Tag Archive for: voice of experience

Sheetal Prasad, CFA: Managing Director, Jennison Associates

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Sheetal Prasad“I think the constant in my life is that you’re moving to the next level. You’re moving to a new challenge,” says Sheetal Prasad, Small Cap Core and Mid Cap Growth Portfolio Manager at Jennison Associates, “And even though you might not think that you’re ready, you are.”

Prasad talks about the continuous learning curve, the value of culture, diversity of thought and being your whole self at work.

From Pre-Med to Portfolio Manager

Like a “good Indian girl”, Prasad began pre-med at Georgetown. When she realized being a doctor was not her calling, she switched to business. At first, she remained in the healthcare territory, working in a market research firm before moving to Wall Street.

A few years in, she leapt from the sell-side research to buy-side investment management, and then landed at Jennison, thirteen years ago. Soon she was challenged to diversify her expertise. 

“I got the opportunity to become a small-cap portfolio manager, but you have to know stocks across the entire universe – not just healthcare, but tech stocks and consumer stocks and industrial stocks,” says Prasad. “The truth is I didn’t have the background for that, but you’re given an opportunity, and you take it.” 

Today, most of her time is spent on mid-cap portfolio management.

“I had to learn to love to read. It’s so critical. My job is predicting the future to some degree. It’s finding those companies that are so well-positioned in certain industries that they can continue to grow from being a smaller market value to larger over time,” says Prasad. “The way you do that is by constantly reading or listening and continuing to learn. Learning is the best part of my job everyday.”

How I Built This, Invest Like The Best, The Knowledge Project and Masters of Scale are among podcasts that inform her professionally. 

Culture & Social Responsibility Matter More Now

“It’s pretty clear that we aren’t going back to the old normal, so what is that ‘new normal’?” asks Prasad. “How are we going to work – and play – differently? How will life change? Who are the companies that will enable that change and are going to be able to thrive?”

In addition to new companies and business models, Prasad is paying attention to company culture. The post-pandemic world has brought out the true value of culture.

“I have a much greater appreciation for culture today in my investment portfolios and the companies that I invest in,” she says. “Because I think that really is the difference between a company that can grow to be bigger, versus a company that might not make it.”

Investing responsibly is paramount to Prasad, such as considering environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria.

“As our portfolio companies are becoming more social stewards, we also have to follow that,” states Prasad. “If I don’t feel good about investing in a company, I don’t have to do it.”

“I take my fiduciary and social responsibilities very seriously. It’s the way the investment business is going to be going forward, and we have to be good at it,” she says. “Part of who I am is having a social responsibility to my family, my community, but also to my job and my investors.“

Diversity of Thought And Voices

“In our business, diversity is not just on the outside, but it’s really about  diversity of thought,” notes Prasad. “If we all think the same way, we’re not going to do well in a stock market, where we need to be prepared for low probability events and be willing to react.”

Diversity of thought is essential to preventing blindspots, cognitive dissonance and ‘thesis creep’, since her team’s success requires staying open-minded to ‘what ifs’ and the healthy friction of debate. 

A candidate that questions a stock the firm holds, from a genuine and informed place, is an asset.

“Everybody is absolutely respectful, but you can’t be shy,” says Prasad. “We don’t hire wallflowers. We want people to express their opinions, because an exchange of ideas is critical to performance.”

Be Visible And Ask Questions

“The financial services industry is behind in their ability to attract and retain and promote women,” states Prasad, though Jennison does better. “And it’s both a top-down problem and a bottom-up problem.”

While face-time is essential to building culture and relationship, she feels the post-pandemic disruption has revealed it’s possible to work more virtually. This could help to attract women and diversity of thought. 

Prasad encourages women to sit visibly at the table, not the periphery, and express their opinions. If there’s one thing she wishes she’d known earlier, it is to not be afraid to ask “dumb questions”. Be communicative and ask questions, especially when you shift between roles or jobs. 

“I’m asking dumb questions all the time,” she says. “Chances are there’s somebody else sitting at the table that also doesn’t understand.”

She encourages women to take a page from men’s confidence book, and when opportunity presents, take the leap before you think you are ready – knowing you will figure it out, and it’s okay also to fail sometimes. 

“I’ve long come to realize that I have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable,” she states. “I’ve had imposter syndrome throughout my entire career. I’ve had to use that discomfort to get smarter, to get better, and to drive towards better performance. It doesn’t stop.”

Being Your Whole Self

Prasad begins her days with yoga before logging on, and recommends to take the time to do whatever helps clear your mind and support your well-being, as often as possible. She is finding working at home is also allowing her to feel more present at work. 

“I think very often in life you can’t be really good at your job if you feel as though you’re not giving 100% to your personal life, because that really is the core of who you are. My children, my family, are so important to me,” she says. ”The fact that I can be here for my family allows me to give just as much energy to my job.”

Prasad has learned the value of bringing her authentic self, including her emotions and extroversion, that complements some of her colleagues, to her work.

“In my early career, I was stoic. I felt like it’s all about the job,” she recalls. “Over time, I came to realize it’s okay to care. It’s okay to share. I am going to be emotional about this job and it’s okay. Because the best part of a job really is the people and the relationships you develop.”

“I love my team so much that I think it’s okay for me to show that I’m a woman, that I’ve got family obligations, that I laugh or I cry, or show what bothers me.” She exhales. “Chances are someone else might be going through something similar, and if you can share, they feel like they can. That’s where the team dynamic really comes through. Those small personal interactions go a long way.”

By Aimee Hansen

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Ronni G. Davidowitz: Partner, Head of New York Private Wealth, Katten

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Ronni Davidowitz

Photo provided by Gittings Photography

“When someone asks me about job longevity at one firm—as it is not often you see that nowadays—I say, ‘either I must love it or I cannot get another job,’” jokes Katten partner Ronni Davidowitz. “So I would like to think I love it.”

