Voice of Experience: Rebecca Kniesel, Head of Institutional Marketing, Voya

rebecca-knieselBy Cathie Ericson

“To stand out, I suggest volunteering for projects outside of your comfort zone,” recommends Voya’s Rebecca Kniesel. “I wasn’t always comfortable at certain points along my career journey; but, you have to be open to these situations and get as comfortable being uncomfortable as you can.”

Charting Her Own Course in the Financial Industry

Kniesel began her career with the consumer retail banking division of MBNA America (now Bank of America), one of the first credit card companies to pioneer affinity marketing.

Living in Wilmington, Delaware at the time, she decided she wanted to head to the bright lights of the big city and went from credit card banking to investment banking, where she was hired in a marketing capacity for the syndicated loan division of Bankers Trust. Two months after she joined the firm, it merged with Deutsche Bank and her role changed significantly. Rebecca had the opportunity to join DB Capital Partners in which she focused on marketing and sales for 3rd party private equity funds. It was a big shift from credit card marketing and was a true investment banking job which included lots of late nights and long hours.

She then pursued an opportunity with Chase Private Bank – just three months before its merger with J.P. Morgan – and she spent four years there in marketing for the Latin American and U.S. private banks, as well as two years in marketing for institutional asset management. She later moved on to BlackRock (which had just announced its merger with Merrill Lynch Investment Management), in the dual role of marketing and consultant relations. Following this period, she returned to J.P. Morgan in a marketing capacity focused on fixed income for about seven years before she learned of a great opportunity at Voya, which she says has been a fantastic opportunity to round out her background.

Kniesel’s career path includes 3 mega-mergers early in her career, which is a big reason she’s had to learn how to be comfortable in uncomfortable situations. “The industry changes constantly, your career can change on a dime and you need to be flexible enough to navigate that”, she says.

As Kniesel’s degree was in psychology, she’s had to learn a lot on the job and is a big proponent of encouraging new entrants to the field who may not have a finance or mathematical background. “I have charted my own path and have had to teach myself on the job,” she says. “I am proud of the financial and technical expertise I bring to my current position and know that if I can accomplish that, others with a similar educational background can too.”

She says that initially she felt self-conscious working with people who had learned the fundamentals of the business in school. But what she realized – and shares with younger professionals rising through the ranks – is that the industry is “not impossible to learn, even though people might make you feel like it is. Don’t be afraid to ask questions; people expect you to,” she says.

Currently, Kniesel is immersed in planning an annual investment seminar that the institutional division runs each year for its top clients, from institutional plan sponsors to defined contribution plan sponsors, insurance clients and consultants. The event includes a day of presentations, coupled with breakout sessions and topped off with a keynote speaker and dinner.

“I’m really excited about the agenda we are building for this years’ seminar, with current topics that showcase Voya’s capacity as a solutions provider,” she says.

It’s an exciting time to be in the industry, given the changes wrought by the digital age and what that means for financial services. With everyone constantly on their smartphones and being bombarded with options that allow them to make decisions on everything from groceries to finances on their devices, traditional marketers have an intriguing task to take a business that’s traditionally relationship-oriented and build marketing programs and content that breaks through the noise.

The Challenge of Increasing Women’s Participation in the Financial Industry

Expectations of the traditional work environment in the financial industry typically lack flexibility, which Kniesel sees as an ongoing, but unnecessary, barrier to keeping women in the industry. “As a manager, I want to understand what helps my team achieve their best at work,” she says, adding that all employees have responsibilities outside their time in the office, whether that’s caring for a sick parent or a young child. “If they work better at 3 a.m., then that’s what they should do. It’s unfortunate that in the financial world, that mindset is still not pervasive because it creates a barrier for women and not just those with children: ‘Do I spend my life in an industry that doesn’t allow me to juggle all aspects of my life the way I need to, or do I go elsewhere?’”

She says that women who have achieved success in the industry need to continue to push the envelope to make this “a career our children will continue to want.”

As a member of Voya’s New York Women’s Network, Kniesel is excited about partnering with the human resources department on a related area – welcoming women back to the office after returning from maternity leave. Companies have made huge strides in this area and she’s passionate about doing even more, particularly as the transition back to the office after maternity leave is an incredibly vulnerable time. If not handled well, it can significantly impact a woman’s decision to remain in the workforce.

She knows the challenges well, since she herself has a three-year old son who “is her whole world and has changed the way I look at life and work.”

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Voice of Experience: Dalia Ahmed, Executive Director, Ultra High Net Worth, UBS

Dalia AhmedYoung professionals tend to take everything personally – whether comments come from colleagues or clients. “It’s easy to be sensitive, but it’s important to realize that most of the time, the comments or feedback are not personal. Developing a thick skin, especially in a male-dominated environment, will help you succeed,” says UBS’ Dalia Ahmed.

Deep Relationships Propel Her Career

This observation has helped Dalia throughout her professional life, which has been focused on building strong relationships with her clients. She began her career in London, joining Coutts bank where she spent 8 years covering private banking clients in the Middle East. After the birth of her second child, she took a short break and then joined UBS in Dubai as the second client advisor in their first advisory office in the region, a position she still holds.

Over the past decade she is proud of the trusted advisor role she has achieved. “That’s the most important factor in this business — becoming part of clients’ lives and not just as a banker,” she says. “I’m proud of the deep relationships I’ve built with these amazing families and being invited to share in their success stories.” She notes that by nature her ultra-high net worth clients are very interesting people and although their conversations begin around finances — investments, risk and return, performance, etc. — these exchanges frequently turn to the personal side.

They’ll discuss issues much closer to the client’s heart, such as the client’s vision for the family and family business, whether the children are ready to take over and any specific educational needs for the next generation.

