Voice of Experience: Laurie Carroll, Managing Director and Index Specialist at Mellon Capital

This week we are profiling amazing women in investment management ahead of our annual career panel event on the 5th November for women in the industry who want to make it to the top.

By Michelle Hendelman

In 1989, Laurie Carroll became a breast cancer survivor. “Being a breast cancer survivor in a male dominated atmosphere was hard, but it motivated me to work even harder and embrace every challenge,” said Carroll, “and I had a lot of supportive male colleagues around me who understood what I was going through.”

Laurie Carroll graduated from Seton Hill University with a degree in Business Management. At the time she attended, Seton Hill was a women’s college. “I wish I knew at the time that I wouldn’t necessarily be accepted in the business world,” said Carroll. “Within my family, and within the tight knit community at Seton Hill, you were never told that you couldn’t achieve something,” she added.

“That was really eye-opening for me. For example, when I started at BNY Mellon over 20 years ago, I wasn’t invited to the investment management meeting even though I was managing money,” Carroll said. “This has changed,” added Carroll. “Women are more involved and they are moving higher within the industry.”

Career Path

“When I graduated from college, Pittsburgh did not have the strongest job market, so I bought a one-way ticket to Houston where some of my family members lived,” said Carroll. Within three days Carroll found a position at an up and coming investment management firm called Aim Management. “I was hired to do basic office work,” recalled Carroll, “but that is how I got my start in the industry. I was about the 20th person to be hired at the company, which was later sold to Invesco.”

Carroll learned the business of investment management by being proactive and taking advantage of opportunities to advance her career whenever she could. She explained, “Whenever someone left the company or something changed, I asked to take on the new role or task. This is how I moved up in the business.”

After five or six years of working in the investment management industry in Houston, Carroll moved back to the Pittsburgh area when she accepted a position at one of the first investment management divisions at BNY Mellon. Since then, Carroll has worked in several investment management subsidiaries of BNY Mellon. “I am proud of the flexibility I have displayed throughout my career,” said Carroll, “and I am proud of the great teams I have had the opportunity to manage.”

Another career highlight Carroll noted as critical to her professional development was the international assignment she accepted a couple of years ago, to live and work in London. “I knew working abroad would be challenging on both a professional and a personal level. There is a different atmosphere and a different way of doing things, so I had to learn how to fit in to that culture,” said Carroll.

Women in Investment Management

According to Carroll, women in investment management have experienced a lot of change when it comes to career opportunities and advancement, but she acknowledged that there is a lot of room for improvement as well. She encouraged women to take a leap in their careers and seek out those career-changing opportunities.

“We also need to challenge our male leaders to select the ‘other’ candidate, whether that is a woman, or someone from another minority group,” Carroll noted. “There are predetermined conceptions formed about what the ‘right’ candidate should look like, and how they should act. Leaders need to consider more candidates who don’t necessarily fit that mold,” she added.

Carroll advised women in investment management to continue to take advantage of opportunities, even if it means accepting a lateral move or stepping outside an established comfort zone. She added, “And to some degree, women need to try to adapt to new challenges so they get chosen for the career-changing opportunities.” Young professional women need to look to the successful senior women as the role models that strove to create a new mold of women in management— one that is approachable, driven and adaptable to change.

“I thought that as long as I worked hard and did my job really well, everything else would take care of itself,” Carroll said, “but this has not always been the case for me.”

Private wealth management is one area of financial services where Carroll sees a lot of opportunity for women. “This area is really growing and you are seeing a lot more women with money, and also a lot more women managing money,” Carroll said.

Carroll believes that today’s women executives are more open to look at all candidates to diversify and look for best ideas. “Women want a more balanced and diversified workforce and are willing to promote women based on their own experience,” said Carroll. She notes that Mellon Capital’s CEO Gabby Parcella is looking to build a team of people of all backgrounds to bring ideas and experience to the firm.

According to Carroll, it is important for women to create a strong network of other professional women that they can lean on, seek advice from, and share experiences with. These networks do not need to be with your company, Carroll said. “I have benefited greatly from the personal network of professional women that I have maintained throughout my career,” she added.

Outside the Office

“I am just starting to get back into running,” Carroll said, “and I love to travel.” She also likes to spend her time outside of the office tending to her garden.