The Fiftyfaces Podcast

Esther Peiner is Co-Head of the Infrastructure Group Europe in Partners Group, based In Zug.  She previously spent close to 11 years at Macquarie Group, where she was a managing director focused initially on the TMT sector and then infrastructure and real assets. Our conversation traces her entry into investment banking, how she thrived there and how she found being in a minority worked to her advantage at times - making her more visible, more memorable and more impactful.  We cover then her move to Switzerland and ultimately Partners Group. Esther is open about a painful period in her personal life that forced her to reassess her priorities and appreciate the supports that she had around her.  We talk about integrating family and work life, and why we need to normalize this balance. Esther is now a leader in the infrastructure investor space and we mention how much opportunity sits in this space and why more people should consider it for their careers. This series was made possible by the kind support of MainStreet Partners, a London-based independent and dedicated sustainable investment advisor that provides ESG multi-asset and multi-manager portfolios and a range of holistic portfolio analytics tools including sustainability ratings and bespoke sustainability intelligence. It was also supported by Carbonado Partners, an industry expert in capital raising for all asset classes, that endeavors to provide thoughtful solutions that address emerging managers’ perspectives and challenges.

Sam Kunz is Chief Investment Officer at Core Financial Partners, a firm that provides financial planning to small and medium sized businesses based in Venice, CA. He was previously a Senior Managing Director responsible for asset allocation and investment strategy at the University of California and prior to that he was my predecessor as CIO at the Chicago Policemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund.  Our conversation starts with Sam's early days in investing as a trader and the skills and insights that that time provided - his transition to an institutional investing role was driven by a multitude of circumstances, but the training it provided in managing volatility and forgiving mistakes and even tolerating fallibility was highly instructive.  Sam has seen the world of institutional investing from many angles - within a public pension fund, within a large university endowment and now within a more nimble boutique firm. Always philosophical and analytical we examine the lessons learned over decades of investing, why we need to be mindful of the industry's hubris and why, above all, we must learn to be gentle with ourselves, in what can be an unforgiving and challenging work environment. This series was made possible by the kind support of MainStreet Partners, a London-based independent and dedicated sustainable investment advisor that provides ESG multi-asset and multi-manager portfolios and a range of holistic portfolio analytics tools including sustainability ratings and bespoke sustainability intelligence. It was also supported by Carbonado Partners, an industry expert in capital raising for all asset classes, that endeavors to provide thoughtful solutions that address emerging managers’ perspectives and challenges.

Sandy Urie is Chairman Emeritus at Cambridge Associates, a role she has held since 2016, when she retired as Chairman and CEO, having held the CEO role since 2001, and capping an over 30 year career at the firm. Her current focuses include sustainability and impact investing and she has held multiple board and investment committee roles. Currently she sits on the boards of the Stanford Management Company, Social Finance US, Crane Institute for Sustainability (parent organization of The Intentional Endowment Network – IEN), and Plymouth Rock Insurance Company.Sandy was one of the first people to inspire me in the world of investment, and I sat, enthralled, during my Cambridge Associates induction as she described her rise through the ranks of the firm, all while juggling mothering a toddler and then young child. It was (and remains) so rare to find a role model who has actually made some of the same choices and trade-offs that you face yourself day to day.As an investment professional Sandy is without parallel. Passionate and visionary, she led the vision for global expansion of Cambridge Associates and now is at the forefront of its work on sustainability and impact investing. She loves what she does, loves the value it brings to the investment process of countless institutions from endowments to foundations to large family offices and has always been effective in nurturing a network. We also manage to find time to discuss teaching and Russian language and literature in particular - which, as we have often discussed on this podcast, can be a pathway to better communication and storytelling, and highly useful in other careers.This series was made possible by the kind support of MainStreet Partners, a London-based independent and dedicated sustainable investment advisor that provides ESG multi-asset and multi-manager portfolios and a range of holistic portfolio analytics tools including sustainability ratings and bespoke sustainability intelligence. It was also supported by Carbonado Partners, an industry expert in capital raising for all asset classes, that endeavors to provide thoughtful solutions that address emerging managers’ perspectives and challenges.