“Research shows that less than one-third of family businesses survive the transition from first to second generation ownership and another 50% don’t survive the transition from second to third generation. I meet many families whose main concern is how to efficiently transfer their business and wealth to the next generation,” she says.

One of the areas that she finds most interesting in the industry today is the rising trend of ultra-high net worth families setting up family offices for intergenerational wealth transfer. This has highlighted the need for private banks to think more radically about how they can best serve this type of client, she says, because a traditional wealth management setting will not be sufficient for the sophisticated demands of these family offices. “Increasingly private banks will have to include services such as global custody, lending, execution, investment banking, private markets and more, which of course not all private banks have the scale to provide.”

In her client-facing capacity, every day is interesting because she is constantly meeting new people and forging new relationships. “You have to make sure you are always doing something satisfying and inspiring or every day will be challenging. If you don’t enjoy what you’re doing, the pressure and hours can be very difficult to manage,” she says.

Helping Women Be Successful in the Industry

Although the industry begins with a 50/50 male/female split, female attrition happens as they rise through the ranks. The question, Dalia notes, is why women leave the industry. She believes that there are no structural barriers or barriers caused by overt hostility but rather an ingrained unconscious bias about what it takes to perform at the top, such as being aggressive and determined, attributes people are less likely to ascribe to women. “These issues are very subtle which makes them harder to identify and tackle,” she says.

The male-dominated culture can be intimidating to talented women, she says, but notes that much of the reason there are more men are because of lifestyle issues: late nights and overnight travel become more difficult, and many women are likely to look at that lifestyle and decide they don’t want to do that. “Financial industries need to change their old-fashioned work practices that reward people for working at the office late at night, because it’s not conducive to many women who have families at home,” she says.

That’s why she encourages women who have risen in the industry to realize the importance of being role models for younger women. “Since we are a minority it’s more important than ever for us to help each other, to be visible. We have to show the new female entrants that women can succeed in these positions.”

She is proud of the initiatives UBS has developed to support women and create change within the culture, such as the Diversity and Inclusion Council that ensures that the firm creates an open environment. As a service organization with a diverse client base, it’s particularly important that they be visible with a diverse workforce.

The firm is in the midst of rolling out training in unconscious bias that all wealth management staff will take by 2018. The training will cover gender and other diversity issues that she says forward-thinking firms have to learn how to acknowledge and overcome. One area ripe for additional focus is supporting and retaining women after maternity leave.

Ahmed participated in the Women in Wealth Forum, an annual event that provides a platform for women to network and bolster their skills and is very supportive of the Leading Women of Wealth Management group, which provides coaching and helps women develop their talents. She encourages young professionals to seek out similar groups to help them nurture relationships with a trusted mentor who can offer advice in the challenging situations that are sure to arise.

In her free time, Dalia likes to read and cycle, but most of all she focuses on spending time with her children, a son, age 14, and a daughter, age 11. “I love to listen to their views and opinions; their simple perspective helps me to cut through all the unnecessary complexities of life.”

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Voice of Experience: Sandy Rubinstein, CEO, DXagency

voice-of-experience-sandy-rubinstein-ceo-dxagencyA second-generation immigrant from Chile, Sandy Rubinstein grew up in a close-knit Hispanic community in Miami with a family and heritage which had a sizeable influence on her career.

Her parents arrived in the country not knowing English, and her mom learned it along with her while they watched Sesame Street together. In fact, her mother wouldn’t speak Spanish outside the house, because she felt that the family was here and should conform to this country’s norms.

Rubenstein saw they came to this country not expecting anything, and that philosophy has stuck with her. “My parents instilled in me the mentality that you have to make your own path; you can’t expect anyone to hand anything to you.”

From Music to Advertising

A classically trained opera singer, Rubinstein attended college to study music, but also earned a companion degree focused on marketing and business administration.

“My parents were so excited that I was studying music — part of it was that they believed I shouldn’t waste an opportunity — but I assured my mom I needed to also take business courses to have something to fall back on,” she recalls.

And once she took an advertising and marketing class, she was hooked. “Part of it was the performer in me; I wanted to make people feel something, and advertising has the power to do that,” she says.

After 20 years in television marketing, she joined DX in 2009 out of a desire to get more involved in the digital realm. For several years she had been recommending media plans with more focus on digital initiatives, but when she received little traction she realized it was time to do something different and has never looked back.

As marketing evolves, she has noticed that clients are once again investing in email, which she sees as a smart tactic that she is thrilled is coming back in a big way. And since video continues to be a medium that will grow, the agency recently added a video studio for its clients.

Mentoring Brings Important Lessons to Others

Although she’s achieved much work-related success launching new products and supporting brands, Rubinstein says that her proudest moments have come from her mentoring efforts. “It only takes one person to change someone’s life, and nothing else has the same long-term impact as making a difference in someone’s career,” she says, noting that she has had a mentor almost from Day One who still guides her. She hosts interns in her office and also helps at the local high school which has a track with a marketing focus.

The lessons she teaches young women range from the practical — “Dress for the job you want, not the one you have” — to the philosophical, such as knowing themselves before they expect others to know them. “It’s difficult for people to view you how you want to be viewed if you don’t see yourself that way,” she notes.

She also warns women they are likely to have to work twice as hard as their male counterparts, especially if they choose to be a mom and have a thriving career. “I knew that I would have to make certain sacrifices, but it was worth it to work twice as hard at work to cover everything so I could focus on my babies at home.” She notes that women will have tough times personally and professionally but they have to work to build the career that allows them to achieve what they want.

