The Fiftyfaces Podcast

Laura Sage is CEO at Chill Anywhere, and Co-Founder of the Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation.  She has previously held a series of advisory and business development roles at different financial institutions including hedge funds. Our conversation starts with her financial career, and the grueling travel schedule that accompanied it.  She describes her pivot to wellness and what led her to think about a solution for employing a holistic approach to health and wellness in the workplace.That business was Chill Anywhere, which was initially conceived as an accessible meditation studio which would target busy professionals.  That was of course, derailed by Covid, and we speak about the pivot that Chill undertook then evolving into an online-based service, including an App, corporate programs and hybrid delivery solutions.  We hear about the evolution going on and the awakening of the importance of wellness to mental health in the workplace and beyond.Laura's other passion project is the Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation and we speak about the work of that foundation and the awareness and education that that furthers.There is more information about Chill Anywhere here: https://www.chillanywhere.com/about and a taster video from that on our Fiftyfaces Hub here: https://www.fiftyfaceshub.com/chill-pause-for-your-mental-wellbeing/.This podcast is being released as a bonus to coincide with the month of February 2023 and our love and wellness series. It will also form part of Series 2 of the 2023 Fiftyfaces Podcast.

Sara Bonesteel is Chief Investment Officer- International Insurance at Prudential Financial, located in the NYC area.  She was previously a managing director in Bear Stearns and JP Morgan. She is an Independent Director of Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC and holds a number of other Board and Investment Committee Roles. Our conversation starts with Sara's upbringing in Michigan and then her high school and later college debate activities - this was a discipline in which she excelled, and she and her debate partner were the first female debate team at Georgetown.  We speak about the skills required in debate - which include meticulous preparation and performance training and how that prepared her for a professional career later.  We move then to her career in finance and how it started via a brief spell as a paralegal in a law firm which appeared "Dickensian" in its stuffiness, a spell which led to a shift to finance. Sara then layered business training onto her liberal arts background and we cycle through her career that has culminated, to date, in her CIO role at a major US insurer.  We discuss the issues on her mind today, the challenges and opportunities in investing across a checkered fixed income landscape and how ESG factors are slowly trickling in to the US marketplace albeit at a slower pace than elsewhere around the world.Among Sara's extensive other interests are her board roles and we ask the typical question as to what makes an effective Board Director or Chair, particularly on an Investment Committee.  We then explore her love of chamber music and playing the viola in particular and spend a little time considering the "middle voice" of this instrument.  The "middle voice" and its important in creating harmony, bridging differences and providing ballast is a good metaphor for the business world too.Finally we end with a discussion of Sara's personal reflections and people who inspire her, and one of them is her husband who founded and is deeply committed to charity that recycles and repurposes old computer equipment for sending into under-privileged homes. Laptop Upcycle can be found here - you may wish to check it out: Http://laptopupcycle.orgSeries 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them.

Jonathan Hollow is a writer and commentator on consumer education and protection.  His recent book, How to Fund the Life you Want, distills learning on financial education and evidence-based investing into a manual for pensions and investing.  He is a charity trustee and also doing a part time MA in Ancient History.  His former roles include leadership positions in the Money Advice Service and Money and Pensions Service. Our conversation starts with Jonathan's education, which included a spell in Russia during the 1990s, and his extensive experience with writing and the importance of a plain English approach.  We move then to what inspired him to pursue an MA in ancient history and some of the parallels that is is drawing between ancient Rome and its collapse and the scenarios playing out in geo-politics. We move then to the motivation for writing his latest book "How to Fund the Life you Want", and the gap in financial literacy that exists when it comes to savings, investments and pensions.  Some of this he attributes to a low level of engagement by individuals, in part because the area of pensions and investing is just not considered that interesting. He talks about the different sections of the book including the need to be mindful of Sharks and Charlatans as well as the importance of choosing a financial adviser that is evidence based. We also discuss the different experience of women as pensioners and investor and note the wealth gap that persists well into retirement. Jonathan's new book is a collaboration with Robin Powell, who writes the Evidence Based Investor Blog and is featured on the Fiftyfaces Podcast here: https://www.fiftyfaceshub.com/robin-powell-evidence-based-and-value-driven-myth-busting-across-the-investment-landscape/ There is more information about How to Fund the Life you Want here: https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/how-to-fund-the-life-you-want-9781399404600/