One look at her resume reveals Davidowitz is a lawyer who finds helping her clients with their estate and wealth plans both stimulating and rewarding. She shares her wisdom and lessons learned over decades of experience.

Finding a Home in Law

Davidowitz is ultimately a career one-firm woman who has utterly devoted her professional life to trusts and estates (T&E) law.

She began her legal career in 1979 at a small boutique firm with a heavy concentration in the trusts and estates field and then moved in 1985 to the New York City-based Rosenman & Colin LLP, which then merged in 2002 with a Chicago firm to become Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, creating a 35-year tenure for Davidowitz at one firm.

“Given the amount of time, it feels like that has been my only home,” says Davidowitz.

After finishing law school at St. John’s University, Davidowitz, as noted earlier, worked briefly at a small firm where she gained experience handling trusts and estates matters, but eventually grew “fidgety.” While lunching with a fellow lawyer and sharing her plans to move on, serendipity struck—a perfect vacancy in his firm, which ultimately became known as Katten.

“I did not even have a resume together because I was really mulling over what I wanted to do,” recalls Davidowitz. “Next thing you know, I was in there, had an interview, did not interview anywhere else, they made me an offer and the rest—as they say—is history.”

“What has kept me at the same firm honestly is the people,” she muses. “It is a terrific group of people that I admire and respect, and I think it is mutual. I am just very fortunate to work with smart, capable, good and truly nice people. It makes a big difference.”

Practicing in Trusts & Estates Law

“I love the balance of the personal interactions and the intellectual challenges in advising clients on estate planning and wealth management needs and helping them avoid litigation,” says Davidowitz.

In her work, Davidowitz often develops relationships with generations of the same family, who are looking for assistance with succession planning and come with all the facets that family dynamics bring.

“The challenge in my area is that although money is what it translates to in terms of property and assets,” she says, “the undercurrent is the emotional charge.”

Working with wealthy families and individuals, each case is as unique as her clients and their personal needs. With such diversified work, she is grateful to call on her colleagues in different disciplines, such as real estate, corporate and tax attorneys who can offer more services to clients, like handling the transactional capabilities most frequently needed by ultra-high-net-worth individuals and the privately held businesses they run.

“I tend to think of us as the closest you might come to a generalist in the legal profession, much like a general practitioner in the medical field, versus all the various sub-specialties,” she says.

“Intellectually, it is stimulating,” states Davidowitz, who enjoys devising cutting-edge tax strategies so clients can save on income, estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes. “You really need to be mindful of what’s important to the individual—that is why there is no off-the-shelf answer.”

Witnessing the Influx of Women

Davidowitz is a daughter of Holocaust survivors, and as a first-generation U.S.-born citizen was the first in her family to attend college and graduate from law school.

She remembers a time when there were as few as ten women in her own law school class, whereas now women make up more than 50 percent of student enrollment. So she has witnessed the increase in women entering the profession, even close to home. Her own daughter is a “second generation” T&E lawyer.

At Katten, the firm has fostered an inclusive culture, focused on attracting, developing and retaining diverse talent.

“I know the firm’s leadership management has openly and often articulated its policy of diversity, inclusion and sensitivity to it,” she says of Katten.

Years ago, she became involved at an executive level in Katten’s Women’s Leadership Forum, when it was first formed to support the growth and retention of women attorneys through various initiatives, mentoring and professional development programs, and social and networking events.

Making Contacts and Creating Opportunities

One of her important lessons has been to invest in relationships that are mutually agreeable—and then be willing to leverage those connections.

“I have learned that contacts are really important. When you have identified people that you genuinely like, that you respect, then do not be shy about reaching out to them,” advises Davidowitz.

Unique in her practice area is that lawyers from different firms often get together in discussion groups and cultivate ties to one another.

“One of those women, who is a personal friend of mine now, was with-the-hand-at-the-small-of-your-back sort of guiding me,” Davidowitz says.

Not only did Davidowitz succeed her friend in becoming the chair of New York City Bar’s Estate and Gift Taxation Committee, but she was also recommended by her as state chair for Downstate New York for the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), a 5-year term she is now completing.

“These are positions of prestige, so I have had the benefit of having someone who took that extra interest and looked out for me,” says Davidowitz. “And I try to pay that back. I try to make opportunities for my associates, male or female, though I personally have a large female group.”

Being True to Yourself

Another way Davidowitz supports young attorneys is how she approaches performance evaluations.

She prides herself on being a good judge of character, and considers that part of any evaluation process is to guide lawyers to achieve their goals—she iterates that it is very personal, for example not everybody wants to be partner, but those who do have steps to take.

“Evaluations are more than saying ‘people think you write well,’ or ‘you are a thoughtful attorney,’” she says. “An important part of the process is guidance—career development, advice on how to proceed, or maybe a suggestion to take a step back if there is too much pressure with the family balance and workload.”

She advises being really true to yourself, and figuring out the pace that will work for you. She sets achievable goals of five-year increments to get where she wants to go—a reasonable time period to get set up for success.

For example, she focused on completing the necessary requirements, like public speaking and involvement in bar associations, to be elected as a Fellow to ACTEC.

One way she creates opportunities for associates is having them co-author articles or chapters with her, from which they receive byline credit, or helping to place other lawyers on bar association committees aligned to their interests.

Proud Lawyer, Prouder Grandmother

Davidowitz is proud of her leadership involvement in many organizations like ACTEC, being surrounded with the top minds in the field with the opportunity to give back.

She had been honored for her work and her civic contributions by 400 of her peers at the United Jewish Appeal (UJA)-Federation of New York, a philanthropic organization in which she also had served as chair of its T&E committee.

What she is most devoted to, however, is her family and her six grandchildren. “I have told anyone that the best club to be in is the grandparent’s club,” she says.