Over the years, Rubinstein has learned the wisdom of not taking everything so seriously. “You have to laugh at yourself and stressful moments,” she says, citing the importance of perspective. “Unless you’re a doctor in the NICU, the issue is probably not as critical as you perceive it to be, and once you get out of the vortex and whirl of negativity, you’re likely to have better judgment regarding a given situation.”

Although she has never felt that being a woman has held her back, she notes that women do have common stereotypes with which they’ll be labeled, especially as they become more successful. A passionate woman will be called emotional, and a strong one will be seen as bossy.

“That’s not going to change but what has to change is that women have to say ‘So what? Move on. I don’t care if you see me as bossy.’ As women we are constantly looking to please everyone because it’s in our nature. But we have to start by pleasing ourselves too.”

She also believes that women need to have each other’s backs. “Be nice. Prop each other up, rather than tearing each other down,” she says. “Women tend to get in each other’s way, and we need to build each other up instead.”

Instilling Values in Her Children

Rubinstein has made sure that her twin boys, now age 14, have always embraced philanthropy. At every birthday, for example, they choose a charity and have their guests bring a donation to support it. Over the years they have raised money for a “Cookies for Kids” cancer program and their local fire station, which had lost its Jaws of Life in the 9/11 tragedy. “My kids had just learned what Jaws of Life were when they visited the station, and that year they wanted to help replace them.”

She models the behavior herself, having started a non-profit education foundation to raise money for STEAM grants for local kids in kindergarten through 12th grade, and has raised $130,000 thus far.

The family also loves to travel, having just returned from Italy, but relish any time they are together. “My kids went to summer camp, and we couldn’t wait to have them home so we could have adventures together,” she says. “The four of us are thick as thieves.”

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Voice of Experience: Anita Romero, General Counsel, Global Consumer, Citibank

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Anita RomeroBy Cathie Ericson

It is who you know. That’s what Anita Romero figured out over the course of her career, and wishes that she had known earlier. “When you’re first starting out, you’re so focused on doing excellent work that you don’t realize the many benefits of seeking advice from peers in your network,” she says. “People learn over time, but had I known that up front it would have really helped.”

From Government to Finance

Romero started her career at the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC), which is the City of New York’s primary economic development vehicle. During her tenure with the EDC, her goal was to help keep business in the city, including the redevelopment of Disney’s New Amsterdam Theater and other magnets in Times Square.

After 12 years she went to work for the Traveler’s Group which merged with Citicorp, creating what is today known as Citi.

Since her career up to that point had been in government, she didn’t have direct product experience at a financial services firm, so she completed a rotation through different legal areas of this financial services company. She said that although the experience felt a bit like being a first-year associate again, it was valuable in helping her stretch outside of her comfort zone – advice she offers to other professionals.

“Many attorneys are very focused on a career path that only goes up, as opposed to horizontally, but sometimes doing something complementary can really help you develop, whether you are new to a job or are more seasoned in your career.”

After a year of rotation, she chose a permanent home in corporate law, principally doing securities work as well as mergers and acquisitions, an active area since the company was in a buying mode.

Subsequently, Romero worked as Deputy General Counsel of Citi’s international business segment, in which she had to face one of her first challenges, the 2002 Argentine crisis, which involved lots of “firefighting” as she says. She then returned to the corporate law department to oversee corporate legal functions that support the company as a whole, including human resources, employment law and M&A. Now, she serves as General Counsel for the global consumer business and Citibank NA, the largest subsidiary of Citigroup.

The team that she’s built at Citi is the professional achievement she’s most proud of. “We are committed to having a high-quality and diverse team,” she says. As the Legal Management Committee sponsor of the company’s Talent Development program, she actually spearheads that function for the legal department as a whole.

Technology As an Industry Game Changer

As technology evolves, so will the industry. “Startups are seeking to disrupt what we’ve been doing as banks in the digital experience, and while some do it well, they are operating under a different regulatory environment,” she says, noting that fintech entities aren’t required to be licensed the same way that banks are. “The world has changed for banks in terms of regulatory expectations, and so we are constantly analyzing and adapting to the new model.”

Romero says that Citi is whole heartedly focused on radical digitization, always seeking ways to reduce friction for customers and improve their banking experience.

Promoting Hispanic Culture through Mentoring Others

Citi supports a number of employee networks, including Citi Women, a corporate-wide diversity effort for attracting, developing, advancing and retaining female talent at all levels within Citi.

Since one of her passions is to give back to the community where she lives, Romero, who is of Puerto Rican and Cuban descent, is the sponsor of the Hispanic Heritage Network for the New York tristate area.

“It’s a terrific organization that is trying to connect network members to each other. Our members appreciate the opportunities for both networking and career development.”

They have sponsored initiatives, such as Café con Leche, where participants have the opportunity to talk with senior professionals within the organization. “They can use them as a sounding board on their career, in an intimate environment where it is comfortable to discuss their career path or other specific situations,” she points out.

“It’s all about developing and advancing our people and realizing that we can harness our different backgrounds and heritages to promote workplace success.”

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Voice of Experience: Grissel Mercado, Counsel, Shearman & Sterling LLP

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grissel mercadoTo succeed in any industry, you have to create a profile for yourself both internally and externally, says Shearman’s Grissel Mercado. “Young attorneys tend to focus on delivering excellent work, which is important, but also expected. You also have seek out opportunities to network,” she says.

Her area of capital markets has been particular fruitful in this regard, since the work is with client teams at her same level. “It’s a great way to build relationships with clients, and Shearman has supported this throughout in my career,” says Mercado, noting that partners would encourage her to network with the team after a deal – a practice that has paid off. She also was encouraged to join industry groups and write articles and find other ways to subtly promote herself in addition to producing great work.

