Voice of Experience: Ivka Kalus-Bystricky, Portfolio Manager, Pax World

IvkakalusBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

According to Ivka Kalus-Bystricky, Portfolio Manager at Pax World Funds, one of the most critical lessons she’s realized over the years is the importance of learning to cope – with both lows and highs.

“This business can be a somewhat bipolar world, particularly in volatile markets such as we have seen of late,” she said. “Although you may not fully realize that before you get in, you really do have to develop coping strategies. Investing is ultimately about putting all your bets on the table against the market and against your peers. And, like the song goes, ‘you gotta know when to hold ’em and you gotta know when to fold ’em.’”

She continued, “Your hand can be either a winner or a loser, and it really depends on what everybody else is holding. It comes down to having a strong, consistent investment discipline, and to timing, and perhaps a little bit to luck on occasion, but there’s always a good deal of uncertainty. You go through long periods of time when what you’re holding – your strategy – is just not working, and it can get quite frustrating. But then sometimes, to use a surfing metaphor, you’re right in the tube. You feel like the biggest genius in the world.”

“You have to learn to attenuate both the highs and the lows. You have to develop a really structured framework to prevent your emotions from getting in the way,” she explained. “It means taking a disciplined approach to the market.”

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Voice of Experience: Nanette Buziak, Senior Vice President, Head of Equity Trading, ING Investment Management

nanettebuziakBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“It feels like we have to work, in some cases, almost twice as hard as men to prove ourselves. And this becomes more of a delicate area as we progress through our careers,” said Nanette Buziak, Senior Vice President and Head of Equity Trading at ING Investment Management.

She continued, “We don’t want to come across as too aggressive, and that can mean walking the right balance of being aggressive and passionate about what you do, so that you are considered for opportunities as they come up.”

Buziak has learned to walk this balance, and she believes that the financial services industry is becoming more accepting of ambitious women. Recently honored with a Trailblazer Award by Traders Magazine, she told a room of 200 during her acceptance speech:

“Too often is the case of a woman who is high-performing and striving to advance in her career who can get defined as being too aggressive and pushy, whereas men who work hard to succeed and who are assertive often get described as being driven. Our industry has made great efforts to remedy that perception and in providing more support to women to help them in this regard. But there is still a lot more work to be done.”

Hopefully, as passionate and high-performing women become more visible in the industry, that balancing-act will become easier.

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Voice of Experience: Lee A. Merkle-Raymond, Strategic Solutions Executive, Bank of America Merrill Lynch

leemerkleraymondBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Lee A. Merkle-Raymond, Strategic Solutions Executive at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, is enthusiastic about the career opportunities within the banking industry. “Banking is core to the local economy, the national economy, the global economy,” she said. “Banking is a great opportunity for career growth – and a firm like Bank of America Merrill Lynch has a wealth of job types and roles. If you have the drive and can deliver results, you can have just about any type of career you’d like in a large global bank.”

She explained that the ability to help her clients achieve their strategic objectives – like raising capital, making acquisitions, or achieving other goals – is a point of pride for her. “Often the solutions that are most complex are the toughest to get through. But the greater the challenge, the greater your feeling of accomplishment.”

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Voice of Experience: Anita Nemes, Managing Director, Global Head of Capital Introductions, Deutsche Bank

AnitaNemesBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

One of the key lessons that Anita Nemes has learned throughout her career is the importance of personal career management. Nemes, Managing Director and Global Head of Capital Introductions at Deutsche Bank, explained, “Just doing your job extremely well is not enough. You have to take responsibility for your own career, thinking about where you want to be next year and the year after that.”

“It’s not just about getting your job done. It’s taking the initiative to get to where you want to be.”

And that means trusting your instincts and taking risks. She explained, “Sometimes it’s really worth taking risks. When I started in prime brokerage, it was a much smaller business than cash equities, where I had worked previously. But I had a vision that hedge funds were here to stay and grow, and that’s exactly what happened.”

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Voice of Experience: Fiona O’Hara, Senior Executive, Technology DOO, Accenture

FionaOHaraBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

According to Fiona O’Hara, Senior Executive and Technology Director of Operations at Accenture, meeting challenges head on is critical for getting to the next level.

“Don’t shy away from challenges and stretch roles. You will be able to rise to the challenge and you will learn so much more than if you stay in your comfort zone,” she said.

O’Hara added, “It can also provide a opportunity to show what you are capable of and in doing so may serve to advance your career more quickly.”

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Voice of Experience: Claire Ross, Head of Customer Service Delivery, Outsourcing, Mercer

ClaireRossBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

One of the turning points in Claire Ross’s career was realizing the benefits in taking big risks and moving out of her comfort zone.