As a self-confessed “voracious reader,” Davidowitz seeks to pass on her own passion by building a little book club among her grandkids.

By Aimee Hansen

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Trisha Sircar; Partner, Privacy, Data and Cybersecurity, Katten

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Trisha Sircar“I will say I’m incredibly lucky that I’ve had the support of many women in my industry,” says Trisha Sircar, Partner at Katten.

The terrain of data privacy and cybersecurity is evolving as quickly as our relationships to technology, so there’s rarely been a more challenging or rewarding time to be an authority in this field.

Organic networking from one of the world’s largest insurance companies to Katten

After beginning her legal career in litigation at a law firm, Sircar moved to in-house at a global insurance company. In 2014, two years into her eight-year tenure there, she segued from employment law to data privacy and cybersecurity, exploring from both legal and business vantages, usually for Fortune 500 clients.

“We’d take a deep dive into how organizations measured their data privacy and cybersecurity from a macro and micro perspective,” Sircar says. “It was very interesting to see how different clients — healthcare, pharmaceutical, hospitals, universities, media, tech, professional services firms, retail, and others — use, collect and retain data, and manage their privacy and cybersecurity risk.”

Within her last remit as counsel and compliance officer, Sircar helped implement the company’s global privacy compliance and records and information management program, as well as manage internal policies and procedures pertaining to privacy, data and cyber security across more than 50 global locations.

Through her work, Sircar developed a longstanding client relationship with Floyd Mandell and Karen Artz Ash, Katten Partners and Co-Chairs of the Intellectual Property practice.

“I had very close ties with Katten throughout my career,” she says. “I saw Floyd and others on his team as mentors and friends that I could always turn to.”

Sircar was focused on establishing her career in-house and did not plan to return to private practice, but soon found herself accepting the invitation to join Katten in January 2020.

“I knew their business model, their reputation, and I knew that I could trust them as a partner based on the multiple matters that we handled together,” she says. “I always tell my mentees and associates on my team that you should keep an open mind and be open to opportunities. So I kept an open mind, and I’ve been very happy with the decision.”

 

New World, New Questions, New Challenges

In her role at Katten, Sircar is largely confronting the issues that have arisen and solutions to be forged under the context of a public health crisis.

“I’ve recently worked on updating business continuity plans for clients that envisaged a terrorist attack in advance of 9/11 or natural disasters before Hurricane Sandy struck, but many of our clients never thought to foresee a pandemic,” says Sircar. “So we are creating a new playbook. It’s something that is dynamic and going to change day to day, every day.”

A salient focus right now is education privacy, both in creating safe and secure practices for sustaining education in a remote environment and navigating, where feasible, re-entry into the classroom.

As both an attorney and aunt, Sircar appreciates the complex considerations at play in the transition to remote learning, including the importance for schools to perform critical due diligence on software, applications and technology platforms with regards to how they protect students’ privacy, and to pay close attention to how these platforms collect data on students.

Schools need to address whether they provide sufficient disclosures to students, parents and guardians, and teachers, and employ adequate information and cybersecurity protocols so parents and guardians are clearly aware of what is going on in virtual classrooms and what support is available, according to Sircar.

“Whatever we can do to promote safe and secure practices for schools during this environment, whether they are participating remotely or in a hybrid model, is really important,” Sircar said.

Sircar clarifies there is no easy, one-size-fits-all solution. Not only are schools under state-level laws, but guidance at the district and school levels differ and fluctuate too.

Many business clients are also navigating creative changes in their client or consumer relationship and interface in the present pandemic world.

The way of overseeing businesses’ privacy policies and processes, and compliance with global privacy law, is also impacted — from managing increases in cybercrime to what to do when you can no longer run to the IT guy down the hallway.

 

Real Diversity is Visible

Despite the tech-related nature of her legal realm, Sircar attests that neither her gender nor Indian ethnic background have been personal barriers.

“My last manager was a female. Her manager was a female and the hierarchy above her were all females,” she says. “I have been fortunate to have had incredible mentors. And Katten is truly supportive and amazing in terms of their work/life balance and maternity leave policy.”

“I have interviewed with companies and law firms that I know have strong diversity and inclusion programs, and it’s not just window dressing. I see their impact at a substantive level,” says Sircar.

She recommends to do the research before interviewing, ask the hard questions and pay attention. At a senior level, she suggests reaching out to networking peers to share thoughts on the leadership culture of a firm.

“When I hired Katten at my predecessor company’s lawyers, I saw the hierarchy, and there were females and minorities in those high positions that I’d be working with or reporting to,” says Sircar. “But I think law firms generally have more work to do to achieve parity.”

On that note, Sircar finds her pro bono work with entrepreneurs in socioeconomically disadvantaged communities, which helps to foster more diversity in law, to be essential.

“I think it’s really important that as lawyers and leaders, we don’t always look to what we deserve or what we should get,” states Sircar. “It should be more of a culture that embraces giving back.”

 

Mentorship and Support

“Katten really supports mentorship, not only at an internal level between partners and associates,” notes Sircar, “but also externally with students — from high school to college to law school.”

While she’s often gone the path on her own — from Australia to New York to law school to partnership — she emphasizes to her mentees to be willing to ask for support.

“Reaching out for help or advice does not subvert you from your task of getting to what you want to do,” says Sircar, “and it could have gotten me there faster. Be open to others’ opinions. Don’t be afraid to ask uncomfortable questions, but also be prepared for the tough answers.”

“It’s really important to get different perspectives from different people, from different backgrounds and different facets of the legal profession.”

 

Guardian of our Times

In addition to being perceived as a role model to other women and making her family proud, Sircar is proud to stand as an authority in a field of law that has an impact on everyone in this interconnected, global digital economy.