Dede Eyesan is Founder and CEO of Jenga Investment Partners, a firm that invests globally across growth, turnaround and cyclical equity opportunities. Our conversation starts with his home life and a particularly early introduction to investing.  This sowed the seeds for a passion for stocks, investing and research and what ultimately led him to launch his own investment firm - Jenga Investment Partners - at an unusually young age. Our conversation focuses then on his passion for stocks, and is quite sweeping in its scope.  We cover his concentrated style, the type of stocks that appeal to him, and his passion for writing up detailed pieces of research and sharing them - open source style - with his followers and investors. We move then to the thornier concept of ESG integration and what it means in practice. Dede has had a range of diverse mentors from many different parts of the life, some known to him and some that he admired from afar.  He shares their inspiring stories here in the spirit of sharing wisdom. This podcast also appears in our Nigerian Voices series and is rich in its discussion of the energy of Nigerian life and the impact of Dede's upbringing on his current perspective in life. Series 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them.

Stuart Heatley is Managing Director at Capita Pensions where he is a Business Transformation and Growth Leader.  He previously held a series of similar roles at AON and Scottish Life.  Based in Edinburgh, Stuart is passionate about creating access to the financial services industry for people of all backgrounds, and is a Mentor with MCR Pathways. Our conversation starts with Stuart's own unconventional path, where he turned his back on a typical university path and followed his passions for music (playing bass in a band) and sport before finding a role in an insurance company in Edinburgh.  He joined at "the bottom of the ladder" and spent his early days splitting paper and delivering it around the firm and then moved into a junior administrator role in pensions.  His career progressed from then to leadership roles, and the rest might be said to be history.  Stuart talks about the role that listening, talking to colleagues, stepping up for new opportunities to take responsibilities and other inter-personal skills played in his career progression. Stuart talks about the importance of being good at problem-solving vs. problem-finding and when discussing what is at the forefront of his mind now as he helps clients navigate the environment for pensions, he mentions the role of digitization as well as the problem of getting beneficiaries to engage. We turn then to talk about a topic that has been a driver for Stuart throughout his career, which is about offering opportunities in the workplace to "cv-less" talent, that has not come through the normal qualification channels. He notes that there is a talent pool that has been missed for a long time, and details initiatives he has put in place in his workplaces to address this over the years. He cites the importance of support and encouragement throughout one's career, especially in the early years and the role played by mentoring and coaching.Some of the highs of Stuart's career derived working with great teams, and we discuss the importance of this and how sometimes leaving a great team can be a low point, but is the normal progression of our work-lives. Series 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them.

Jessica Goedtel is a Financial Planner and Owner at Pavilion Financial Planning in Allentown Pennsylvania.  She works in particular for tech workers and sex workers and I came across her profile when she presented a robust challenge to a popular personal finance book highlighting its lack of female representation in its case studies. Our conversation starts with Jessica's roots in studying ancient history and archaeology and why she ultimately shied away from that career but still took lessons she took from there to her next act, which was in financial planning.  Attention to detail, patience, and a focus on the long haul were among the transferable lessons. We speak about her focus at Pavilion Financial Planning which is in serving a client base of tech workers and sex workers, and tends to include many women.  We talk about how being a woman in financial planning is important to serve a wide base of clients, and some of the issues that are at the forefront of her mind today. We move then to another aspect of financial planning which is the representation in media of women as protagonists in wealth management stories.  Jessica analyzes a popular personal finance book for case studies of women and how they are portrayed and finds it sadly skewed and lacking.We end with stories of lessons learned through being an entrepreneur and in working in an industry that is constantly evolving.  Series 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them

Michael Halpern is Founder and President of Westmore Capital Advisors, an investment firm that invests across asset classes focused on direct investments in early stage/growth capital companies as well as investments in more established companies undergoing substantial transformation.  He was previously Co-Managing Member and Co-Chief Investment Officer of Dorchester Capital Advisors, a fund management firm that invested in hedge funds, private equity funds and secondary hedge fund interests. Prior to that he ran a long/short hedge fund Dorchester Advisors that he founded in 1991. He previously held a series of roles in financial services in the New York and Los Angeles and currently holds a number of board positions. Our conversation starts with Michael's first introduction to the world of investing, which was around the family dinner table at which multiple generations met and investments - as well as sports - were discussed.We move from there to his first formal roles in the area, at Goldman, Sachs and Pacific Holding Company and we talk about finance in the early 1980s, and how, sometimes, one can end up with far more responsibility than imagined, and how this can lead to the most profound learning experiences. And then to the launch his own long/short hedge fund and the hedge fund investment landscape of the 1990s.Our conversation moves to the complexities of starting a firm, raising capital, developing clients and staying the course. We look at the need to evolve and adapt in new environments; leveraging core competencies, retooling product lines and extending the duration of one’s capital base as new opportunities emerge.  This was particularly relevant when Michael and his co-founder developed the hedge fund secondaries business at Dorchester Capital Advisors.We move then to speak about Michael's current work at Westmore Capital Advisors and some recent investments. Finally we end with words of wisdom from some of the formidable mentors that Michael has learned from throughout his life. Series 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them