Devoting Her Career to Latin America Issues

Mercado studied international economics and Latin American affairs at Georgetown, not initially intending to be an attorney. But after a stint as a legal assistant at Sullivan & Cromwell on the project development and finance team, mainly working on Latin American transactions, she decided to pursue a legal career, earning her degree from NYU.

She became a summer associate at Shearman, pursuing the firm based on the strength and depth of its Latin American practice, but also because it’s where she felt most comfortable during her interviews. “I was drawn to the collegial and friendly environment from Day One,” she says, adding that she senses less hierarchy than at many firms, and more opportunities to work directly with partners.

She rotated through several departments and ultimately chose capital markets because it affords her the opportunity to be a lawyer half the time and a trusted advisor half the time. “It offers elements of both the theoretical and practical,” she says.
One of the professional achievements she is most proud of is the first transaction she led in only her third year. “The partners in the Latin America practice were willing to give substantive work early on, and it was both challenging and rewarding to be a leader and team player,” she says. While her first two years were devoted to thoroughly learning different aspects of a transaction, she noted that “you often don’t stop to realize how the pieces fit together, but then it all comes to fruition when you’re leading a transaction”.
Right now she is working on a transaction representing a company who will be the first corporate issuer in its country to offer bonds in the international markets. “As a capital markets attorney, I can add value to deals like this as most of my clients don’t have exposure to the international market. I become very personally attached to my clients and deeply invested in their success,” she says.

It’s also gratifying to see how a transaction in a developing country can be a turning point, opening the door to foreign investment. “When you do the first deal, investors become more open to investing in that country,” she notes.

Latin America is an area where they’ve seen numerous innovative deals, like green bonds, which is a structure where proceeds are designated for environmentally friendly projects, such as financing renewable energy projects like wind generation.

She has also seen increased liquidity come into the region, as well as changes that have occurred in collective action clauses in sovereign offerings as a result of the difficulties faced in the Argentine debt restructuring process. Mercado enjoys helping her clients work through the ongoing changes in rules and regulations.
“As a Dominican-American I want to see the region advance,” she says. “I am directly connected to what I do.”

A Woman in a Man’s World

Mercado cites a dearth of women in Latin American markets: Although the status quo is slowly changing at companies, it’s not uncommon to be the only, or one of very few, women in the room. “It’s a well-known challenge everywhere, but Latin America is at a different level,” she says. Nevertheless, that has never affected her performance; one reason she cites is the culture at Shearman which has a significant number of women partners in leadership positions. In fact, one of the female partners she’s collaborated most closely with heads the Latin America practice and has served as the head of the capital markets practice.

She encourages young women to speak up. “Nobody is a better advocate for you than yourself,” she says. Women are more apt to think that their work will speak for itself and hesitant to self-promote but as she has become more senior, she sees that male junior associates are more confident about speaking about themselves. “Women need to take more initiative,” she says. “If you’re talking with the team before a call, mention a success, just as a man would.”

For women who are her peers, she encourages them not to “give up too soon.” She sees women leaving private practice thinking they will achieve a better life balance elsewhere, but she thinks that can sometimes be at the expense of substantive work. “We can create a balance at a law firm, especially as we explore technological advances. You can be the best possible attorney for your clients, and still carve out the personal time you need.”

Since joining Shearman, Mercado has been in involved in WISER (Women’s Initiative for Success, Excellence and Retention), always finding an event that will boost her skills. Just recently she participated in a speed networking program where participants got tips on how to spark a conversation in a short time; if, say you’re heading up an elevator with a senior executive. She also participates in Lean In sessions, where she gleans information on how both women and men are processing work/life balance issues.
An advocate for formal mentoring both inside and outside your practice group, she also finds informal mentoring to offer a career boost as it allows one to create connections with others in a very organic way.

Globe Trotting

While she’s had the opportunity to travel extensively in Latin America, Mercado loves to experience different cultures, such as in Peru or Guatemala, even if it’s for a short period. She also recently returned from a trip to Thailand, China and Hong Kong.
Outside of work, Mercado still enjoys giving back by participating in pro bono assignments for groups such as New York Family Court, where she provides legal advice to families in short consultations. “It’s very rewarding and as different from capital markets as you can get,” she says. “Shearman is a big proponent of pro bono work and offers an excellent program where we can do what interests us.”

Mercado has also been active in Cafecito, an informal network of Latina women lawyers and law students in the New York City area which meets about once a month. She believes it is a great forum to share common issues and celebrate Latinas’ accomplishments across various different fields of law.

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Voice of Experience: Ilka Vázquez, Advisory Partner, PwC US

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ilka-vazquez“Bragging or self-promotion ” has a bad rap, but according to PwC US’s Ilka Vázquez, it shouldn’t when done right. “I think it’s ok to brag a little about your impact and what you’re bringing to the table,” she says. “We assume someone is noticing our great work and will reward us, but the reality is that you can speed up the process if you talk about your success to people who are influential. Your elevator speech gets better the more you give it and can help you establish a personal brand.”

She finds that women in particular struggle with asking for what they want and articulating a perspective on where they want to go. “Men are negotiating all the time, and women need to get in the habit of speaking up when there is a particular opportunity that interests them,” she says. “How do you get to the next level? Ask for it.”

From Engineering to Consulting

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Vázquez attended the University of Michigan and earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree, pursuing Industrial Engineering with a focus on manufacturing. After several manufacturing-related internships, she began exploring career options her senior year and was introduced to the world of consulting.