“I assist my clients in understanding and managing the evolving privacy and cybersecurity risks that they face when they create their services and products or market them, while protecting and securing personal data and confidential information,” she says. “Working in an industry that really affects everybody and holding all parties accountable to that, that’s another thing I’m proud of. I get to do a job every day that helps society by promoting and ensuring an ethical approach to the usage of data, individual privacy and sound cybersecurity hygiene.”

By Aimee Hansen

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Geetha Neelakantiah, Senior Vice President of Business Development and General Manager, Semcasting

Geetha Neelakantiah featuredBuilding your ideal career can take a lifetime, but Semcasting’s Geetha Neelakantiah says she wishes there were more resources and guidance out there for younger people to get them started on the right path early on.

“Even in college, I wish I would have done more investigation into what else was out there—all the industries that are available,” she says.

While she fell into the perfect role for herself at Semcasting, which works across vertical industries, she thinks everyone should have the chance to get exposure to all aspects of business so they can decide what they’re most attuned to.

“Working for a large company is great, but it’s also important to understand how a business runs,” she says.

Exploring Her Own Destiny

That belief comes from her own process in finding the right type of job. While she is now drawn to the startup environment given its entrepreneurial mindset and out-of-the-box thought process, Neelakantiah initially graduated with an engineering degree. However, she decided to switch into accounting and finance and earned her master’s degree in those fields before eventually pursuing her MBA.

Through a robust focus on networking, she found startups in the dot.com days that needed her help—from consulting to part-time engagements—and would move to various companies as new, exciting opportunities became available. She was one of the early employees at her current company, which has been around for more than a decade, finding she could easily switch roles and use her skills in diverse disciplines—from finance and accounting to product development and sales and marketing.

“It has given me satisfaction to watch Semcasting grow and to imagine our potential continued growth as the industry changes. We are constantly at the forefront,” Neelakantiah says.

She believes that her background and perseverance in staying one step ahead and finding different opportunities will allow her to continue to help change the market and industry. Recently, she has been an integral part of building and designing a new product that they intend to launch in the coming months, and she looks forward to introducing it to her partners when the time is right.

“The marketing world is constantly changing, and I always work to stay on top of evolving marketing trends and privacy laws, ensuring we stay abreast of and even in front of changing laws. They are woven into our products as we introduce them,” Neelakantiah says.

Mentoring Others

Given her own uncertainty about the right type of path to pursue, Neelakantiah makes a commitment to talk to new hires and give them exposure to not only what they’re doing in their day-to-day roles, but also the bigger picture, so they can see the impact they are having for the brand and company’s success.

She appreciates the chance to help others since she didn’t initially have a lot of female role models. “You have to remember how you got to where you are and help women take ownership and figure out how to get where they should,” Neelakantiah says.

That’s why she believes it’s important for more seasoned employees to help younger ones who are just coming in; who might have held a few positions yet don’t fully understand the industry. “Often, they need guidance, encouragement and mentoring by someone who’s not their boss,” she points out.

“I work a lot but have a great private life at the same time,” Neelakantiah says, which is part of her mantra that it’s important to find the balance between your work and private life. “You can work the normal hours, but you need to ask yourself where you can optimize and make a bigger impact; in other words: working smarter, not harder.”

Knowing that she is “not a winter person,” Neelakantiah understands that spring, summer and fall are her times to enjoy, and she will alter her schedule as needed to ensure she can spend more time on herself during those months, doing what she loves.

She and her fiancé enjoy golfing, and she even plays with the LPGA Amateur Association, which allows her to have social time with friends while maintaining an element of competition.

But ultimately, she says, family and friends are what matter. “We are realizing that more than ever,” she says. “The work will be there, and we have to figure out how to create the balance.”

by Cathie Ericson

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Lale Topcuoglu, Senior Fund Manager & Head of Credit, J O Hambro Capital Management

Lale Topcuoglu“Because I was gay, I felt my successes were always discounted by my family,” says Lale Topcuoglu of JOHCM.

But as she has built her career, she has realized that sometimes you find validation in the unlikeliest of places.

Making Her Voice Heard

Topcuoglu joined Goldman Sachs directly after college and stayed for 17 years, at which point she decided to take a few years off and “became COO of my household,” as she describes it. When she was ready to go back to work, she said it was a serendipitous event that brought her to her current firm, which she joined in September 2017. Right now she is focused on building a business from the ground up, which is challenging in such a competitive field, but rewarding for the sense of achievement.

One of the most positive aspects of her work has come from a partnership she has with Bloomberg, as part of its “New Voices” program. She was invited to audition to help bolster the number of women represented in Bloomberg News, a lack caused by many women’s inadequate media training or belief that they weren’t adequately prepared to participate in news media. Bloomberg encouraged her, offering enhanced media training, and she applied and was accepted November 2018. The credibility she has earned though her media exposure has been life-changing, she says.

“This exposure, on TV, radio and print meant that suddenly I was validated for who I am,” Topcuoglu says, noting that she wears her pride pin on live Bloomberg TV as “a silent but powerful statement of who I am.” She also mentions the role that her current firm has taken in this success. “Its entrepreneurial spirit was the driving force in ‘getting me out there,’ rather than having the decision on whether or not to participate in media events become wrapped up in politics as often happens in larger firms.”

She is proud of her tenure at Goldman and becoming a managing director in just 10 years, which was another important validation milestone for her. However, she reiterates that one of her most cherished professional achievements to date has been Bloomberg’s decision to make her one of the market voices, which has also led to commercial opportunities for her current firm.

“The power of media has been immense, as I’ve come to realize the visibility you gain being on TV: You’re more recognized, and people want to listen to you more. The credibility it has offered has been fascinating and rewarding, personally and professionally. I would now like to use that privilege to pay it forward.”

