Please join us in celebrating the accomplishments of The Top 50 Women Leaders in Investment Management of 2023. Put simply, investment management refers to the supervision of financial assets and investments, extending beyond mere buying and selling. While investment managers may hold various certifications, their primary focus is providing financial guidance and services to aid clients in their wealth management journey. This may involve the formulation of strategies for the acquisition and disposal of portfolio holdings, whether for short-term or long-term purposes. Additionally, investment management may encompass a range of financial services and responsibilities, including banking, budgeting, and tax-related tasks.
Fortunately, there has been a noteworthy transformation in this powerful industry, with a growing emphasis on women taking on leadership positions. Notably, the number of women graduating with business degrees has increased in recent years; and their involvement in asset management has shown an uptick over the past decade. This encouraging trend not only represents a step forward in the pursuit of gender equality but also highlights the invaluable contributions that women have made across a wide range of fields within the financial sector. Indeed some of this year’s awardees are affiliated with several notable companies in the finance world, including BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, and Merrill Lynch, to name just a few.
Among this year’s awardees is Andrea Lee, the Global Co-Head of Investment Banking, Global Joint Head of Financial Institutions, and Global Head of Specialty Finance and Lending Technology at Jefferies LLC. An industry veteran with over 30 years of experience, Lee has raised over $90 billion of public and private equity capital and debt financing.
Allison Dunlap, another distinguished awardee, is a Managing Director at Harbour Capital, where she provides leadership at the company's Advisors’ alternative investment platform and serves as a family wealth advisor. Dunlap's experience includes a five-year tenure at Alliance Partners, where she developed and ran the sales group responsible for the distribution of over $2 billion of assets to 200+ institutional clients nationwide. Lastly, we have Lily Ku, a SVP & Financial Advisor for Wealth Enhancement Group, which currently boasts more than $70 billion in AUM.
Please join us in celebrating the accomplishments of The Top 50 Women Leaders in Investment Management of 2023.
1. Valerie Hannah
Managing Director & CEO, Brookfield Asset Management
Valerie Hannah is a Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at Brookfield Asset Management in the Renewable Power & Transition Group, responsible for leading and developing the distributed energy business.
Hannah joined Brookfield in 2011, and since then has held a number of roles, most recently serving as chief operating officer of TerraForm Power, and prior to that, as the chief financial officer for the Renewable Power Group’s North American business. Prior to joining Brookfield, Hannah held a senior finance role in a large Canadian public company. Hannah holds a bachelor of commerce from Concordia University, a graduate diploma from McGill University, and is a member of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Professional Accountants.
3. Patti Shugart
Managing Director & Global Head of Corporate Banking and Global Credit, RBC Capital Markets
Patti Shugart is the Global Head of Corporate Banking and Global Credit and a member of the Operating Committee at RBC Capital Markets. In her role, Shugart oversees a client-facing team of more than 500 professionals globally who specialize in lending, trading credit, and loan portfolio management for our corporate and institutional clients. She also chairs the Loan Portfolio Review Committee and the Commitments Committee which determines the firm’s global lending decisions.
Shugart is a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion. She sits on the bank-wide RBC Diversity Leadership Council, is a co-founder of RWomen, a global internal forum dedicated to fostering and developing female talent, and chairs the Women in Capital Markets Advisory Council. She is also the current Executive Champion for the Toronto RBC Race for the Kids and is RBC's Executive Sponsor for the United Way’s Women United group. Shugart has been recognized for her outstanding contributions to the industry through the Champion of Change award from Women in Capital Markets in 2016. She was named one of Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women by the Women's Executive Network in 2015 and 2017, and received the Women in Capital Markets Award for Leadership in 2010.
Shugart is also a board member at Branksome Hall and sits on the Advisory Board for the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University. She has an MBA from the University of Toronto (Rotman) and a bachelor of commerce (Honours) from Queen’s University.
4. Deana Harmon
Senior Vice President & Investment Director, PNC
Deana Harmon is the SVP and Investment Director for PNC Institutional Asset Management, responsible for leading the advisory services offering for defined contribution plans. In her role, Harmon is actively involved with the rollout and continued delivery of fiduciary investment services for existing and new clients. In addition, as an investment thought leader, she heads the group’s investment insight and communications with clients, the media, and industry leaders.