She joined Chicago-based Diamond Management & Technology Consultants, Inc., which was acquired by PwC US in 2010, and has been a career consultant ever since. Her first project was in financial services at an investment bank, which she notes was a critical point that established her future career, primarily spent in capital markets. “Coming from engineering, it was a completely different perspective; I had no finance background but here I am working with an investment bank.”

Given her lifelong career as a consultant she credits becoming a partner at PwC US in 2014 as a professional achievement she’s most proud of, based on what it represents. “It was the culmination of what I’ve accomplished and yet also the beginning of a new professional journey,” she says, adding that from her first interaction with partners at Diamond, she knew she wanted that role one day.

Her work now largely entails helping financial services clients manage regulatory expectations while promoting the sustainability of the programs put in place to comply with those regulations. She helps them make those processes become part of their DNA to facilitate their long-term effectiveness.

Given her engineering background, she also enjoys learning more about the ever-changing role of technology and the impact of innovations such as block chain and digital labor, which can revolutionize the industry. “I am constantly considering how these disruptive technologies will impact clients and what they need to do to take advantage of them.”

Being Agile Will Contribute to Success

Moving from an engineering background to consulting with financial services firms was a pivot, and yet, it underscores a skill that Vázquez encourages professionals to cultivate: the ability to be agile. She developed competencies core to any consultant that are applicable in a wide range of experiences. “Regulations or technology could drastically change what you’re working on today, and you need to adapt and be prepared to move your focus to something else,” she says.

One way to exercise this philosophy is to constantly be willing to step out of your comfort zone by asking for stretch assignments, even if you don’t readily fill all the requirements. It calls for having the confidence that you can learn and looking for ways to expand your experience.

She also believes that learning takes place throughout your career, and more seasoned professionals can glean wisdom from their junior counterparts.

Participating in Latina and Women’s Groups for Collaboration and Skills Development

An active member of PwC US’s Latino Inclusion Network, Vázquez is part of the leadership committee, advising the group on how to create a strong community where members can learn from one another. The firm recently celebrated its Global Diversity Week, which focused on the power of inclusion and overcoming unconscious biases. “We have to make sure we promote the idea of diversity based on ethnicity as well as gender, and how it contributes to a greater array of thoughts and ideas.”

She notes that the Latino community is very open to different perspectives, with a culture that inspires inclusiveness. “When we get together, it’s not just four people but 20,” she says. “This perspective of the ‘more the merrier’ means we are open to different viewpoints and that helps me motivate a diverse team.”

She also holds a role of partner sponsor for PwC’s New York Metro Women’s Advisory Network and the Working Moms Group, two groups focused on supporting women within Advisory.

Over the years she has participated in firm-sponsored programs that support the advancement of women, such as the Breakthrough Leadership and Diamond programs which not only offered exposure to senior leadership, but also provided the coaching and advocacy opportunities that helped her cultivate relationships with partners.

Married with two children – a seven-year-old daughter and a 21-month-old son — Vázquez enjoys spending time with them, often conversing in Spanish as she encourages them to be bilingual.

An avid Michigan sports fan, she participates in regular recruiting activities at the school, both for PwC and to help attract minority students to campus. As a graduate of the Harvard Business School, she is also connected to the HBS Latino Alumni Association.

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Voice of Experience: Cristina Estrada, Head of Derivatives for the Latin America Financing Group, Investment Banking Division, Goldman Sachs

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cristina estradacristina estrada“Pursuing what you are passionate about and chasing your dreams are key to having a successful career,” says Cristina Estrada of Goldman Sachs. “Being patient is important though: there are ups and downs in everybody’s journey. Persistence and seeing beyond occasional difficulties pay off.”

From Colombia to Goldman…and back

Estrada was born and raised in Colombia, in a time of great uncertainty for her country. She aspired to pursue a successful professional career, while at the same time help her country with its economic development needs. With this goal in mind, she applied for college in the United States, which excited but also scared her. “I had dreamed of pursuing a foreign degree, but going abroad and not being with your lifelong friends and relatives seemed like a big risk at the time. That being said, I knew that studying here would allow me to expand my professional horizons.”

She was accepted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she pursued an economics degree and played varsity basketball. It was at MIT that she became aware of Goldman Sachs for the first time, as one of her closest friends praised her internship at the firm and encouraged Estrada to apply.

She became an intern at Goldman Sachs the following summer. “I worked on the trading floor and was part of the sales team, working with Latin America. Goldman provided me with an experience that was nothing like I had ever had before: a fast-paced, no-frills environment, with extremely interesting and smart people, working with highly sophisticated clients.”

Estrada graduated from MIT in 2001, where she received the Malcolm G. Kispert Award for female senior scholar-athlete of the year. She started at Goldman as a full-time analyst that July as part of the Latin America FX Sales team, primarily covering Latin American corporations to serve their currency needs. “We structured derivatives for Latin American clients, allowing them to protect against currency risk. It was gratifying to stay close to my roots.” Over time, that team became part of the Emerging Markets group, where Estrada still focused on Latin America but now covered a larger array of products, and early in 2016, Estrada and her team moved to the Investment Banking Division.

After working for years with clients in Mexico, Central America and other markets in Latin America, Estrada is now excited to be working on a new series of infrastructure projects in her home country. The Colombian government launched an ambitious infrastructure program, the key pillar of which is the Fourth Generation Highway Plan, or 4G. This plan aims to modernize and expand the national highway system through the concession of 11,000 km across 40 toll roads, with investments valued at an approximate $25 billion. Goldman Sachs has taken a lead role on structuring and funding three of the first nine toll roads that were awarded, with Estrada in charge of structuring risk management solutions for the projects as well as helping line up financing from international investors among her clients in Latin America.

