The Fiftyfaces Podcast

Caroline Burton has a portfolio career which includes roles as an independent advisor to local authority pension plans and a NED role. She previously spent over 25 years at the Guardian Royal Exchange, where she was promoted to manager at the age of 28. She retired from that organization in 1999 and has since built a portfolio career.  Our conversation starts in what seems like an entirely different era in the City - during the mid 1970s. Top hats were in vogue, gentlemen's dining clubs were the rage and diversity was not high on the agenda. Caroline encountered her fair share of sexism in her early career, but nonetheless made her way through management ranks, and shares some of her strategies for success. We reflect also on how the industry has changed, and where progress has been lagging. When she retired over 20 years ago she moved to a full portfolio career of committee and non executive director roles, and we discuss where these differ from executive roles.As an experienced committee member she has a a clear sense of where non executive roles differ from executive roles - in particular that the mantra should be "eyes on, hands off" and that observing and listening to the direction of travel and then opining on it can be a key value added of the non executive director. This 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/

Sharmila Kassam is the founder of Aligned Capital Investing, as well as holding a portfolio of Board roles. She was previously Deputy Chief Investment Officer of the Employees Retirement System of Texas, a public defined benefit plan with around $30 bn in AUM, where she held a series of roles for almost 12 years. She previously worked as an attorney and a venture industry professional. She is a Senior Fellow at the Milken Institute.Our conversation starts with Sharmila's move from law into the world of investing, and the policies and priorities that were at the forefront of her mind in her role as Deputy CIO of a large public plan. Sharmila was an early trailblazer for the building and promotion of diverse portfolios in her role at Texas ERS, and the strong performance of these portfolios serves as a powerful proof statement of the win/win nature of diversity. Now, as she builds out her portfolio of Board roles she is committed to using this experience to pave the way for smaller and more boutique organizations to see and enjoy the benefits of diversity. We speak about the figures in her life who have inspired her, and her current agenda to promote change.

Debbie Clarke was Global Research Chair and Global Head of Investment Research at Mercer for close to 16 years, following an extensive career in asset management and consulting which included 20 years as a portfolio manager.  She retired from her position at Mercer in June 2021 and is building a portfolio career, including a NED role on the EMEA board of Blackrock and a member of the UK CFA Institute Advisory Board. She is an active speaker on the conference circuit and has been voted in the FN 100 Most Influential Women in Asset Management in 6 of the last 9 years.   Our conversation tracks Deb's career progression, what drove her move to London, and later to Chicago for a few years.  We talk about what led her to a research role, her investment beliefs as well as the advice that she gives to younger career professionals.  My favorite part of this podcast was the time we spent discussing Deb's prodigious craft collection - as an avid quilter as well as a cross stitch and crochet expert, and I deliberately recorded a video so that we could showcase some of Deb's masterpieces - see the linked video on Linked In.  This may be a skill that is in shorter and shorter supply now, but hear how Deb's heartfelt creations put the S in sustainability and recycle meaningful strands of lives lived into a gorgeous portfolio.

We are issuing this replay of Sally Bridgeland's podcast - Sally featured in the first series of The Fiftyfaces Podcast in August 2020. Sally Bridgeland needs no introduction in London institutional investing circles. Following a long career as an actuary, investment consultant and investor, culminating in a role of CEO at BP Pension Trustees for the 19 BN GBP BP pension fund, she has pivoted to an extensive portfolio career. Since 2014 she has held roles at Nest, USS, Lloyds Banking Group, Avida International, RAF Central Fund, Nesta, the Nuclear Liabilities Fund, the Local Pensions Partnership, Impax Asset Management and Royal London.  Her portfolio is a very full one, but she still finds the time to commit to her passion for education in mathematics through the Royal Society and Loughborough University and is Honorary Group Captain in the Royal Air Force, No 601 Squadron. Our conversation discusses Sally's journey into investment, the role that learning maths had in her story, and her lifelong passion for ensuring that maths is taught effectively and in a way that conveys its beauty. We also discuss her investment beliefs and lessons learned through a career in consulting and then as an asset owner.