Prior to her current role, Harmon was chief investment officer and retirement plan advisor for a registered investment advisor firm serving only retirement plans. There she provided leadership and advice to clients. Prior to that position, she was a senior relationship manager at a regional broker/dealer and RIA, where she was responsible for investment reviews and retirement plan advisory services. Harmon was acknowledged for her contributions to the retirement industry by being awarded NAPA Top Woman Advisors accolade in 2018, 2017, and 2015. She is also a member of the Investment Committee for the Plan Sponsor Council of America. Harmon received a bachelor of science from Ball State University and an MBA from Butler University. She has earned the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA®) Designation and the Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF®) Designation.
5. Alison Mass
Chairman of the Investment Banking Division, Goldman Sachs
Alison Mass is Chairman of Investment Banking and is an advisor to corporate and private equity clients globally. She is a member of the Management Committee and the Investment Banking Executive Committee. Ms. Mass also leads the Office of Alumni Engagement for the firm and is a member of the Board of Advisors of Launch With GS.
Previously, she was global head of the Financial and Strategic Investors Group (FSIG) in the Investment Banking Division, responsible for relationships with private equity and multi-national clients. Before that, Ms. Mass was co-head of FSIG in the Americas from 2003 to 2015. She joined Goldman Sachs as a partner in 2001. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Mass worked at Merrill Lynch from 1990 to 2001, and held several senior management positions in the securities and investment banking areas. Earlier in her career, she worked at Drexel Burnham. Ms. Mass serves as a member of the New York University Stern Executive Board. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the New York City Ballet.
6. Nimisha Srivastava
Head of Investments, North America, WTW
As the Head of Investments, North America at WTW, Nimisha Srivastava leads a team of over 200 colleagues who provide investment advice and discretionary management to asset owners across the US and Canada. She is a member of the global leadership team within investments which oversees $4T+ in AUA and $180B+ in delegated and outsourced CIO solutions worldwide. With a background in global markets, portfolio management, and institutional investing, Srivastava is passionate about driving innovation and excellence, while fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion.
She has been recognized as a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Leader by the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association (DCIIA) in 2022 and received the Institutional Investor's Influential Women in Investing award in 2023. She has authored numerous publications, serves on several industry bodies, and is a frequent speaker on institutional investing, fixed income, culture, and diversity. Srivastava graduated with honors from Carnegie Mellon University with a BS in mathematical sciences and holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
8. Samara Epstein Cohen
Chief Investment Officer of ETF & Index Investments, BlackRock
Samara Cohen, Senior Managing Director, is the Chief Investment Officer of the ETF and Index Investments (EII) business for BlackRock and a member of the firm’s Global Executive Committee.
As CIO for EII, Cohen leads the teams responsible for delivering the market quality and investment integrity of BlackRock’s index funds and iShares ETFs. Encompassing portfolio managers, risk managers, platform architects, market structure developers, and product operating model designers, those teams seek to lead in the modernization of the indexing industry and ETF markets to help more and more people achieve financial well-being. Cohen is a member of the GEC Investment Subcommittee and the EII Management Committee. She also serves on the Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Steering Committee and the board of the BlackRock Foundation.
Cohen first joined BlackRock in 1993 as an analyst in the Institutional Client Business group. Prior to rejoining BlackRock in 2015, she was a managing director in the Securities Division of Goldman Sachs. She also served as chief operating officer of Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities (FICC) Americas Sales, and led the Global Market Transition team, which developed and delivered solutions to clients in an evolving market structure and a changing regulatory environment. Previously Cohen worked in Interest Rate Products at Goldman Sachs where she was responsible for developing strategies in interest rate and derivative markets for a broad range of institutional clients, including banks, insurance companies, asset managers, and hedge funds. Cohen earned a BS Econ. in Finance from the Wharton School, and a BA in theatre arts from the College of Arts and Sciences of the University of Pennsylvania. She earned an MBA from Harvard Business School.
11. Anne Simpson
Global Head of Sustainability, Franklin Templeton
Anne Simpson is the Global Head of Sustainability for Franklin Templeton, reporting to the President and CEO. In this newly created role, Simpson is responsible for driving the company's strategic direction on stewardship, sustainability, and ESG investment strategy globally, while fostering best practices within the firm's autonomous specialist investment managers. Anne was ranked by Time Magazine as one of the 15 women leading the fight on climate change, and as one of the top 100 Women in US Finance by Barrons. She has been listed by the National Association of Corporate Directors as one of the most influential people in the boardroom for each year since 2012.