Faisal Rafi is head of research at Riscura, based in London – Riscura is a South Africa-based financial services firm that focuses on providing purpose driven investment solutions for investors as well as investment managers. He previously worked as an investment manager at a UK corporate hedge fund, and prior to that in various asset management and consulting roles. He trained as an actuary. Our conversation covers Faisal's international upbringing and his professional journey which saw him cycle through both established firms and start-ups, including Clontarf Capital - an alternatives focused research and advisory firm that I set up in 2006. His appetite for emerging markets and for carefully assessing their risk/reward has been present his whole life, and he provides some insights into the case for emerging markets investing and for investing in China in particular.We look at some lessons learned in his own life - and how he coped with two distinct personal setbacks - a divorce, which prompted him to take time away from work to reset and a cancer diagnosis after which he actually was driven to do work whenever he could between treatments. This experience teaches us that work can be refuge at times when we experience stresses in our personal lives.This series was made possible by the kind support of MainStreet Partners, a London-based independent and dedicated sustainable investment advisor that provides ESG multi-asset and multi-manager portfolios and a range of holistic portfolio analytics tools including sustainability ratings and bespoke sustainability intelligence. It was also supported by Carbonado Partners, an industry expert in capital raising for all asset classes, that endeavors to provide thoughtful solutions that address emerging managers’ perspectives and challenges.

Susana Coutinho is a Research Director at MainStreet Partners, a firm that provides investment Advisory and Portfolio Analytics on Sustainable, ESG and Impact investments. She is Portuguese, and has studied and worked in Italy as well as London, and has previously worked as an ESG analyst and in accounting. Our conversation covers how Susana entered the field of ESG analysis and impact investing, and we spend some time on the "G" part of the equation - and in particular the area of gender balance and equal representation. It was actually an insightful post that Susana put on LinkedIN around International Women's Day that first drew my attention and we explore how expectations are changing about workplace composition and how this differs across Europe.An unexpected delight in this podcast was discovering some hidden gems about Milan. Susana is also trained as a tour guide in the city so I couldn't resist asking her about some of her favorite spots and some lesser well known secrets of the city. There is more information about MainStreet Partners on the following link: https://www.mspartners.org/This series was made possible by the kind support of MainStreet Partners, a London-based independent and dedicated sustainable investment advisor that provides ESG multi-asset and multi-manager portfolios and a range of holistic portfolio analytics tools including sustainability ratings and bespoke sustainability intelligence. It was also supported by Carbonado Partners, an industry expert in capital raising for all asset classes, that endeavors to provide thoughtful solutions that address emerging managers’ perspectives and challenges

Uche Orji is CEO of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, based in Abuja, Nigeria. A native of Nigeria, he has had over 20 years experience in various financial roles including semiconductor analyst in Europe and the US, before returning to Nigeria just over 8 years ago. He also holds a number of Board roles. Our conversation starts with Uche's early career in investment banking and particularly semiconductor research. We hear about his swift rise to prominence in this area, and his global vantage point in this dynamic industry. We then move to what motivated his move home to Nigeria when he answered the call to take on a role at the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority. This was a huge move - both in terms of responsibility and life direction but it was something he felt had immense sense of purpose and he committed to giving it all of his energy.We discuss what is at the forefront of his mind in his current role - from portfolio diversification to investing locally in the emerging technology sector across all of Africa. We discuss some misperceptions that abound about investor interest in Africa and why these misperceptions persist.Finally we reflect on people and organizations that have been influential and inspirational for Uche over his career so far. It is an enlightening conversation.This series was made possible by the kind support of Main Street Partners, a London-based independent and dedicated sustainable investment advisor that provides ESG multi-asset and multi-manager portfolios and a range of holistic portfolio analytics tools including sustainability ratings and bespoke sustainability intelligence. It was also supported by Carbonado Partners, an industry expert in capital raising for all asset classes, that endeavors to provide thoughtful solutions that address emerging managers’ perspectives and challenges