In this inaugural "next chapter" podcast episode, we hear from four extraordinary leaders in investment management circles - each pathbreakers in their own right, and each of whom is dedicating this current chapter of their career to a portfolio of Board and other roles.Many executives enter a portfolio or "plural" career once they finish up a traditional executive role, but there is a distinct lack of guidance as to what it is that makes a good director or investment committee member, and particular a good chair.  We hear from these experts about the benefit of perspective, the mantra of "eyes on, hands off", the role of providing counsel to executives and to contributing to the efficacy of a Board. We hear what it is to coach and nurture the next generation of leaders, and why helping to shape diversity on Boards is an important way of bringing about lasting change.  We hear about the importance of an organization's mission, how a good chair will draw out the optimal contributions of everyone around a table, keep time and bring about effective decision-making.This podcast series was made possible by the kind support of Darwin Alternatives.Darwin Alternative Investment Management Limited offers innovative, alpha-driven investment solutions that are uncorrelated with traditional asset classes and feature business areas which have not previously been considered by investment funds. The firm aims to create new opportunities for investors to further diversify their portfolios and achieve stable absolute returns. 

Margaux O’Brien is Investment Director at the University of California investment office, based in Oakland, CA.  She previously spent over 14 years in the fund of hedge fund area, where she specialized in equity long/short and other equity hedge funds. Prior to that she was an investment consultant.  Our conversation starts with Margaux's upbringing in South Africa, her introduction to investment consulting and ultimately to manager selection and how her career took her around the world.I have known Margaux as one of the most talented spotters of exceptional managers in the long/short arena and we dive right in to what she looks for in a manager and how she finds managers with an edge.  We transition then to the broader equity space and ask when and where active management makes sense and non-traditional fee structures are justified.  We also discuss portfolio construction and how here investment beliefs have evolved over time.Now at a large endowment we talk about the role of allocators, and how portfolio management can seem like the challenge of a puzzle that has to fit together with all of the requisite pieces, and how it can be a  fascinating and stimulating career to pursue. When we turn to personal reflections and lessons learned over the years, we talk about the importance of humility as a tool to gain perspective and calm nerves, perhaps before a large presentation. We hear about the importance of feedback - both giving and getting it, and why, in the end, we all need to worry less. This podcast is brought to you with the kind support of Pluscios Capital, a women-owned, WBENC certified investment management firm based in Evanston, IL. With over 60+ years of combined investment management experience, co-founders Constance Teska and Kelly Chesney are committed to the development of bespoke investment solutions on behalf of institutions and intermediaries. In addition to broadly diversified core and catalyst solutions, Pluscios provides hands on product development support and custom solutions with a focus on diversity-led and emerging managers.

Adam Demuyakor is the founder and managing partner at Wilshire Lane Capital, a venture capital and private equity firm that focuses on PropTech solutions based in Los Angeles California.  Born in the US to a family originally from Ghana, Adam started out on Wall Street in investment banking and held a number of private equity and venture capital roles before found in Wilshire Lane.  He also holds a number of Board roles and is a Board of Trustee of the education nonprofit 9 Dots.Our conversation starts with his family roots, and the expectations that accompanied his schooling and career choices. We hear how he came to be interested in real estate and how he gained experience in both the private and public side of the business, and ultimately the vision with which he launched his own firm.  This is an opportunity for our discussion to dive into PropTech and discuss what the technology that is transforming real estate looks like, and how these theses are playing out.  Among some of the concepts discussed are Ghost Kitchens and the new look Self Storage outfits, and we discuss some of the business models that are exciting him most at this juncture.As an early stage venture capital firm, Wilshire Lane Capital, is highly focused on the entrepreneurs and their vision that they support, and many of them are diverse founders themselves.  In fact in an industry in which female and black and brown founders are poorly represented, Wilshire Lane is breaking the mould - 36% of their companies are led by women outright, 29% of their companies have a black founder on them, and 79% of their companies have an underrepresented minority or a female in the C suite. Wilshire Lane Capital recently entered into a strategic partnership with Nile Capital which sponsored our original diverse founders and VCs series, and we speak about how these ideas came together. We speak about 9 Dots, a nonprofit, based in Los Angeles, that focuses on providing subsidized computer science courses for the poorest students in the city.  Adam shares why this is one of the most fulfilling of all of his roles.  Finally, we discuss some highs and lows of his career so far, what Adam looks for in a founder and what it means to pass the "Shower Test". This podcast will feature in our mini-series featuring professionals from the Ghanaian diaspora as well as our second diverse founders and venture capitalist series. 