She is a Visiting Fellow at Oxford University appointed by the Chancellor and teaches at the University of California, Berkeley Haas Business School as a Lecturer in Sustainable and Impact Finance. Anne’s most recent book is The Financial Ecosystem: the role of finance in achieving sustainability, with Satyajit Bose and Dong Guo, published by Palgrave MacMillan. She sits on the editorial board of the journal Directors and Boards.
Simpson is a member of the Advisory Council of the Official Monetary Financial Institutions Forum, a board member at Ceres, serves on the Leadership Council for the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights. Anne is a co-founder and steering committee member of Climate Action 100+. She has previously served on the US SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board's Investor Advisory Group, and the International Financial Reporting Standards’ Advisory Council.
Prior to joining Franklin Templeton, Simpson served as Managing Investment Director for Board Governance & Sustainability at CalPERS, where she was a member of its Investment Management Committee. Simpson also led the CalPERS’ investment office diversity, equity, and inclusion business initiative, including the founding of 3D (Diverse Director DataSource) and Human Capital Management Coalition. Previous roles include teaching as a senior faculty fellow and lecturer at the Yale School of Management, Head of the Global Corporate Governance Forum at the World Bank, the first Executive Director of the International Corporate Governance Network, and Joint Managing Director of Pensions and Investment Research Consultants (PIRC) Ltd in London.
View the complete list of awardees
12. Katrina Dudley, CFA, CAIA
SVP, Investment Strategist & Portfolio Manager, Franklin Templeton
Katrina Dudley is a Portfolio Manager and Investment Strategist at Franklin Mutual Series, where she manages the Franklin Mutual Global Discovery, Franklin Mutual International Value, and Franklin Mutual European strategies. Dudley has been a portfolio manager since 2007 and has been a member of the Mutual Series team since 2002. In addition to her portfolio management responsibilities, her research coverage includes global industrial and machinery companies. Prior to joining Mutual Series, Dudley worked at Federated Investors, Inc. and Ernst & Young LLP.
Dudley has a passion for advocating for women in finance and business. She has mentored many up-and-coming female investment professionals, speaking at industry events to encourage more women to enter the investment management industry, and helping female executives increase their familiarity with Wall Street. She is the author of the introduction to the Vault Career Guide to Mutual Funds, and is co-author with Columbia Business School Adjunct Professor Ellen Carr of ''Undiversified: The Big Gender Short in Investment Management." Dudley is a frequent market commentator on Bloomberg and CNBC.
Dudley earned an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business, a law degree (with first-class honors), a commerce degree from Bond University (Australia), and an associate of science degree (computer science) from the University of the People. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Charterholder and a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA). Within her community, she is a board member of the CFA Society of New York, Vice Chair of the Board of The Children's Village, a member of the AEI Leadership Network, an Adjunct Professor at Rutgers University, a guest lecturer at NYU Stern School of Business, a member of the Management Advisory Committee of the NYU Michael Price Student Investment Fund, a member of the Digital Faculty of Portfolios with Purpose, and a member of the Global Advisory Board of the Women in Finance & Investment Network.
15. Leah Boccia
Chief Administrative Officer, Investments, Invesco
Leah Boccia is the Chief Administrative Officer of Investments for Invesco. In this role, she oversees strategic initiatives and priorities for the investments organization. Boccia has 18 years of experience, in various roles including marketing manager, director of investment initiatives, and currently as Chief Administrative Officer, Investments.
Her extensive experience is in developing and executing firm-wide strategies and priorities with the highest level of executive and leadership teams. She is very comfortable presenting to large groups and senior-level management, with strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to forge relationships at all levels across the firm. Previously, Boccia was an account executive at BBDO Atlanta, and before that a junior account manager at Blue Sky Agency. Boccia earned an MBA from the University of Georgia - Terry College of Business and an undergraduate degree in commerce from DePaul University.