Bringing Others Along

A self-described “Steady Eddie,” Topcuoglu says she wishes someone had told her earlier in her career it was OK to change jobs to get more nuanced opportunities. In addition she wishes she had known the importance of networking earlier on. “When you join a top-tier firm, it’s easy to assume you’ve made it and you’re done looking for a job, and it can be easy to lessen your focus on networking,” she says. “But then life happens, and you might end up in a situation where you realize you want to switch jobs or end up losing your job and up not working for another reason, and it’s not like a flip of a switch to suddenly start networking. It makes you look inauthentic if you just reach out suddenly,” she notes.

Topcuoglu advises younger women to focus on setting goals and continuing to learn. And she says it’s vital to be aware of your sponsors and mentors and assess potential candidates if you don’t believe you are being sufficiently supported. She had excellent mentors during her time at Goldman, she says, noting that none were men, which she found interesting given that they usually hold the most senior roles.

Now she is eager to pass on what she knows as a mentor to others. “If I can be instrumental in getting one extra person on the show or otherwise help them along, that’s critical to me. Each senior leader who pulls along one female can make a significant difference.”

As co-head of the LGBQT+ employee resource group for EMEA during her tenure at Goldman, Topcuoglu focused on mentoring and helping bring attention to their historical underrepresentation. At her current firm, J O Hambro, she is part of the newly established Diversity Council. “When you are presented with statistics, it looks a lot more real,” she says. “We always wanted to determine how to attract more of the community to financial services, and the only way to do so is to have more role models across all lines of the firm. I am very excited to be part of the Diversity Council to tackle some of the challenges and help pushing initiatives forward.”

She says that being aware of the issues related to diversity can be important for anyone’s career. “We are frequently on the road, meeting institutional and retail clients. It’s important to be able to connect to your client base that is as colorful as the rainbow.”

As the mom to two kids, ages 4 and 11, Topcuoglu stays busy just managing day-to-day life and a full career. “Family is a full-time no-pay job, which I certainly learned when I took time off between jobs.”

by Cathie Ericson

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Voice of Experience: Cheryl Camin Murray, Health Care Partner, Katten

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Cheryl Camin Murrayby Cathie Ericson

“Stick with it.” That’s the advice that Katten’s Cheryl Camin Murray has for younger associates, noting that employers can be accommodating if you ask.

“Sometimes you are at a point in your life where you need a more flexible schedule, but that doesn’t mean you have to automatically go off the partner track or to part time. You can continue to create opportunities in your career by asking for what you need; in fact, you may even be the impetus for a new policy or program that helps others.”

Finding Her Niche

That guidance has helped Murray achieve the career she envisioned: entering private practice, becoming an involved, contributing member to a firm, and eventually getting elevated to partner. Throughout her legal career she has focused on health care law, with a stint interning with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, to cement her interest, then earning a master’s degree in public health from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston in addition to her law degree.

Murray started as a summer associate and worked her way up to partner at another firm before she joined Katten’s newest office in Dallas in 2018 with two talented colleagues. Together they have grown the Texas Health Care practice, which represents one of her proudest professional accomplishments to date.

In light of the recent COVID-related ramifications, she has been focused on leading in a creative way that allows her to continue to support the firm and her clients, guiding them through transactional and regulatory matters, as well as the privacy and security concerns facing the health care industry. To that end, she serves on Katten’s COVID-19 advisory group, a multidisciplinary task force addressing the wide range of issues companies are facing in response to the coronavirus outbreak. She is also part of the Dallas Bar Association’s Coronavirus Task Force designed to bring attorneys the latest news on court closures, legal and community resources and webinar presentations. For example, with the growth of telehealth services during this time, Murray often counsels health care providers on major developments that could impact the delivery and coverage of such services.

Nurturing a Culture of Mutual Support

Murray advises young professionals to seek mentors as much as possible, identifying people with a breadth of experience to guide their careers and help identify next steps and goals and the best paths to getting there. She advocates that women attorneys who are more established in their careers support younger attorneys, but also each other. For her part, she has been active in “Act III,” an external women’s lawyer group that includes women from different practices who come together to help support each other as they navigate the next stage of their careers and then bring the next generation of women along with them.

While law is a great career path, she acknowledges it can be challenging for women. “Since genetically women carry and deliver the babies, companies are realizing they need to develop robust programs to offer support, such as enhanced maternity and paternity leave,” Murray said. It’s not just the official firm policy that matters, but also how that policy is turned into practice and integrated into the firm’s culture, she said.

As an equity partner at a prior firm when she had her triplets, Murray encountered a hurdle in taking time off although her colleagues were very supportive during this time. “When you have built a business around clients—relationships you’ve developed—it’s more challenging to go off the clock for an official maternity leave,” she notes. At Katten, she has found a firm that has been highly supportive with generous policies for families and a dedication to balance.

Her firm involvement includes a role as the Texas co-chair of Katten’s Women’s Leadership Forum, which supports the advancement and retention of female attorneys by offering mentoring, skill-building opportunities, external and internal networking, and career development programs. One recent event she felt was particularly helpful to attendees centered on how to identify and overcome the psychological phenomenon of “imposter syndrome.”

Outside the firm, Murray is equally involved, as the second vice president on the board of directors of the Dallas Bar Association; chair of the board of directors of the Southwest Transplant Alliance, a nonprofit organization that serves as the bridge between organ donors and potential transplant recipients in Texas; and a board member and former chair of the Dallas Friday Group, a nonpartisan organization of business people who share an interest in public affairs and business issues. On top of those roles, Murray is the mom of four-year-old triplets.

A busy practice, coupled with a fulfilling volunteer and family life, are the keys to success for Murray.

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Voice of Experience: Tami Gaythwaite, Chief Operating Officer, Centerline Digital

Tami Gaythwaiteby Cathie Ericson

As you go through your career, it’s important not to be overly focused or worried about the impact of a single mistake or decision, says Tami Gaythwaite.

“That’s because it’s not the actual mistake or decision that’s the impactful moment; it’s what you do after,” she says, adding that the best way to deal with it is to ask yourself if the issue will be important in the next year or even five. “That type of consideration can put any one action into perspective and help you keep moving forward.”

