Character Not Credentials
- Hire for character and self-awareness over pedigree and credentials.
- Use unorthodox interview questions (e.g., "Would you be friends with yourself?" or "How do you imagine yourself dying?") to surface vulnerability and fit.
Trust As The Primary Operating Principle
- Trust is the operating principle that replaces heavy process at WCM and speeds decision making.
- They overtrust people before proof, believing generosity precedes performance and reciprocity makes people rise to the responsibility.
Taco Bell Moment Shaped WCM Culture
- Paul Black's Taco Bell firing and subsequent return shaped WCM's inversion culture.
- That origin story led to open offices, shared equity, pay transparency, and a focus on fun and gratitude.