“We have pooled resources from many different teams across divisions and geographies at Goldman to help Colombia; this is Goldman at its best. These roads will make the flow of goods cheaper and smoother throughout the country. Goldman is doing business while at the same time making Colombia a better country — proof that you can do business by doing good.”

Diversity as a Constant

Beginning her career on a trading floor, Estrada highlighted that she occasionally felt like a minority, both due to her gender and ethnicity. She says that in these situations, “You have to remember that you are hired for who you truly are, for your capacity and the experience that you bring,” noting that Goldman Sachs champions the importance of a diverse workforce.

Estrada is proud that she has become one of the few senior women who cover Latin American companies across the financial industry. “As a senior female executive, you have to develop your own style in a male-centric culture,” she says. By becoming a technical expert in her field while also building and maintaining strong client relationships, she has earned the respect of her colleagues and clients.

She reminds women at all levels to take time to build relationships with others in order to create a network of peers and sponsors. “The only constant in our industry is change, and having a strong network will allow you to be more adaptable and prepared for what’s to come,” she says. “A year ago I didn’t think I’d be moving to a different division, but things evolve, and your network can guide you through those types of changes.”

With a trajectory that took her from interning in 2000 to becoming a managing director in 2015, Estrada has been able to reflect on her career over the years. “There have been ups and downs just as for everybody. I tended to overthink and overstress about situations when I was first starting my career, but I can now view things with perspective. What matters most is working with people with whom you are comfortable and doing a job that you enjoy. That, combined with a focus on assisting clients with their needs while challenging my skills, is what makes working at Goldman satisfying.”

She participated in one of the first classes of the Women’s Career Strategies Initiative (WCSI) over a decade ago and has come full circle, serving last year as a Senior Divisional Champion of the program for the Securities Division. This program is designed to provide strong-performing associate women with developmental opportunities and to teach them to proactively manage their professional advancement.

Also active in the firmwide Hispanic and Latino network, Estrada has seen it evolve over the last few years into a catalyst for Hispanics across divisions to meet each other and identify business opportunities, as well as provide access to senior leadership. The group has also steadily been sponsoring interesting events, most recently celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.

An Active Down Time

A former basketball player as a student athlete at MIT, Estrada is now also a fan of spinning. Married to a Brazilian, she and her husband have been exploring Asia for a few years now. “Since I travel a lot for work, sometimes it’s hard to head back to an airport on my free time, but we are enjoying discovering new cultures together.”

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Voice of Experience: Rocio Lopez, IT Executive at Accenture

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Rocio LopezBy Louise Magrath

Passionate about advancing diversity in tech, and currently leading several initiatives aimed at growing Hispanic American technology talent, Accenture’s Rocio Lopez says: ‘The one piece of advice I would give to anyone is to be authentic.’

As a Mexican woman-in-tech for over two decades, Lopez learnt through Accenture’s Hispanic American Employee Resource Group (ERG) that she needed to be authentic about what she brought to the table as a talented Hispanic technologist.

‘For the longest time, I was trying to run in a different size shoe – actually a male size 8. It wasn’t until I met my ERG family that I realized I like my 7.5 size red high heels,’ she comments.

Longevity in her career

Lopez has a long career at Accenture having worked for the professional services company for 22 years since leaving University. Currently leading a team that helps the company and its clients adapt the latest IT solutions and flexibilities, she connects with Accenture’s business leads to understand their day to day, on the job behaviors. This helps her innovate new solutions to get them performing at their highest, delivering the best they can to clients.

‘I love it when I see them adopting the latest technology and get their feedback that it’s made their life easier and helped them to be more efficient. I’m excited that my job allows me to be creative and present and deliver ideas that transform the way our teams work. Being able to experiment and challenge my team to learn new technologies is the part I love the most,’ comments Lopez.

Increasing Hispanic Leadership in IT

‘Inclusion and diversity is an inherent part of Accenture, and as a company, we are committed to advancing diverse talent in technology,’ states Lopez.

One initiative led by Lopez, of which she is particularly proud, is the Accenture sponsored, Hispanic IT Executive Council’s (HITEC) Women’s Program, aimed at growing Hispanic American technology talent.

‘HITEC is an organization whose focus is to develop the next generation of Hispanic IT Leaders, an ethos in common with Accenture, as we share a commitment to advancing diverse talent in tech and increasing Hispanic leadership in IT around the Globe,’ she comments.

She describes the program as a breakfast series and learning session, focused on developing, retaining and attracting women in tech careers by bringing them together in one place to network and establish connections. Lopez believes the key to the Accenture and HITEC mission is the structure they have in place to carry out the strategic goal to ‘push up and pull up’ its’ workforce and members. The Accenture partnership with HITEC, including the Accenture sponsored Women’s Program, demonstrates a partnership whose focus continues to be the growth of Hispanics in technology careers.

Lopez is proud and excited to lead the Women’s focus with HITEC and says, ‘I already see the impact the program has on inspiring women along their journey and I’m looking forward to this coming year and the technology learnings that our women will gain during the sessions.’

Support and Mentorship build success

For Lopez mentorship has played a critical role in her career, ‘I could not have a career without this. You need a mentor or sponsor to keep you honest about what success means and to help you along in your career journey,’ she comments.

An example where the importance of mentorship came in to play for Lopez was when she was given the opportunity to participate in the HITEC Emerging Executive Program and was assigned a C-Suite mentor, Ramon Baez. She notes,
‘The relationship I built with Ramon was key to a turnaround in my career journey, as I was facing some critical career decision points at Accenture. The conversations we had, helped me gain tremendous self-confidence and inspired me to believe that I could be CIO of a company.’