Learning by Doing Propelled Her Career

Like many aspiring professionals, Gaythwaite started at Kelly, the temporary services provider, putting her fantastic typing skills to work at a wide variety of companies. It was an experience that gave her valuable skills, including being able to just walk into a company, assess their needs and get to work.

“I don’t think as many people do temp jobs today, but the experience is invaluable and gave me a good foundation into the type of jobs I wanted, as well as feeling comfortable with walking into the unknown,” she says.

A full-time job at R.J. Reynolds followed, where she worked as a production assistant, helping organize sports promotions with NASCAR. Due to staff changes and turnover, she began to fill in various roles such as writing scripts and learning to edit and produce videos until soon she was running the video department. When the sponsorships came to an end, she took her skills to the freelance world, where she worked as an editor, animator and producer, where she realized that true value would come from choosing an area in which to focus.

As a way to ensure longevity, Gaythwaite decided to focus on the client side and moved to business management and sales with Centerline Digital, where she has been for the past 15 years. Her work expanded to solving client issues in project management and she eventually moved into the COO role, where she oversees the overall health of the business.

“My greatest achievement has been being part of the company’s growth, including finding clients and growing into a role where I can support and work side by side with my fellow team members, overseeing their professional growth,” Gaythwaite says.

Centerline Digital’s core offerings meld storytelling with marketing data that allows the company to conduct sophisticated trend forecasting. “It’s fascinating to see how those will merge as we make sure to continue to focus on the human element and keep the end customer in mind.”

Finding Your Own Path

Gaythwaite says she often works with women who have a couple of years under their belt and worry about the common barriers that women face in the work world, which can be destructive. “Don’t fear the barriers,” she says. “Although you are bound to meet them, you need to learn to push past them, which can be accomplished by aligning yourself with other women who can help you grow.”

In addition, she believes that her peers need to band together and support one another as well, as they are all currently juggling multiple needs: parents, kids and their next career step. “Understanding that we’re all going through the same thing, and are all looking at our past success, yet unsure what the next steps will be, we need to give ourselves and others some leeway.”

She is proud that the entire executive team at her firm is women, many who, like her, have been there a long time, growing up through having families and career success. “We can help nurture the other women who join our team,” she says.

A single mom by choice, Gaythwaite says that life never turns out exactly how you expect, but it can be even more gratifying. “Understand that you will likely be facing multiple speed bumps along the way, and that it won’t be exactly what you envisioned. But keep moving forward and own your own specific path. While it will look different for each person, focus on your own life and what works for you, and that’s how you will define and find success.”

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Kate Ulrich Saracene, Partner, Katten

 

Kate Ulrich Saracene“You cannot map out your career; you have to respond to opportunities and obstacles as they appear,” says Katten’s Kate Ulrich Saracene.

While it helps to have goals, trying to adhere too closely to a roadmap can actually make you feel frustrated and overwhelmed. But being flexible can open doors, she finds.

For example, three years ago, she never imagined she would be a practice group leader for a law firm headquartered in Chicago while working remotely from her home in Rochester, New York. In light of the non-traditional path she took on her journey, her achievements shine even brighter.

Forging Her Own Way

What Saracene has found to be beneficial is the flexible work arrangement she has at the firm that allows her to work remotely from upstate New York where she lives with her two teenage children. She commutes to the Chicago and New York City offices a little less than half the time. “While my workday flexes from 6 a.m. to midnight, it has enabled me to be a better parent when I’m home,” she says.

The arrangement has been so successful, and has since attracted another partner to join her team at Katten. “Because the firm has been so flexible, I’ve been able to recruit talented people whom I’ve worked within the past, allowing the group to grow organically,” Saracene said.

As Saracene puts it, her career path from human resources professional to leader of Katten’s Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation practice was not typical.

After graduating from Cornell University with a bachelor’s degree in industrial and labor relations, she worked for Xerox as a labor relations specialist in Rochester, NY. When she was accepted to law school a few years later, she transferred to Xerox corporate headquarters in Stamford, Conn. and worked part-time as an employee benefits analyst while attending Yale. Once she received her law degree, she joined a law firm as an associate, counseling clients on labor and employment laws and drafting policies for employee handbooks among other responsibilities. Following the birth of her first child, she returned to Xerox for four years in a human resources position, enabling her to work part-time while maintaining a manager title.

Saracene never saw the job switch as a setback in her career; in fact, she believes this stint working in corporate employee benefits has been advantageous for her clients, as she better understands their needs. “I have walked in their shoes and speak their language, and I understand the operational things they need to be aware of and the consequences of my advice,” Saracene said.

She continued to work part-time for 13 years, eventually finding her way back to the law as an employee benefits attorney at her former law firm and serving as counsel advising clients on the complexities of laws and regulations for retirement, welfare and compensation plans. This transition to a tax counseling practice, from her prior legal stint as a labor and employment counselor and litigator, was the key that allowed her to move back to law firm life but with a schedule that was more predictable and manageable while she raised young children.

When the Affordable Care Act was signed into law in 2010, Saracene became quite familiar with all the regulations, requirements and provisions of the legislation, turning herself into an authority on the topic who was regularly quoted providing legal analysis to national media publications and became a sought-after speaker on the subject. Saracene stepped off the partner track for three years after transitioning back to private practice but asked to be put back on in 2012 and within 18 months was named a partner. She joined Katten in 2017.

And therein lies a key to success that she shares with young associates: One path to moving up is to find a new area of the law where you are on equal footing with everyone else despite their experience, learn it and own it. If you are willing to tackle something new and master it, you can be an invaluable resource to your firm and clients.

Embracing Well-Being in her Personal and Professional Life

Over the years, Saracene has seen the importance of health and wellbeing. After becoming an avid yoga practitioner and then a yoga and meditation instructor, she has found ways to incorporate the benefits of those practices into the legal community.