Ross, Head of Customer Service Delivery, Outsourcing at Mercer, explained, “I realized that men go for bigger roles, even if they don’t think they can do half of the job. As a woman I would not have gone done that, our natural tendency is to be 100% sure you can do the whole role.”

She continued, ‘Knowing that, I have pushed myself outside of my comfort zone and it has proved to be much easier than I ever imagined. If I had known earlier, I would have pushed further, sooner.”

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Voice of Experience: Carolyn B. Lamm, Partner, White & Case

carolynblammBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“There really is no silver bullet to winning and achieving,” began Carolyn B. Lamm, Partner at White & Case.

“It’s absolutely hard work and maximal effort. It takes a long time to figure out that the way to win a case is working very hard to develop the evidence, analyze the legal issues, and, formulate a winning approach—and convey it with excellent written and oral advocacy,” she continued.

Lamm, who specializes in international dispute resolution, is the former President of the American Bar Association. She also served as the organization’s representative to the United Nations. She is passionate about encouraging more women to take on leadership roles in the profession, and encourages senior women to reach out more to junior women.

“Women are very supportive of each other in a very positive way. If you give one a chance, she usually will perform wonderfully for you,” she said.

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Voice of Experience: Elle Kaplan, CEO & Founding Partner, Lexion Capital Management

ellekaplanBy Robin Madell (San Francisco)

Elle Kaplan moved to New York City with no job, no apartment, and $200 in savings. She is now the CEO and Founding Partner of a leading independent private bank, Lexion Capital Management. “It has been a fun and often unpredictable journey,” Kaplan said.

With a background in English literature and chemistry, Kaplan’s entrance into the finance industry was not automatic. She began her career by temping, applying to every financial firm that she could think of. But she had missed the recruiting cycle and was initially rejected by every bank she tried. “I contacted headhunters, and they looked at my English and chemistry degrees and said I would never get a job on Wall Street,” Kaplan said. “However, I always think of a ‘no’ as someone’s opinion, nothing more. So the rejections did not alter my plans.”

Kaplan’s big break came during an interview to be a receptionist at a private equity firm. During the interview, the team noted her ‘A’ average and expressed concern that she would be bored answering phones. Kaplan agreed and asked whether there were any openings for analysts. Four days later, she had landed an analyst job. “That was my biggest ‘sale!’” Kaplan said.

During her career, Kaplan has worked as a private banker at JP Morgan Chase, as a derivatives specialist at a British investment bank, and as a Vice-President and financial advisor at Bernstein Global Wealth Management. Along the way, she earned an Executive MBA from Columbia University. She recommends the degree to those who work full-time.

“One great thing about getting an Executive MBA is you put your classroom management lessons into action right away versus waiting until you graduate,” Kaplan said. “You can also advance faster in your career choice because you don’t have to take off time for school. Instead you are doing it all at once.”

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Voice of Experience: Carolyn Buck Luce, Global Pharmaceutical Sector Leader, Ernst & Young LLP

CarolynBuckLuceBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“Life is filled with chapters. The ability to live a life worth dying for is an important touchstone for me,” explained Carolyn Buck Luce, Global Life Science Sector Leader at Ernst & Young, and Co-Founder of the Hidden Brain Drain Task Force.

She recommends ten-year planning as a way to manage that life. “Every ten years, I go over what I want to learn in the next ten, and the critical experiences I want to have. I ask, ‘how do I live the next chapter as fully as I can?’”

As a result, Buck Luce has gained a wealth of experience and advice, and has passionately dedicated chapters of her life to helping advance women and girls.

“One of my interests is helping women and girls be all that they can be,” she said. “Women and girls have this ambivalent relationship with power and ambition. For many reasons women and girls are underserved, under-empowered, and under-appreciated around the world.”

She continued, “We need to create institutions that meet the needs of society, and that means women and girls getting comfortable with power and ambition so we can take our place at the table and join men in leadership.”

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Voice of Experience: Suni Harford, Managing Director and Regional Head of Markets for North America, Citigroup

sunniharfordBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“I’m constantly learning in this job,” said Suni Harford, Managing Director and Regional Head of Markets for North America at Citi. “And that’s great after twenty-five years in the business, to say I learn something new every day.”

Harford, who co-heads the firm’s women’s initiative in addition to her day job, shows inspiring enthusiasm for her career – and, she said, it comes from doing work she enjoys.

“It sounds silly to say that the most exciting thing I’m working on right now is just doing my job, but these markets make for interesting days, and it’s very rewarding.”

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