As a leader at Accenture, Lopez also is a mentor to people for whom she is directly responsible for engaging, supporting and growing. She is passionate about encouraging her mentees to be authentic as she believes it generates great thinking and increases their level of engagement overall. She comments, ‘My professional role model is our global inclusion and diversity lead, Nellie Borrero, an amazing, authentic woman that has managed to stay true to her values throughout her great successes.’ Lopez believes that every employee at Accenture is extremely talented and that it is her obligation as a company leader to ensure that they are listened to and tended to,
‘We are changing the game within the Accenture family by staying close to every single individual and focusing on their unique needs and wants. We create a place where everyone is a member of the family that is always cared for and nurtured,’ she says.

Commitment to Diverse Talent Pools

Lopez’s passion for advancing diversity in tech has led to her involvement in Accenture’s sponsorship of teams of Cristo Rey High School students to code at Accenture. She describes Cristo Rey as the largest network of high schools in the United States whose enrolment is limited to low income youth. Its distinctive approach to education equips students with the knowledge, character and skills to transform their lives. From freshman year, Cristo Rey schools blend rigorous academics and four years of professional work experience to and through college.

‘I became involved with Cristo Rey because I wanted to promote STEM jobs for these students in the Chicago area. To that end I proposed and created a program within our CIO organization that sponsors diverse students in to programming roles. This has evolved our internal IT talent strategy and has led to us identifying new talent,’ states Lopez.
Her passion for inspiring Hispanic American students to continue their education and to seek a career in tech along with her overall commitment to technology careers and diversity has led to Lopez being named on the Board of Cristo Rey High School.

Family

Even outside of work, Lopez continues inspiring young people to take up careers in tech. In the fall she will travel to Leon, Mexico, where her family is from. She will use her time there to inspire her teenage nieces and nephews to consider a tech as a career choice.

She comments, ‘They ask me questions about my Facebook posts during my network events, as they are excited to see me travel the world and meet so many new people. My answer is always to go in to technology! It’s very cool and allows you to truly impact the world we live in!”

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Voice of Experience: Sarah Churchman, Talent, Inclusion and Wellbeing Leader, PwC UK

Sarah ChurchmanUnderstand what drives you and find your passion early on, advises Sarah Churchman, who has lived her own advice after embarking on an unexpected career in human resources.“I like to say I got a rookie start in human resources,” says Churchman, who had always thought she wanted to be a lawyer. After studying law and realizing it wasn’t for her, she took some time to travel and then embarked on a human resources career that she has maintained for almost 30 years. “It wasn’t the career I thought I’d have but I’ve been delighted to take this path,” she says, citing the huge variety of work she has done from rewards programs to recruiting.

Helping PwC Lead as a Diversity Champion

Introducing PwC to the idea of diversity and inclusion back in the early 2000s represents a highlight as one of the professional achievements of which she is most proud
“While we had always been an equal opportunity employer, we had never measured our level of success,” she says. Since the beginning, and through the various mergers the firm has undergone, Churchman has helped spearhead the initiative. Today its diversity strategy is a business priority and PwC UK is recognized as a leader for its work.

She helped the firm look at work/life balance in a practical way, realizing that the environment and culture, combined with policy, can make a difference. And she made sure that a diversity agenda was integral to the broader talent management agenda.
“It’s exciting to look at the values we want to promote and the culture we want to create and realize that inclusion is at the root,” she says.

Under her management, PwC became one of the first firms to experiment with unconscious bias in 2005. While commonplace today, at the time not many organizations were exploring its impact.

She also helped introduce the concept of sponsorship combined with mentorship as a way to drive diversity, and published a groundbreaking gender pay gap survey. “Our maturity in this area means we’ve been a step ahead of the curve, always aiming for the next big thing,” she says.

Establishing an Inclusive Talent Culture at PwC

Most people believe they are open-minded, and it’s only when they see data that shows the opposite that they become interested in changing their inclusion mindset, Churchman has found. That’s why a key part of the diversity and inclusion initiative has been to track solid data around talent management decisions. Showing who’s being promoted and hired by gender and ethnic background is critical and serves as a way to prove that very little of a company’s exclusion is intentional, but rather an unintended consequence. “Bringing diversity to the forefront is fundamental to moving an organization forward,” she says.
And that includes making it a societal issue as well. “Organizations are a microcosm of society and there shouldn’t be expectations on women that are different from men in terms of who should be a caregiver. We’re trying to evolve the workplace, but we have to evolve society as well,” she says.

Resilience as a Key to Female Career Success

Churchman has long championed resilience as a key component of PwC’s well-being strategy, emphasizing it as a core skill as part of PwC’s leadership development strategy.
She finds that most women tend to be resilient, because in many cases they are juggling two jobs – at work and at home. “Women and men need to maintain a razor-sharp focus on where they want to go, and realize the importance of bouncing back from setbacks,” she says.

Cultural issues, however, have historically gotten in the way; for example, stereotypes that assume some people don’t want to be leaders. “I see that women can hold themselves back by ruling themselves out and not believing they can do the job at the next level.”
She encourages women to share their ambitions with others who can help them on their journey, rather than just assuming they will know. And outside of work, she advises professionals to choose their long-term partner carefully. “Don’t be the one who tries to do everything,” she says.

Family Life Matters

Churchman has seen the benefits of an equal partnership play out in her own life, saying that her family is a real leveler for her. She has been able to combine her career with raising two children, who are now adults, ages 22 and 20. “I find it incredible; how did that happen?” she says, adding that they will always be her “little prince and princess,” fitting since they are called George and Charlotte.

