Voice of Experience: Maureen L. Beshar, Managing Director, Head of Institutional Sales, ClearBridge Investments

By Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Maureen L. Beshar, Managing Director and Head of Institutional Sales and Consultant Relations at ClearBridge Investments, believes strongly in the importance of building self confidence.

She said, “For women in any business – but especially a male dominated business like this – just believe in yourself. Your talents and qualifications are the reason you are sitting in the seat. It’s because of what you offer.”

Having spent three decades in the investment business, Beshar has the experience to know what propels women to the top. “I think women don’t always have the same amount of confidence as our male counterparts. We need to value ourselves more than others value us. That way we can push things forward.”

Building Something New

Throughout her life, Beshar has sought out ways to feed both sides of her brain. In college, she studied philosophy while working a full time job in the financial services. Her career has been mainly client-focused, while working to solve problems and create new areas of business within the companies she worked for.

She began her career in a client-facing role at Merrill Lynch and then moved to Smith Barney, where she worked with a woman who served as a mentor to her. “She was mindful of me and my career, and she suggested I might do well with a job in asset management.”

Beshar ultimately became Vice President of Capital Management at Smith Barney before moving to the firm Weiss, Peck and Greer, where she became Principal of East Coast Institutional Sales. At Invesco, she was Partner and National Director of Consultant Relations for North America before moving to Lazard, where she was Managing Director and Head of Global Consultant Relations.

In her three most recent roles, including her job now at ClearBridge, she has been tasked with building something new. “I’ve been in this business for over thirty years. And what gets me up in the morning is to be involved with something that hadn’t existed before, to be strategic and thoughtful in my decision making and create value for the company.”

She continued, “My last three jobs didn’t exist before. I had to create the role, build a team, make relationships, and put forth the effort so that it would flourish into its own business. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with really great teams. And what is really rewarding is raising an company’s profile and delivering assets to the organization.”

Beshar joined ClearBridge when she was offered the opportunity to build out its institutional presence, as it was historically a retail business. “I’m very energized by what we are building here. We are getting the name out in the marketplace and branding ClearBridge as an institutional presence.”

She noted that the firm has recently been voted one of the best places to work in Pensions and Investments Magazine, and she was proud of the work senior management has done to build a welcoming culture that “treats people with respect.” Additionally, ClearBridge women have the ability to take advantage of women’s initiatives and events through the firm’s parent company Legg Mason.

Beshar says in addition to working toward building relevant client solutions for the future, she was following a few marketplace trends particularly closely. The first is the OCIO (Outsourced CIO) phenomenon. “It’s another piece of the puzzle you’re going to be working with when dealing with the consultant community as well as the direct plan sponsors.

“The other thing is, industry-wide, what everyone is calling client solutions,” she continued, “Our firm is primarily a US Equities firm, and we are expanding into non-US Equities. How do you grow it into something to partner with your clients, and deliver to your clients the strategies they need in asset allocation decisions and meeting their investment objectives?”

Women in Investment Management

Beshar attributes some of her success in the industry to her comfort with male dominated environments. “I grew up with two brothers and a strong father and I’ve always been in a man’s environment. I’m comfortable in this type of industry,” she explained. “That said, some of the most capable people I’ve learned from have been senior women in the investment business.”

She is active in mentoring younger women and building relationships with her peers. “I have always wanted to be a resource. I’ve made some of my best friends in life in this industry. Helping others and sharing the wealth is important to maintaining and expanding your network, as well as building solid relationships both professionally, and if you’re really lucky, personally.”

Her advice to women is to be proactive. “It’s a lot of hard work and you have to network appropriately. Deliver value-added assistance to the senior level people at your firm, yet be proactive about promoting yourself and talking about what you are trying to accomplish for the company.”

“I give the same advice to young women starting out that I give my 15 year old daughter. Whatever you want, you can have it. You just have to work hard for it,” she said. “I try to advise them to always have a five year plan: this is the job I want, and here are the steps to take to get there. If you can find something that plays to your strengths, you can be good at it.”

Networking

Beshar partners with her female peers in the industry to attend woman-focused events. For a number of years, she has participated in an annual Dress For Success evening. “We invite women from the plan sponsor and investment consultant community to come for an evening of networking with other women in the industry, while being proactive and spring cleaning their closets to donate clothes and other items to this very worthwhile organization”

The response is always robust, she says, including women ranging from more junior in the business as to very senior as well. “It’s a chance to get people together and help them expand their networks and open doors, as well as being a very fun evening!”

As a people-person who lives to learn, Beshar believes her role at ClearBridge is perfect for her. “I get to meet many different types of people and learn about their business and about them. I love to walk into a room of 300 people and meet as many as I can, yet in a targeted way. I know this can be daunting for younger people and I do try to go up to them and reach out. It is very hard when you’re first starting out.”

She advised young people to build and maintain their network thoughtfully. “For people just starting out, always harvest and nurture those relationships you meet along the way. This is a people-business, and our relationships are the most important thing we have coupled with our credibility and integrity among those relationships.”

Beshar finds that with all the technology that has been created since her start in the business, it is easier today to build and maintain those relationships, yet even more challenging as people are inundated with emails, social websites etc. “Find out a differentiator of yourself, your firm or what you are trying to position, and make sure you are adding value to whomever you are reaching out to. That way you’re are not wasting anyone’s time, and hopefully giving them a reason to want to respond to your email!”

Sense of Humor and Reputation

Maintaining a sense of perspective is important, Beshar says, as at the end of the day we are all working so hard with very little spare time on our hands. “I think I’ve always tried to maintain a sense of humor and never be too serious,” she explained.

She continued, “I’m certainly very focused and driven, yet. maintaining a sense of humor and humility is stress-reducing and it’s appealing to other people. The ability to laugh with others is important for building relationships.”

The other thing, she continued, is about integrity. “One of the things I find to be very important is that at the end of the day, all we have is our integrity and credibility. In anything I do, I think I’ve proven a high level of integrity and a high level of credibility,” she said. “If, at the end of the day, they don’t believe in me, they’re not going to partner with me.”

“Credibility takes a long time to build and a very short time to knock down, and it doesn’t hurt to have two little mirrors at home. I have to go home and tell my children how I’ve acted today. It helps a lot to keep you honest,” she said.

In Her Personal Time

“My full time hobby tends to be my children and my 82 pound puppy,” Beshar said with a laugh. “And my husband when I find the time!”

Beshar and her husband have two daughters who are 15 and 10 years old. “I have to say, I don’t think I could do anything that I do without the support of my husband or my daughters. We’ve had this conversation, and if I were a stay-at-home-mom, I’d be way too involved in their lives, and they are happy the way it is!”

She continued, “Balance is tough, but luckily I have an enormous amount of energy! Also if you are open with your family, your partner becomes a willing and active participant in the whole process. I’ve also found it is important to explain to my children why I am doing what I do, especially with girls. I want them to know they can have a rich life fulfilling their dreams.”

Beshar is a former board member of AIMSE, the Association for Investment Management Sales Executives. She has mentored a 12-year old girl through Big Brothers and Big Sisters of New York City, and is also a troop leader for her 10 year old’s girl scout troop. She enjoys running, tennis and gardening when she can find the time, as well as cooking and entertaining with her family. “My 15 year old and I have a target to run a half marathon together this year” says Beshar, “and if I see it in print, I’ll actually have to make it happen!” she said with a chuckle. There’s that sense of humor getting her through again!