The Fiftyfaces Podcast

Susan Martin is MD of Greenstone Consulting, a change and and transition management firm.  After a long career in the public sector, culminating in a CEO role at a financial services business, she now holds a number of director roles and works as an executive coach. Our conversation tracks Susan's childhood and early career, and how she became used to frequent change and adaptation.  This led to her becoming a committed change advocate and consultant.   We talk about the challenges of change - the need to sometimes pause to allow change to settle, and how to mobilize an employee body behind a change initiative without fear. As a generalist who has worked in a range of industries we talk about the tension between generalists and specialists and the role that interpretation and intuition play in this case.  We turn then to what makes a valuable director or chair of a Board, and how diversity contributes to the richness of this discussion. Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Amanda Pullinger is Chief Executive of 100 Women in Finance, where she leads a staff team and provides direction to 500 volunteer practitioners globally.  100 Women in Finance is focused on empowering women in the finance industry and inspiring the next generation of pre-career young women and has over 20,000 registered members globally. She previously held a series of roles in asset management and is a member of BAFTA and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Our conversation tracks her many divergent careers that ultimately led to one in finance and the resilience that she built in her early childhood and young adulthood.  Moving then to her current life's work and passion we speak about the origins of 100 Women in Finance - which started out as 100 Women in Hedge Funds and how the organization's mission started with visibility and fellowship but has evolved into so much more of an empowering platform. I hope that you enjoy Amanda sharing her vision of this extraordinary and ground breaking organization and the important work that it has done, but also what remains to be done. Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Elois Joseph is co-founder of the Greenwood project, which is an organization that connects Black and LatinX students with career opportunities in financial services and fintech. She previously held a series of roles in investment banks and other financial service firms, mainly in the trading support and compliance divisions.Our conversation traces her upbringing in Chicago, the positions and mentors that shaped her early career progression and the break that led to her roles in financial services. We talk about the philosophy behind the Greenwood Project, which she co-founded with Bevon Joseph - a guest on episode 88 of the series, and why more women need to heed the advice she was given to "sit next to the power" because that is where decisions are made and where visibility is essential. Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Johara Farhadieh is Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer of The Illinois State Board of Investment (ISBI), in which she oversees a $20 bn defined benefit fund and a $5 bn dollar defined contribution plan with over 150,000 beneficiaries. She has been at ISBI for over 13 years, and prior to that was a financial analyst. She was named an All-Star Chief Investment Officer by Trusted Insight and ISBI was ranked number one in private equity returns among public pension funds in 2020 by the American Investment Council.   Our conversation talks about how public funds can set the standard for diversity and inclusion in their manager mix, and how, through a combination of OCIO and direct mandates ISBI is doing this.  Often, in this arena, politics and wrangling can interfere with governance, and we talk about how serving the Board and frequently involving the Board as stakeholders can be the recipe for smooth decision making and progress. Johara also talks through her own background, her roots and how she was raised to be a survivor.  As we move through the pandemic disruptions and its implications on how business is done, this is a particularly appropriate tale.Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