16. Anna Paglia
Managing Director & Global Head of ETFs and Indexed Strategies, Invesco US
As the Global Head of Invesco’s ETFs, Indexed Strategies, SMAs, and Models business, Anna Paglia is the most senior Invesco executive responsible for growing these business areas around the world. This role is a culmination of her twenty years in the ETF industry across several countries and 13 years at Invesco. Her management of Invesco’s regional ETF leaders in the US, Canada, EMEA, and APAC ensures consistent execution of her overarching vision across each region. She is also the main liaison between Invesco’s senior management and the ETF Board, as well as the President and Principal Executive Officer of the Invesco ETF Trusts. In 2023, Anna’s mandate was expanded to include the oversight and the strategic direction of the SMA and Models business at Invesco, aligning all aspects of these growing areas.
Paglia sits on the board of the Lyric Opera of Chicago. She is also a member of The Chicago Network, a member of the Global Advisory Committee for the Invesco Women’s Network, and a strong advocate in the mentorship program for Women in ETFs.
Paglia earned a JD from L.U.I.S.S. Law School in Rome, a law school certificate from Kingston University School of Law in London, and an LLM from Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago, where she focused on the aspects of law tied to financial products including mutual funds and (new at the time) ETFs. Paglia is a lawyer by trade and she is currently admitted to practice law in Illinois and New York.
17. Tamara Finch
Executive Managing Director & Global Head of Financial Sponsor, TD Securities
Tamara Finch is Executive Managing Director and Global Head of Financial Sponsors at TD Securities. Finch leads a high-performing investment banking team responsible for being a trusted advisor to Private Equity, Infrastructure, and Canadian Pension Plan investors across LBO, M&A, IPO, and financing mandates. In her 20+ years of private equity, investment, and corporate banking experience, Finch has built a reputation for being an entrepreneurial change agent, building trust, achieving consensus, and driving value. Finch is seen as a female role model in finance, a believer in talent being the key driver of value in all companies, and a passionate advocate of the advancement of women in the workplace as well as boards. Finch believes that diversity in teams and board rooms leads to better discussions, better decision-making, and ultimately better performance.
Prior to joining TD, Finch was a direct private equity investor, and built and led the successful value creation business for Ontario Teachers, creating a systematic, repeatable transformation agenda across the 60+ company direct investment portfolios that consistently delivered top-quartile returns. Finch sat on the Private Capital Underwriting Committee, chaired the Portfolio Monitoring Committee, and took on key leadership roles in strategy, talent, and digital innovation for the pension fund. Finch began her finance career at Scotiabank in corporate credit focused on leveraged buy-outs. She has extensive board experience including Amica Senior Lifestyles, Exal Group, Alliance Laundry Systems, and Women’s College Hospital. Finch holds a BA in Honours economics from Queen’s University and an MBA from the University of Toronto. She is a CFA charter holder and holds the ICD.D designation. Outside of work, Finch enjoys community service, spending time with family and friends, and a good tennis match.
19. Teresa Heitsenrether
Chief Data and Analytics Officer, JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Teresa Heitsenrether is the firm’s Chief Data & Analytics Officer and a member of JPMorgan Chase’s Operating Committee. She leads a Data & Analytics organization responsible for the adoption of artificial intelligence across the company. Heitsenrether oversees data use, governance, and controls intending to harness AI technologies to effectively and responsibly develop new products, improve productivity, and enhance risk management.
Heitsenrether has been with J.P. Morgan throughout her 35-year career. Prior to her current role, Heitsenrether was the global head of securities services from 2015 to 2023, providing custody, accounting, administration, middle office, collateral management, and data solutions to institutional investment managers, pension funds, and governments. Under her leadership, the business increased revenue by more than 22%, grew assets under custody by nearly $9 trillion, and more than doubled assets under administration. The business won some of the industry’s largest client mandates in history and launched Fusion, a data platform designed to help institutional investors better manage and leverage data in a scalable, efficient way. From 2012 to 2015, Heitsenrether was the global head of prime brokerage where she led the significant international expansion and growth of the business. She served as European head of prime brokerage from 2011 to 2012 and as head of prime brokerage product development from 2009 to 2011. Prior to 2009, Heitsenrether assumed increasing responsibilities across a variety of roles within the Treasury and Fixed Income businesses in NY and London.
Heitsenrether earned a BS in finance from Fordham University and holds an MBA from New York University. She is on the Advisory Board of Fordham’s Gabelli School of Business and the executive steering committee of JP Morgan’s Women on the Move.