Pat Lynch, who was Founder, President and CEO of Chicago Equity Partners, a Chicago based asset manager for over 20 years.  He now holds investment and strategic advisory roles within the investment industry and is on the board of directors of Loyola Business School, as well as the Ballmer Center for Social Justice.Our conversation covers Pat's decades of experience in finance, including starting out in the investment arm of a bank, forming Chicago Equity Partners with a group of partners and growing that business. We spend quite a bit of time on how to make a sale, and how we must be careful not to project how we "buy" onto others.  Knowing clients is about so much more than how they buy of course, and we speak about the importance of networks, developing direct client relationships and how the shape of finance is changing with more involvement of intermediaries.  We also take a broader survey of the dynamics of the finance industry and how it is evolving.This podcast is brought to you with the kind support of Pluscios Capital, a women-owned, WBENC certified investment management firm based in Evanston, IL. With over 60+ years of combined investment management experience, co-founders Constance Teska and Kelly Chesney are committed to the development of bespoke investment solutions on behalf of institutions and intermediaries. In addition to broadly diversified core and catalyst solutions, Pluscios provides hands on product development support and custom solutions with a focus on diversity-led and emerging managers.

Constance Freedman is Founder and Managing Partner at Moderne Ventures as well as Moderne Passport – an early stage investment fund and industry immersion program which is focused on investing in technology companies in and around the multi-trillion dollar industries of real estate, finance, insurance, hospitality and home services.  It has just closed its (over-subscribed) second fund at over $200 m. She sits on numerous boards and has received several awards including Crain’s Business 40 under 40 and Chicago Top Tech 50 (on three occasions). Our conversation - a bonus episode, which will also appear in our next Diverse Founders and VCs series - focuses on her professional journey and the fascinating world of Proptech - technology that is related to real estate and other property. This has been an area of expertise for Constance for some time, and we start with describing the opportunity in the area and then how Constance moved from working within another venture firm to starting Moderne Ventures.  One of the most fascinating aspects of Moderne Ventures is the Moderne Passport program, which creates an ecosystem for over 700 founders as well as industry members to network, work together and create synergies.  It is also about creating network effects and enriching the social capital of founders, as well as enabling innovation to flourish through a system of pilot programs and providing feedback. There is more information about Moderne Ventures and the Moderne Passport program on: https://www.moderneventures.com

Elina Kovaleva, who is head of research at Velox Capital Partners, an equity long/short market neutral hedge fund firm based in London, a position she has held for 3 years. She previously held a number of research and analyst roles, at investment banks and hedge funds. Our conversation starts with Elina's upbringing in Russia in the 1990s and her route into finance and centers in particular on why she believes hedge funds, with their merit-based performance culture where results matter, can be a perfect place for women to work and thrive. We dig into some of the unexpected variety and areas of deep satisfaction in stock analysis, and in the increasing integration of ESG in the process. We transition then to a discussion of impact and why it is increasingly integrated with instead of separate from the investment case.  When it comes to life lessons, Elina draws one from chess - which is to be pessimistic about your next move, but optimistic about your ability.  To be kind, and to consider the world your "Everest" - something that can be conquered, if you are up for the challenge. This podcast is brought to you with the kind support of Pluscios Capital, a women-owned, WBENC certified investment management firm based in Evanston, IL. With over 60+ years of combined investment management experience, co-founders Constance Teska and Kelly Chesney are committed to the development of bespoke investment solutions on behalf of institutions and intermediaries. In addition to broadly diversified core and catalyst solutions, Pluscios provides hands on product development support and custom solutions with a focus on diversity-led and emerging managers.