Vivian Lin Thurston is a Partner and Portfolio Manager at William Blair Investment Management, where she is based in Chicago. She previously covered global consumer stocks in a research role both at William Blair and a series of other financial services firms. She is Chairman of the Board at the Chinese Finance Association of American and a Principal Dancer and Director at the Xilin Dance Company.  Our conversation starts with Vivian's upbringing in China, and what led to her continuing her education in the US.  Her background in sociology proved to be a fertile one for embarking on a coverage of consumer stocks, and she describes her journey from analyst to portfolio manager, as well as some twists and turns that punctuated it. She has participated in Chinese dance throughout her life, and we speak then about what this has taught her in terms of physical resilience, discipline, the art of performance and striving for perfection.  Dance also teaches mental resilience and toughness, and Vivian finds that she draws on this in the fast-paced and sometimes volatile world of financial markets.  She also deeply values the creativity that dancing feeds.  You can find videos of some of Vivian's dance performances here: https://xilin.org/xilin_services/dance/We dig in then to the specifics of covering consumer stocks in emerging markets and some of the trends that are emerging - distinguishing between those that are likely to "stick" and those that are transient.  We examine how ESG concerns are permeating company research and how companies are responding to increased investor scrutiny as well as policy changes. Given the under-performance of Emerging Markets over the past decade we pick apart what is going on there and whether the region suffers from being classified as one homogenous group when it reflects such divergent economies. We finally then discuss the PM role and all of its aspects, and end with Vivian's reflections on what has driven her career.  Her focus on following her passion and her "no drama" rule have been instrumental in helping her keep an even keel throughout her career. Series 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them

Steve Butler is Chief Executive at Punter Southall Aspire, an investment consulting group.  He was previously the founder of Camradata, a business author and a visiting industry fellow at Oxford Brookes Business School.  He has a particular focus on areas such as #futureofwork, #olderworkers, #inclusiveculture, #intergenerational, and #retirementplanning and writes extensively on the topics on LinkedIN, which is where we met.  He is pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration which is examining the effect of Covid 19 on different generations in the workplace.Our conversation starts with Steve's upbringing in England's idyllic New Forest and how his university career endured some twists and turned, but ultimately led to an appreciation of the importance of hard work. He found he was naturally inclined to the people aspect of a business development role within financial services and thrived there, in roles that also took him to Latin America.  We move then to what drove him to found Camradata and the problem that that was designed to serve - the provision of investment data at a time when few data sources were consolidated in that way.  The business caught a wave of when analytics and peer group analysis were burgeoning, although Steve does describe the scrappy start-up stage quite vividly.We move then to his current focus at Punter Southall Aspire and his particular focus on ageism and busting myths that persist about older workers, their preferences and their strengths. Covid and the shift to remote and hybrid working has had an effect on this as well as other demographic groups. Series 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them.  