21. Erin Burke Schmitz
Managing Director & Business Manager, Wellington Management
As Business Manager of Private Credit, Erin Burke supports the growth, expansion, and oversight of the private credit business and its integration within the firm. Working closely with the Private Investment leadership team, Burke leads complex cross-functional initiatives with a focus on ensuring strong collaboration and communication across functions and on facilitating decision-making. She also plays a key role in managing day-to-day activities and initiatives for the business, including the expansion into new areas. Previously, as a talent acquisition manager, Burke was responsible for leading Wellington Management’s investment-related talent acquisition activities in North America. She worked closely with hiring managers across all asset classes, helping them to identify and recruit talent for the firm.
Prior to joining Wellington Management, Burke worked as an executive recruiter within the asset management industry for Spencer Stuart. In her most recent role, she also served as associate practice leader for the broader financial services practice in North America. Earlier, she was an equity analyst at Citi Investment Research, and she began her career as a research assistant at Strong Capital Management.
Burke earned her undergraduate degree in finance from the University of Richmond. Additionally, she holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation, and is a member of the CFA Institute and the Boston Security Analysts Society.
22. Rebecca Garces
Managing Director & Head of Portfolio Compliance, Nuveen
Rebecca Garces is Managing Director and Head of Portfolio Compliance and is based in Chicago. Garces has more than 30 years of investment management experience, primarily in the area of Portfolio Compliance and Investment Operations at firms such as Nuveen Investments, UBS Global Asset Management, ABN AMRO Asset Management, and UBS/Brinson Partners. Garces has developed strong subject matter expertise in compliance, portfolio administration, trade settlements, performance measurement, and client reporting. She possesses a comprehensive understanding of capital markets and securities operations with a wide diversity of asset class expertise.
Garces’ background includes roles of increasing responsibility, including business analysis, project management, process reengineering, training, and operational team leadership functions. She is a hands-on project manager and senior business analyst who has made a positive impact, and has been a key contributor to numerous strategic initiatives throughout her career in the investment management industry.
Garces has a proven track record of managing both investment IT and operations projects across the front, middle, and back office, and has been directly involved in many successful, large-scale implementations of such tools as Latent Zero’s Tesseract & Sentinel, IDS (currently Fiserv) GIM 2000 and Thomson Reuters PORTIA.
View the complete list of awardees
30. Melody Rollins
Global Head of Core Institutional Clients, Bridgewater Associates
Melody Rollins is a client advisor, leading client service for core institutional clients at Bridgewater Associates, a macro investment firm. With over 25 years of client service, marketing, and product development for institutional investors, Rollins is innovating the way her team delivers world-class client service by leveraging technology and digital platforms to deepen engagement with the firm's unique investment insights.
Prior to joining Bridgewater in 2018, Rollins was a partner and head of client service and marketing at Brightwood Capital, where she oversaw existing and prospective client and consultant relationships while also leading the development, marketing, and distribution of the firm’s private credit strategies. Prior to that, Rollins spent 15 years at PIMCO, most recently as the head of US institutional client management. In that role, she oversaw the bi-coastal team responsible for retaining and expanding institutional client relationships across both traditional and alternative investment strategies. Rollins started her career in debt capital markets and liability management at Salomon Brothers and Deutsche Bank. She has an MBA with a focus on financial engineering from MIT Sloan and a BS in international affairs from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. In addition, Ms. Rollins holds both the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designations. She is a member of the Economic Club of New York and a founding member of Women of Color in Investments. Outside of work, Rollins prioritizes service to others through organizations and programs that build paths for economic mobility, promote social & environmental sustainability, and develop future leaders with the skills and perspectives needed to effect change. In 2021, Rollins was appointed to the Board of Georgetown University. She currently holds other board roles, including Chairperson for Custom Collaborative, Treasurer for Coro NY, and Investment Committee member for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). She continues to serve on the advisory boards of Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem and Hoop Haven CT. Rollins previously served on the boards of the NY Academy of Medicine and the Future Leaders Institute Charter School.
33. Amy Johnson
Managing Director, Technology Investment Banking & Head of Debt Advisory, D.A. Davidson Companies
Amy Johnson is a Managing Director and Head of Debt Advisory for D.A. Davidson’s Investment Banking Group. She brings to the technology investment banking team 17 years of experience executing M&A and capital markets transactions for companies within the digital infrastructure ecosystem, including data centers, fiber networks, and wireless infrastructure.