For example, she is working with the local bar association on teaching mindfulness, where participants can earn ethics credits as she focuses on the brain science behind it and how the techniques can create a more successful lawyer ‘“ more calm and composed, able to think more deliberately and better manage clients and their expectations. “It’s become a passion of mine that I have been able to share with the law community and Katten specifically,” Saracene says.

Saracene has become integrally involved in launching a firm wellness initiative called Katten Well-Being 360 to provide attorneys and business professionals with resources aimed at encouraging greater attention to mental and physical health. She is vocal about the needs of attorneys, and that initiative now brings wellness-related items like aromatherapy stress balls to recruiting events, and she recently led a meditation session at a new partner orientation. “We are trying to work it into the fabric of the culture,” she says.

Regarding other aspects of wellness, she has learned that you have to think carefully about how to commit your time and therefore recommends outsourcing tasks that may not be a high priority or have a direct benefit for you personally doing them. For example, she is happy to have someone help around the house or to run errands, but she’s more reluctant to give up driving her kids to school or activities as that can be important together time.

“It’s always going to be challenging for moms to try to be the best parent possible while still being the best lawyer possible. It requires sacrifice, but the key is to look at things over a long horizon,” Saracene says, noting that there were times when her kids have seen her less because she’s more involved in her career, and times when she’s been less focused on her career because of her children. Her new remote work arrangement has helped her strike the right balance.

And as they get older, she finds new ways to be present in their lives. One of her favorite “escapes” has been combining philanthropy with travel. Volunteering with the International Fund for Economic Development (IFED), she has trekked to remote areas ‘“ introducing after-school programs in Paraguay and helping coordinate efforts to improve conditions at an orphanage in Bali ‘“ through a program championed by a former mentor at her law firm and his wife that they took on as a retirement project. This year, her son plans to join her on an IFED trip. “Everything comes full circle. He helped me build my career, and now his good works are allowing us to give back together.”

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Erica Klinkowize, Managing Director, Global FICC ETF Trading, Bank of America

Erica KlinkowizeErica Klinkowize began her career in finance at Goldman Sachs in 2003 and for over a decade, she had various roles that focused primarily on Liquidity.

In July 2014, she made the leap to Bank of America and continued to work in the Liquidity space within Treasury until April 2019. After almost 20 years into her career, Erica shifted her focus from Liquidity and Treasury to Global Markets at Bank of America.

“I have spent the past 8 months building out the central Fixed Income ETF trading desk. While it was an extremely difficult decision to switch directions as it’s easier to stick with what you know, at the heart of it, this was a, likely, once in a lifetime prospect that I could not pass up. The opportunity to build out a new trading business at a world-class organization does not come along very often. To be offered the opportunity to co-lead the effort was, and still is, an honor.”

She comments that this experience has added a whole new set of skills to her personal and professional toolkit and has reinvigorated her for the challenges that lie ahead.

Learning Opportunities

Klinkowize, at the exact time of the financial crisis, began the Executive MBA program at Columbia Business School while working in the Securities Division at Goldman Sachs. These simultaneous experiences had a powerful impact on her and she comments that the combination of the two during this tough time “further framed my worldview and gave me a lasting perspective as I experienced the crisis at the forefront and, further, saw the crisis through the eyes of my classmates, over 50% of whom did not work in Finance.” During the crisis, Erica was part of the firm’s front line response to raising liquidity, and thereafter, experienced and helped shape the internal and industry change that comes after an event such as this. At the same time, she experienced the perspectives of her EMBA classmates, many of whom developed stark views of the Finance industry as a whole. She says, “Living through this permanently altered how I approach challenges at work, and provided me with a deeper understanding of what it means to manage risks. Further, I am grateful for the diversity of perspective my classmates provided me. While it was challenging to hear many of their views and personal experiences, in the end, it showed me the immense value garnered from consistently incorporating outside viewpoints into a decision-making process.”

Networking Matters

When Erica moved to Bank of America, she made a commitment to herself that she would focus on building support networks at the Bank.

“I am quite proud of the ongoing mentorship and sponsorship relationships I have been able to cultivate since I joined more than 5 years ago. I truly benefit from these consistent interactions, regardless of corporate title. It’s so important for us all to feel supported and connected in the workplace and to have a safe space to go vent, seek advice, or laugh. We can all benefit from hearing about each other’s successes and challenges and realizing other points of view. Through these interactions, we become grounded as humans and are reminded that we have more similarities than differences.”

When asked what is the one thing you know now that you wish you had known when you were first starting your career? She offers,

“I wish had known how to consistently return to a sense of serenity within the chaos, and that sometimes silence and observation are more powerful than words.”

She goes on to say how her start in finance was somewhat briefly detoured: she had secured a dream job working for Deloitte Consulting doing systems and business consulting right out of college but received a call that the company was pushing back the start date of her analyst class to January of 2002 due to the economic downturn that occurred as a result of the tech start-up meltdown of that era. She decided to take advantage of that time and worked at a job that still resonates with her. She relays,

“I ran the front desk of my dad’s dental office for a month. I never would have had that opportunity had Deloitte not given me some extra time and money. Almost 20 years later, and I can still remember details of the experience which I am sure have altered how I interact with people working in customer service.”

The decision to take a different path is very poignant as, later that year, the tragedy of 9/11/2001 struck and, she shares that if she had started at Deloitte on the original date, she would have been at the World Financial Center when the planes hit. Instead, she was sitting in her apartment in midtown, having moved in the weekend before. She comments,

“I believe that was the first time I truly understood how much of our careers and our lives are beyond our control and that we should look for the lessons in each experience, even if it takes decades to find them.”

When asked what advice would you give to young women entering this industry? Erica candidly answered that she advises young women to create support networks as soon as possible within the bank.