David Vafai is Chief Executive Officer at bfinance International Limited, an investment consulting and advisory firm that he founded over 20 years ago.  The firm is known for its innovative service model, which has shifted some of the traditional structures in investment consulting, manager selection and asset management. Our conversation traces David's early entrepreneurial roots which saw him cycle through newspaper delivery to a hotdog stand in his early 20s and later a photo business.  The unifying feature of each of these diverse business lines was a commitment to customer service and ensuring high degrees of customer satisfaction. We turn then to the origins of bfinance and how the business model evolved into a global franchise.  We dissect what it means to provide investment consulting services and how the industry is evolving in this area to address the "information asymmetry" that continues to persist. As a citizen of the world with global roots David offers a unique perspective on the immigrant story, the meaning of the hustle and why customer satisfaction should be the starting point and ending point of all enterprises.Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Jessica Portis is Head of Member Portfolio Management and Services at TIFF Investment Management.  She previously had a long career in investment consulting, first at Summit and then Mercer. Our conversation start with her first internships - and the Inroads program that she participated in.  This opened the door of opportunity to her - and not only provided an internship, but committed to broad educational support. This included advice on networking, how to "dress for success", and provided a safety net to ensure the best chances of succeeding in and sticking with the role.  She rose through the ranks of investment consulting and we discuss why more women are not given that opportunity - and why maybe they don't "lean in" to seize it.We spend some time discussing diversity in finance, and how we can do better to present challenge to women who are hungry for it.  We examine why the biggest obstacle is women not being given the opportunity, and the tendency to hire in one's own likeness.  We ask how do we make sure that women and people of color are given those opportunities?Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Henry Tapper is the CEO at Agewage, a firm committed to helping people understand their pension pots, and the Founding Editor of the Pension Playpen, which provides guidance on pensions.  He has been involved in financial services for his whole career, and is a high profile advocate for pensions education and transparency. We start with Henry's background, his year on a herring fleet in Iceland and how he fell into selling financial products because he couldn't find another job. We reflect on the staggering differences between training for such roles then v. now, and how this ties back to the value for money discussion that is now pervasive in asset management.  Henry is a high profile voice in the cause of creating fairer, more transparent pension solutions, and his initiatives AgeWage and the Pension Playpen, a procurement website, which was set up to help employers choose their workplace pension. AgeWage is designed to help people feeling confident about the pensions decisions that they're taking and to make use of investment data in a way that they can understand. This returns to the topic across this series of financial literacy, and how it is essential across every age group. We mull on the importance of the industry reporting on the outcomes of the work done for ordinary people in a way that ordinary people can understand, and end with some beautiful quotes from some of Henry's favorite poets. Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Daniele Beasley is a Board Member at Mission Bank, a role she has held since February 2021, and is also a Chief Client Officer in charge of distribution at Apex Financial Advisors. She is a Certified Financial Planner currently focused on using her 30 years experience in the sector to educate and mentor clients  in what she terms “her mid-life reset”.   Our conversation dives in to the theme of diversity and the need for diversity on Boards, as well as the skills that Daniele seeks to bring as a Board Member.  We speak about her passion for serving her clients and enabling them to reach their financial goals - and how financial literacy is important at every age, as is a process of ongoing learning and growth.  As to her personal story we chart her path from learning about potato broking at the kitchen table, to building her own firm to changing direction in a midlife reset.  We remind ourselves of the rules that "it's not how much you make, it's about how much you keep" and of the 80/20 rule of investing in yourself and giving back to others.  Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Darren Johnson is Chief Operating Officer in Listed Equities and Executive Director at Impax Asset Management, where he is responsible for Global Operations, including Portfolio Services, Technology, Change/Project Management and Client Onboarding. He previously worked in a series of accounting and operations roles.  Our conversation starts with his upbringing in South London and why he was born with a “silver spoon in his mouth”. We talk about the unlikely role model that emerged for him even at a very young age and how that character sowed the seeds for a career in the corporate world.  We turn then to his education and early career and reflect on the lack of empowerment that young professionals sometimes have and how this can deter engagement and motivation. We examine his career path, and the individuals who made it possible, as well as the choices made throughout that path.  In particular we look at the evolution of the asset management firm of today, and how remote working has changed it as well as the changes yet to come, which may shape the power centers of asset managers.  We also discuss the dramatic impact that ESG integration will have and the effect of regulation in this area. In our reflection section we look at how the investment industry and the practice of "mining for talent" can be compared to football (soccer) and the need to look outside the academy for talent.  We reflect on the importance of making excellence a habit and the wisdom of The Four Agreements, which are: don't take things personally, don't make assumptions, always try your best and be impeccable with your word.  Darren was the source for many guests on this podcast series as well as the Diverse Founders and VC series.  He is an active participant on the conference circuit as well as industry affinity groups designed to address low levels of diversity in finance. Series 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.

Anji (Anjuman) Kaur Kang-Stewart is Global Head of Marketing at Man Group, based in their London office.  She previously held a series of senior marketing and business development roles throughout the investment industry and is a Member of the Board of Trustees of Nova New Opportunities and the steering committee of Talk About Black. Our conversation tracks the extraordinary story of Anji's childhood, her Sikh upbringing and her integration into London-based schools and how her late teen years and early twenties took some surprising turns.  We speak about the lessons learned from these setbacks and the supports and structures that enabled her to start her career.Now thriving in the world of finance, we look at the factors that excite her in the area, and the characteristics that helped her to move through the ranks. We speak about how glass ceilings persist in the industry, particularly for women and members of underrepresented groups, and how the low turnover in the industry can cause this to persist.Anji is committed to passing on some of the supports that were offered to her, and we touch on the work being done by Nova New Opportunities, a West London-based diverse community charity with a pioneering approach to social change. Anji was also one of the founding members of the #Talkaboutblack initiative, and is now on their steering committee.There is more information about Talk About Black here  https://diversityproject.com/2018-05-18/so-can-we-talk-talkaboutblack and Nova New Opportunities here: https://novanew.org.uk/about-us/impactSeries 4 is brought to you with the kind support of Federated Hermes, Inc., a leading global investment manager. Guided by their conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create wealth over the long term, their investment solutions span equity, fixed-income, alternative/private markets, multi-asset and liquidity strategies and a range of separately managed accounts, distributed through intermediaries worldwide.