In her role as Head of Debt Advisory, Johnson leverages 25-plus years of debt capital markets experience and relationships to arrange senior and junior debt financings for companies and financial sponsors across D.A. Davidson’s Technology, Diversified Industrials, and Consumer verticals. Johnson is currently acting chair of Women for Higher Advancement and Mentorship (WHAM), the women’s organization within Equity Capital Markets.
Prior to joining D.A. Davidson, Johnson served as a managing director and head of debt advisory at The Bank Street Group LLC. Previously, she led the US asset-backed finance business at Swiss Bank/SBC Warburg and was with Chase Manhattan Bank. Johnson graduated with honors from the University of Notre Dame with an undergraduate degree and a concentration in finance.
35. Jess Bissey
Managing Director & Chief Resilience Officer, AEW
Jess Bissey is a Managing Director of the firm and AEW’s Chief Resilience Officer. Bissey is responsible for overseeing the evolution of AEW's Resilience efforts across the firm. At AEW, she implements innovative systems, enhances responsible transparency, and fosters the exploration and adoption of best practices, while leading a team of subject matter experts for the firm’s operating partners, investors, property managers, and other vendors. Bissey brings with her extensive experience in guiding and advising companies on sustainability, governance, social impact, and transformational change, recognizing these initiatives can reduce operating costs and enhance the overall performance of our portfolios to align with our investors’ investment objectives and goals.
In her most recent position prior to AEW, Bissey was Director of ESG at Booz Allen Hamilton, where she launched and led an enterprise-wide ESG function and was responsible for establishing a data-driven, integrated approach to corporate sustainability, reporting, and stakeholder engagement. While at Booz Allen, she also served as Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary. Previously, Bissey was Deputy Chair of the Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Practice Group at the global law firm, Morrison & Foerster LLP, and practiced corporate law at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP. Bissey is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law (J.D.) and Cornell University (BA).
36. Lily Ku
Senior Vice President & Financial Advisor, Wealth Enhancement Group
Lily Ku has more than 25 years of experience in financial planning, investment, and accounting. Prior to joining Wealth Enhancement Group, she had held various senior positions at Pillar Pacific Capital Management, PacWest Financial Management, Bank One, Bright Bank, Blue Cross, and Adobe Oil & Gas Inc. Ku excels in coordinating various aspects of her clients' financial lives with advanced planning strategies to meet their life goals through generations. The Wealth Enhancement Group currently has $70B+ in assets under management and is rated #5 by Barron’s Top 100 RIA Firms of 2023. Lily also served as adjunct faculty in the areas of accounting and finance at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.
An active community supporter, Ku has been involved in many non-profit organizations in various leadership positions. She holds a BBA and MBA from the University of Texas. In her spare time, she enjoys singing, hiking, gardening, and traveling with her husband, Bernard, and two adult children.
37. Christine Connors
President & Partner, EPIQ Capital Group
Christine Leong Connors is currently President and a Partner of EPIQ Capital Group, a multi-family office and advisory firm based in San Francisco with additional offices in Dallas, TX, and Reno, NV. Prior to joining EPIQ Capital Group, Connors was a managing director and head of the Northern California Region for JP Morgan’s Private Bank. At JP Morgan, she led a team of professionals in San Francisco and Silicon Valley who provided comprehensive wealth management advice and services to affluent individuals, families, and nonprofit organizations in the Bay Area. Connors has more than 20 years of experience managing wealth for the area’s foremost entrepreneurs, financial principals, nonprofit leaders, and business executives. She is focused on continuing to build EPIQ’s presence and impact and driving new initiatives to bring the best solutions and advice to the firm’s clients.
Connors has a long tenure in the industry, beginning her career in 1999 at JP Morgan. Connors served in several roles during her time at JP Morgan, including the head of the firm’s West Coast Investment Bank/Private Bank Partnership Group, where she was responsible for delivering the firm’s wealth management capabilities to the clients of the Investment and Commercial Bank. She earned her BS in business administration with a minor in economics from Bucknell University, and her MBA from a joint program of the University of California, Berkeley, and Columbia University.