It is hard to believe that we are back for our fourth year of the Fiftyfaces Podcast – and in Series 1 of 2023 we hear about unorthodox beginnings such as the twelve year old who arbitraged the price of chickens when growing up in Uganda, and ended up in a senior role in Bridgewater before starting his own firm. We hear about traditional ones too, about investment instincts honed at the family dinner table, or through seeing the world through an artist's eyes.  We speak with CIOs, business owners, founders, a financial planner, an author, pensions experts, and portfolio managers, and, as always, dive deeper beyond a discussion of their business.  We find out what led them to their current roles, what motivated them, what twists and turns they took along the way.  We hear about how college and high school debate led to a meticulous skill for preparation, thinking on ones feet and performance, and how the study of archaeology lets one take the long view. We hear about passions like dancing in a Chinese dance troupe and what that does for physical and mental resilience - as well as relief, as well as from a guest who plays the viola, and is the strong "middle voice" and ballast both in her chamber music and her career.True to our original mission we discuss the themes and people who are often overlooked by our industry, from sex workers who need financial planning, but may feel judged when they seek it, to the talent pool who may not have achieved a mainstream degree, to the talent pool in the 55+ age group, who experience that "age" has become almost an "acceptable form of discrimination". Join us from Tuesday January 10 for our first Series of 2023. Our guests in series 1 are:Steve Butler  is Chief Executive at Punter Southall Aspire, an investment consulting group.  He was previously the founder of Camradata, a business author and a visiting industry fellow at Oxford Brookes Business School.  He has a particular focus on areas such as #futureofwork, #olderworkers, #inclusiveculture, #intergenerational, and #retirementplanning and writes extensively on the topics on LinkedIN, which is where we met.  He is pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration which is examining the effect of Covid 19 on different generations in the workplace.Vivian Lin Thurston is a Partner and Portfolio Manager at William Blair Investment Management, where she is based in Chicago with a particular focus on Emerging and Developed Markets. She previously covered global consumer stocks in a research role both at William Blair and a series of other financial services firms. She is Chairman of the Board at the Chinese Finance Association of American and a Principal Dancer and Director at the Xilin Dance Company.   Michael Halpern is Founder and President of Westmore Capital Advisors, a multi-strategy investment firm that invests across asset classes focused on early stage/growth capital companies as well as investments in more established companies undergoing substantial transformation.  He was previously Co-Managing Member and Co-Chief Investment Officer of Dorchester Capital Advisors, a fund management firm that invested in hedge funds, private equity funds and secondary hedge fund interests. Prior to that he ran a long/short hedge fund Dorchester Advisors that he founded in 1991. He previously held a serious of roles in financial services in the Los Angeles area and currently holds a number of Board Roles.  Jessical Goedtel is a Financial Planner and Owner at Pavilion Financial Planning in Allentown Pennsylvania.  She works in particular for tech workers and sex workers and I came across her profile when she presented a robust challenge to a popular personal finance book highlighting its lack of female representation in its case studies.Stuart Heatley is Managing Director at Capita Pensions where he is a Business Transformation and Growth Leader.  He previously held a series of similar roles at AON and Scottish Life.  Based in Edinburgh, Stuart is passionate about creating access to the financial services industry for people of all backgrounds, and is a Mentor with MCR Pathways. Dede Eyesan is Founder and CEO of Jenga investment Partners, a firm that invests globally across growth, turnaround and cyclical equity opportunities. This podcast will also appear as a bonus in our Nigerian voices series. Jonathan Hollow is a writer and commentator on consumer education and protection.  His recent book, How to Fund the Life you Want, distills learning on financial education and evidence-based investing into a manual for pensions and investing.  He is a charity trustee and also doing a part time MA in Ancient History.  His former roles include leadership positions in the Money Advice Service and Money and Pensions Service. Sara Bonesteel is Chief Investment Officer- International Insurance at Prudential Financial, located in the NYC area.  She was previously a managing director in Bear Stearns and JP Morgan. She is an Independent Director of Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC and a Member of the Board of Trustees, Chairman of Investment Committee at The NewarkMuseum of Art among other Board Roles.  She is also trained as a Neuroleadership CoachRichard Okello is CEO and Co-founder at Sango Capital, an investment firm he founded 10 years ago that has a particular focus on investing in Africa.  He previously was a principal at Makena Capital, and prior to that in a series of roles at Bridgewater Associates. Jon Lulu is a senior executive within a real estate investment management platform. He has had a long career in capital raising and real estate in particular.  Prior to his MBA he studied geography as an undergraduate and this is just one of many strands of his unorthodox background that we discuss. So join us from Tuesday January 10 when we kick off Series 1 over the next five weeks.  You can find all of our content on the Fiftyfaces Hub - fiftyfaceshub.com as well as on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. This year we are making our listeners aware that you can support our work on Patreon, which is a platform to support creators and content developers.  Any monthly contribution is appreciated and enables us to continue to amplify voices across the Investment profession and others.  You can support our work here: https://www.patreon.com/fiftyfacespodcast Series 1 of 2023 is brought to you with the kind support of HarbourView Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on opportunities in the entertainment and media space. Founded by Sherrese Clarke Soares, HarbourView is a long-term investor in content with an industrial platform built to protect, optimize, and enhance the legacy of premium IP. With a vision of becoming a true stakeholder in the global value of content, HarbourView believes creators deserve a seat at the table creatively and economically, owning their narrative and maximizing value for all. https://www.harbourviewequity.com/In celebration of our partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners we have selected a separate piece of music for each of the podcasts in this series.  We hope you enjoy them.