“Join Bank sponsored networks and seek out mentors immediately. Keep the consistency of these relationships no matter how busy you are with your day job. Take on a little bit more work in one of these organizations or do a favor for a mentor. You will not only feel more connected and supported as you go through the ups and downs of your career, but you will also likely gain sponsors who are critical to your success.”

She added that advice for her peers is exactly what she reminds herself to do as well.

“Seek out camaraderie, friendship, and support at work and give it back as much as you can. Remember to find laughter. Don’t be afraid to hold people to your high standards.” She continues,

“Don’t be afraid to continue to try new things and learn. Ask questions when appropriate. Try not to be so hard on yourself to have it all, all of the time. Remember to drink water and exercise. Take deep breaths. And remember to be compassionate to yourself the way you would be to a friend.”

Upon reflection around the career navigation journey, she believes that having a true sponsor is the key to getting promoted quicker, or even helping get back on track when one’s career takes a detour. She states,

“Once I truly understood what it meant to have sponsors and how to maintain sponsorship, I was able to more easily navigate difficult situations at work leveraging these relationships, and I was surprised at how beneficial they became when I was looking to make transitions. It’s critical to have senior people who will proactively support you when it comes down to a management decision about your career.”

For the past five years, Erica states she has been fortunate to co-lead a group of 10 women as part of a grassroots effort at the company that aims to connect women across the organization and provide ongoing support throughout their careers. She mentions that the success of these groups is dependent on the commitment of the leaders and the members to show up on a monthly basis. The interactions are in person and entirely confidential. Each group takes on its own format and agenda as needed, but there is a central repository for groups to share a myriad of discussion topics. She enjoys the group and finds that within a few months, the groups form their own identities which garners natural commitment from its leaders and members.

She adds, “My prior group maintained the same core group of women for 4 years and we provided each other with consistent and honest personal and professional support, and we became committed to each other’s successes.”

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Voice of Experience: Madelyn Caple, Head of Wholesale Partnerships and Business Development, Wells Fargo Wealth & Investment Management

Madelyn CapleBeing a leader in the wealth management industry can be lonely for women at times, but don’t give up, says Madelyn Caple, Head of Wholesale Partnerships and Business Development for Wells Fargo Wealth & Investment Management.

“It’s important for senior female leaders to continue to mentor and coach,” she says. “It can be lonely and competitive in this industry, and women tap out because they think they can’t do it all. But I am so glad I stuck with it. Sometimes it was hard to be there to chaperone a school field trip, but in the end, I know I made the right decision.”

She says that she is most proud of is where she is today, having raised two children and achieved balance. “Sometimes it was hard to be there to chaperone a school field trip, for example, but in the end, I know I made the right decision. It was as important to me to be a mom and wife as to be successful in my field.”

Moving For New Opportunities

For the past three decades, Caple has served in client-facing positions with Wells Fargo and its legacy companies. Since being named to the role of Head of Wholesale Partnerships and Business Development in August, Caple has been focused on talking to different stakeholders in Wells Fargo and understanding what’s important to them and their clients. “You have to always keep the client at the center of what you’re building, because they expect us to be collaborative and show up together,” she says.

Prior to this appointment, Caple had served as Regional Managing Director for the Carolina West Region of Wells Fargo Private Bank, based in Charlotte, where she moved after several positions in Florida with the bank. While she moved frequently early in her career, it helped propel her to opportunities that she otherwise wouldn’t have had. “Being curious and willing to take a challenge can separate you from others,” Caple says. Although once she arrived in Charlotte in 2004, she realized that the opportunities were plentiful, and there she stayed.

She started in the corporate bank, but recognized that the newer wealth segment was a good fit for her skills and interests. “I realized I liked dealing with personal situations and helping my clients find solutions,” she says. To augment her B.S. degree in Finance and Real Estate from Florida State University, Caple earned the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional designation.

One of the lessons Caple has learned is the power of networking. Given her tenure with the company, she had the advantage of having a strong network of contacts. As she says, you never want to burn a bridge, since what goes around comes around. “Ten years later you might find yourself sitting together on the same side of an opportunity or even on different sides. You have to always do what’s right and show respect for people.”

That collaboration shouldn’t stop as you climb the ladder, either, she says, adding that it’s important to continue to support one another outwardly. If someone puts an idea on the table, offer constructive feedback and try to move it forward with colleagues.

Finding Meaning In Philanthropy

An active volunteer, Caple finds her philanthropic work to be incredibly fulfilling. She participates in many organizations, and her passion is in public education and its role as an equalizer. With both of her parents from rural Mississippi, she saw firsthand how an education allows you to distinguish yourself. She sits on the board of Central Piedmont Community College and recently was recognized by the United Negro College Fund as a 2019 Maya Angelou “Women Who Lead” honoree, someone whose footprints positively influence the community.

The reason for her passion is simple: “To whom much is given, much is expected. Giving fills my cup,” Caple says. “There are a lot of positive things happening in Charlotte,” she says. The bank encourages team members to volunteer their time to causes that are important to them and recently changed its matching gifts program to match volunteer time with dollars, in accordance with how today’s younger generation often prefers to donate.

Success is a Family Affair

Along with a keen sense of dedication, Caple says it’s vital to have a partner who supports your career and family ambitions. “You can’t have a full-time job in corporate America and a full-time job at home,” she notes. With one child in college and one recent college graduate, she and her husband have always loved to travel as a family. During spring break they typically took educational trips to Washington, D.C. or the Grand Canyon and still aim to find one thing a year that the four of them can do together.

In her free time, Caple loves to cook and entertain casually. Nothing is more precious to her than being in the kitchen and having her kids and their friends come in and talk about their lives and what they’re thinking about. “Now that my kids are young adults, I’m still seeking ways to continue to be impactful to them,” she says. “I feel fortunate to be at this point in my life where we’re all in a good place.”

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