Connors has long been recognized for her outstanding work. She is an acknowledged authority on the income and estate tax issues surrounding executive compensation, and she speaks regularly on the subject. She was named in the Financial Times “100 Women Financial Advisors” in 2014, and the San Francisco Business Times cited her in its 2015 “40 Under 40” list in 2017. Silicon Valley Business Journal named her one of the top ”100 Women of Influence”. She sits on the Boards of the San Francisco Ballet, the Board of Trustees for the Schools of the Sacred Heart of San Francisco, and the honorary board of Meals on Wheels. Originally from Westport, CT, Connors and her husband with their two daughters now live in San Francisco.
38. Yvonne Pytlik
Outsourced Chief Compliance Officer, ACA Group
Yvonne Pytlik is a senior executive and one of the industry’s most highly regarded strategists in compliance risk management for financial institutions. She is a lecturer at Columbia University teaching their graduate degree in ERM - Strategic Risk Management Program. She currently serves as the Outsourced Chief Compliance Officer at ACA Group, a leading global provider of governance, risk, and compliance consulting services and technology solutions. Prior to joining ACA Group, Pytlik was the chief compliance officer and head of regulatory compliance, risk management, and strategic planning at HSBC Global Asset Management and Deutsche Bank. Here she was responsible for global compliance risk management divisions across all business lines, including capital markets, investment banking, asset management, and private wealth management. During her 25 years in the industry, Pytlik made numerous significant contributions to several financial institutions on overall compliance organizations, including the development and implementation of global compliance risk management functions in the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions. She was also responsible for the development and implementation of HSBC’s and Deutsche Bank’s highly praised global chief compliance officer program oversight initiatives for the asset management division.
Pytlik was a lead senior consultant in the Advisory and Information Risk Management Practice at KPMG, LLP, where she managed and supervised strategic business/information risk assessment and process reengineering engagements for KPMG clients. Her experience also includes over 10 years in internal audit at major financial institutions, with a focus on the asset management and investment management business.
She is also a member of numerous professional risk and compliance organizations, including serving for the Risk Management Association, Board of Trustees - Executive Committee, and Audit Committee since 2012. Pytlik also served on the Board of Directors - Executive Committee at Sawyer Business School at Suffolk University and currently is on the Board of Advisors at Mass General Hospital/NWH. Pytlik earned an MBA from Suffolk University, and a BA in management from the University of Massachusetts. She also is a Certified Public Accountant.
41. Rebecca Leiba
Senior Managing Director, Provident Healthcare Partners, LLC
Rebecca Leiba is the Senior Managing Director of Provident Healthcare Partners, LLC, a leading investment banking firm specializing in healthcare mergers and acquisitions. With a BA in English, biology, and pre-med from Brandeis University, she combines analytical skills, communication skills, and industry knowledge to deliver optimal outcomes for her clients.
Leiba's experience combines 26 years of investment banking expertise with practical knowledge of the inner workings of corporations of all sizes. She is involved in every transaction and is responsible for leading due diligence and presentation to the marketplace, as well as orchestrating interactions between buyers, clients, attorneys, CPAs, and consultants through the entire transaction process. Rebecca enjoys a wide range of activities including, hiking, yoga, swimming, tennis, cooking, travel and spending time with her family.
View the complete list of awardees
42. Ivelisse Simon
Managing Partner, Avante Capital Partners
Ivelisse Rodriguez Simon is the Managing Partner of Avante Capital Partners. Based in Los Angeles, Simon is responsible for identifying, executing, and managing investment opportunities. She currently manages the fund’s portfolio and new deal activities. Simon joined Avante in 2009 as a founding member of the firm.
Simon has over two decades of middle-market debt and equity investment experience. Prior to Avante, she held positions at Palladium Equity Partners, Reliant Equity Partners, and various investment banks including Salomon Brothers. Simon serves on the board of several companies including Quest, LLC.
Simon is a longtime advocate and champion for women, minorities, and the underserved and underrepresented. She holds leadership roles in several local and national non-profit organizations, including The Robert Toigo Foundation, The Hispanic Scholarship Foundation, and the Westside Family Health Center in Los Angeles. In 2019, the Robert Toigo Foundation honored Simon with their prestigious Leadership Award recognizing her leadership in the advancement of diversity and inclusion in the financial industry. Simon was also named to Mergers & Acquisitions magazine’s 2020 Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A. In addition, Simon and her two sisters launched a philanthropic organization called We Will to support and empower underserved women and minorities in the areas of healthcare, education, and financial literacy.