Series 3 of the Fiftyfaces Podcast 2021 is all about bold thinking. We hear from Uche Orji of the Nigerian Sovereign Wealth Authority about his vision for investing in innovation in Africa, and from Faisal Rafi of Riscura, again an Africa based consulting firm, about the ground breaking changes underway in China, and what this means for an investment thesis. We speak with Susana Coutinho about ESG integration, sustainability and impact investing, and how the S and the G have risen in importance recently. Mark Steed, CIO of a large US public fund, is both a data junkie and an out of the box thinker - and his interests extend to e-sports, bereavement services and English football teams. Esther Peiner has carved a successful career in infrastructure investing, and consistently challenges preconceptions about work-life balance for all. Sam Kunz is another bold thinker who started out as a trader and now works as a CIO. He advises us to love ourselves and to be more accepting, and more tolerant of some of the mistakes that will be inevitable. Annabel Gillard is extending her experience of investing into the twin areas of AI and Philosophy and has a passion for ethics and elevating ethics to a higher status in investment management firms. The boldness of these ideas extends to the industry structure, and Bevon Joseph, the founder of the Greenwood Project, is on a mission to be a disruptor - to step in to provide social capital where it is absent, and to train and place black and Latin-x students in all parts of the financial services industry. We speak with two guests who have had long careers in investing - Julian Tregoning, who turned to investing decades ago when his hopes and dreams were literally shattered, and now swears by the KISS principle (Keep it Simple Stupid) and Sandy Urie, Chairman Emeritus at Cambridge Associates who has had an extraordinary career carved by determination, client service and a deep love of investing. This series was made possible by the kind support of Main Street Partners, a London-based independent and dedicated sustainable investment advisor that provides ESG multi-asset and multi-manager portfolios and a range of holistic portfolio analytics tools including sustainability ratings and bespoke sustainability intelligence. It was also supported by Carbonado Partners, an industry expert in capital raising for all asset classes, that endeavors to provide thoughtful solutions that address emerging managers’ perspectives and challenges.

Yele Aluko is Chief Medical Officer at EY, a role he has held for close to 4 years. He is Co-Chair, Health Equity Advisory, at the international Well Building Institute, an Advisory Board Member at the Children’s National Hospital and a Board Member at the Wake Forest University School of Business. He has worked as a Cardiologist in hospital settings for over 30 years. Yele was born in Nigeria and we start with when he first realized his calling to be a doctor. We trace his journey to the US and how at the beginning he went through a difficult integration into life there - with little social capital locally and few relationships. We move to his journey to cardiology and his experience in hospital settings, and ultimately to what led him to move away from bedside medicine into matters of medical policy. True to the mission of this podcast series we examine the issue of diversity in medicine, and Yele discusses the concepts of "missing persons" in medicine - the gap in representation of people of color at every level of medicine and the trickle down effects that this causes in terms of access to health care, trust in medical professionals and healthcare equity. We discuss initiatives to eliminate bias, and whether they work, and why they often lack sufficient "buy in". This rich discussion is part of our Fiftyfaces Nigerian Voices series which will be released later in July. We are releasing it now as a counter narrative to that espoused by the podcast by the JAMA of February 2021 that questioned whether systemic racism in medicine existed.

Aman Kapadia is managing partner at Akaris Global, a hedge fund firm based in New York City. He previously worked at another fund Fir Tree Partners, and before that was an investment analyst focused on an event driven style of investing.Our conversation starts with Aman's childhood which was spent living around the world, and then a taxing academic load, which included both a JD and an MBA, after a stint at McKinsey following undergrad. His introduction to the investing world came via an internship at a fund of funds, which facilitated ringside access to some of the most innovative hedge funds.Now in his own firm, Akaris Global, we speak about the kind of thinking that has fostered idea generation and a high conviction investing style. We discuss the importance of lateral thinking, debating ideas and building a team with diverse passions and interests. We speak about the concept of constraints, and how, just as necessity is the mother of invention, constraints foster creativity and innovation.

Shruti Van Dyke Gandhi is General Partner and Founding Engineer at Array Ventures which invests in enterprise deep tech early-stage companies. Shruti is also a professor in the computer science department at Columbia University. She spent her early career as a developer on mainframe security, collaboration tools, and data analytics. Post engineering, she invested in early-stage companies at True Ventures and Samsung's venture fund. She is also the recipient of Chicago Booth 2021 Distinguished Alumni Award at Chicago. Our conversation traces Shruti's experience in computer science and high growth industries and how this motivated her desire to launch a venture firm focused on high growth companies in the B2B world. We speak about the skills need to be successful in venture - from decision making (which needs to be fast) to knowing one's own strengths and weaknesses and supplementing gaps by surrounding oneself with the necessary skills.We discuss the experience of some female founders in attracting venture capital and the issue of confidence, and the importance of thinking sufficiently "large" when it comes to check size and opportunity set. See the following article for some positive news about increases in the numbers of women in venture, despite starting from a very low base. https://www.fastcompany.com/90567387/women-in-vc-growthThis podcast was supported by Speaking with Images, a company focused on motivational speaking, focused on increasing resilience, improving communication and building better workplace culture. https://www.jennysegal.co.uk/