They have always been part of her career as well; in fact, she says that they have always been her biggest critics. “They would give me honest – and occasionally brutal — feedback when they would hear me on the radio,” she laughs. Always up for a family trip, she is looking forward to a family holiday to the Amalfi coast in Italy.
She now shares her home with a labradoodle called Poppy, which means her relaxing and thinking time includes long walks. In addition, she makes time for charity work; she was a trustee for a breast cancer charity and is now looking forward to joining the board of another group, the Employers Network for Equality & Inclusion, which is working to support employers committed to driving the diversity agenda forward, an endeavor she anticipates will complement her work at PwC.

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Sheila Patel, CEO of International Goldman Sachs Asset Management

The common thread among the successful women Sheila Patel has mentored over the years is their willingness to engage their networks, mentors, sponsors and managers in their ambitions and their journey.

“Two-way communications holds both women and their stakeholders accountable for their progress, and accountability is the key to advancement in the years ahead,” she says.

Moving Around, Moving Up

Sheila PatelPatel has employed that strategy throughout her career. She feels fortunate that her career has taken her to three different regions, allowing her to work in multiple areas of finance throughout the last 24 years. “The constants of deep client relationships and rewarding partnerships with colleagues have paved the way for many transitions, as new opportunities emerged and Goldman Sachs has provided me with the room to grow,” she says.

She began her career as an analyst in investment banking at a different firm in New York, and then took a hiatus from the industry to explore retail, where she worked for one of the few women CEOs at the time. She soon realized she missed the fast pace of finance and earned her MBA at Columbia, while simultaneously working in derivatives sales and trading.

In 2003, she joined Goldman Sachs, where she has worked in both Asia and London. Over the years, Patel held a variety of roles in the Securities Division, culminating in becoming co-head of Asia Equities Distribution, before moving to London to join the Investment Management Division in 2009.

For Patel, this internal mobility represents the professional achievement she is most proud of – the transition from the “sell-side” to the “buy-side.” During this time, she moved from Singapore to London and undertook a major change in role and responsibilities following the financial crisis.

“It was a great opportunity to identify the skills I had that transcended divisions, such as strong relationships with clients, strategic management capacity and broad market experience,” Patel says. “The firm empowered me to expand my business and focus on investment performance despite the difficult market conditions. That allowed me to help grow the team while retaining our culture, our client base and assets over the following years,” she says.

Today, as CEO of International Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Patel works with clients across EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) and Asia Pacific Ex-Japan to identify a broad range of investment opportunities around the world. Regular travel throughout Asia, the Middle East and Europe offers her an unparalleled vantage point to understand global capital flows and investor views.

New Developments Transform The Industry

Patel is particularly intrigued by recent efforts in two spaces – ESG (environmental, social, and governance) and Smart or Active Beta. “As with any new concept, part of the excitement is seeing the diverse ways our clients take and use these ideas and tools,” she notes. For example, there is widespread debate on whether the purpose of ESG is to drive better returns or better societies, but success over the past few years indicates it can be both.

Active Beta, which explores factor-based investing and indexing away from traditional market cap weighted benchmarks is a concept that offers a new dimension to passive index investing and could be transformative in the years ahead.

Patel notes that the ongoing technological transformation of the industry is a fascinating trend. She highlights the advent of technologies such as artificial intelligence, algorithmic or “robo”-based advice, and blockchain transactions as new concepts that will likely dramatically change the industry.

The Skills That Define a Successful Career

As many professionals can attest, it’s easy to assume early in a career that intellectual ability and business-relevant education are the main keys to success. But Patel has found that as you gain experience and insight, “you realize there are many smart people in our industry and the world, but not all of them can communicate complex ideas or develop long-term relationships.”

Since her first year as an analyst, she has saved all of her reviews, which have provided enlightening reading as she progressed through her career. One of her first analyst reviews suggested she should focus on client relationships and communication abilities, as they would be the key to her success.

“I discounted that feedback in my youth, when compared with the quantitative and analytical successes I felt myself achieving, but as I matured at work I realized the truth of the advice I received. Businesses of all kinds are about people – your colleagues and your clients – and fostering those relationships and networks are the foundation of any successful career.”

Success Is Built Through Curiosity and Relationships

Her advice to women is to continually focus on expanding horizons and goals and remain curious to the elements of the industry that are constantly changing, from market conditions to technology and client needs. New developments that drive the industry can also create personal opportunities, from new financial applications to technologies to evolving client bases, where women can make their mark.

“What makes finance evolve is the intersection of people, capital and ideas, and women at all stages of their careers need to drive that evolution,” she says.

Patel has found her role as a partner sponsor of the Asia Women MD’s Network particularly rewarding. The group focuses on providing support and advice for women aspiring to grow and advance within the firm. Many of the women MDs who are now part of the network have that group to thank for their mentoring and support to reach the MD level, she says.

In addition, she finds that the group has also had a tremendous impact on clients, who appreciate the unique panels and discussions the network organizes, especially if their own organizations don’t offer a robust women’s network. She finds that the geographical spread and diverse market environments of Asia make it especially important to develop a broad network, and she is proud that this group can offer a unique blend of commercial and personal empowerment for the women of the region.

A Traveler’s Eye

An avid traveler, Patel appreciates that living in Europe and Asia has given her family unique opportunities to visit a wide variety of far-flung places.

“Chances are you will find our family somewhere off-the-grid, where mobile phones don’t work very well,” she says, adding that it is both stressful but ultimately relaxing for her type-A personality.

Patel’s entire family loves safaris and remote fly fishing adventures, and she uses these adventures as an avenue to indulge her amateur photography hobby. “The great thing about my work is that my camera can always come along too, and if I get a spare minute, there is always something beautiful to capture, whether I’m in Muscat, Mumbai or Milan.”

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