44. Laura Fernandez
Managing Director, Regulatory Affairs & ESG, Kinterra Capital
Laura Fernandez, Principal of Regulatory Affairs and Sustainability, has been an integral part of Kinterra since its inception and a member of the firm’s Investment Committee. With a keen focus on sustainability and ESG integration, Fernandez plays a pivotal role in shaping every facet of the firm’s investment cycle. She diligently oversees the progression of value-creation initiatives within Kinterra's diverse portfolio of real assets and ensures both Kinterra and its investments adhere to stringent ESG compliance standards. Fernandez also serves as a trusted advisor to the firm, offering expertise on a wide spectrum of regulatory requirements that impact Kinterra’s business. Prior to her tenure at Kinterra, Fernandez served as a principal, associate general counsel, and corporate liaison for the Permitting and Environmental Team at a leading US$2 billion investment adviser. Fernandez holds a J.D. Degree and a master's in environmental law and policy.
45. Allison Dunlap
Managing Director, Harbour Capital Advisors, LLC
Allison Dunlap is a Managing Director providing leadership to Harbour Capital Advisors’ alternative investment platform and serving as a family wealth advisor. Prior to joining HCA, Dunlap founded and ran a boutique investment advisory firm for three years, providing investment management and financial planning services to affluent families. Her entrepreneurial and management experience also includes a five-year tenure at Alliance Partners, an asset manager that she helped build from inception. During her time there, Dunlap developed and ran the sales group responsible for the distribution of over $2 billion of assets to 200+ institutional clients nationwide. Dunlap has over a decade of direct investing, deal structuring, and due diligence experience from her work in investment banking (First Union Securities), private equity (Allied Capital), and corporate finance (CapitalSource and GE Capital). Dunlap earned an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a BS in math from Davidson College. She currently serves on the Advisory Board for Quantum Partners, a consulting firm that supports CEOs on strategy and growth, and co-chairs the Wharton Business Owners of DC affiliate group.
47. Andrea Baumann Lustig
Managing Partner, Fischer Stralem Advisors
Andrea works with families who want to grow and preserve their wealth to build the multigenerational and philanthropic legacy they envision. As Managing Partner of wealth management firm, Fischer Stralem Advisors, Andy brings over 25 years of experience in wealth planning, management consulting and investment banking to help her clients bring about the future they wish to see by helping them forgo Wall Street fads and keep focused on their long-term objectives.
Once again named to Forbes’ 2023 List of Top Women Wealth Advisors, she is the 6th consecutive generation of her family in wealth management carrying forward the heritage of her great-great-great grandfather who founded the French Banque Levy in 1810. Andrea graduated from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School, where she earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in international relations, and Yale University, where she received her MBA. She has had an extensive career in investment banking, management consulting and wealth management.
Prior to joining Stralem, she was vice president with Bernstein Investment Research and Management, where she worked extensively with private clients. She joined Bernstein following more than a decade at Booz, Allen & Hamilton, Inc., an international management consulting firm, where she was a principal in the strategy practice and director of operations for the financial services practice in the United States and in Europe. She joined Booz-Allen after having been a financial analyst in mergers and acquisitions at Morgan Stanley & Co., and an associate in investment banking at Jefferies & Co.
An advocate for honoring tradition while embracing change, Andrea supports missions that matter. She is a member of the board of trustees of Albert Einstein College of Medicine and an Honorary Vice President of Park Avenue Synagogue, where she chaired the record-breaking capital campaign. She is also president of the Association for the Restoration of Jewish Works and Institutions in France, founded in 1943 to support Jewish life in France. In addition, Andrea has been the co-chair of annual giving for the Princeton Class of 1980 for the past 20 years. She is an advisory board member of Yale School of Management’s International Center for Finance, a member of the scholarship committee for Le Rosey, and a steering committee member of the Socrates Society of the Aspen Institute. She is also a former trustee of the Horace Mann School, where she served as president of the Parents’ Association. With pride and purpose, Andrea understands the value of family legacy and strives in every way to continue the tradition of giving back and paying forward in an effort to make the world a better place.
48. Amira Strasser
Founding Partner, Applied Research Investments
Amira founded Applied Research Investments LLC, a boutique Global Long Only Equity manager, where she has been the driver of the institutional investment research process. She has 25 years of investment experience. Strasser held global equity Investment roles at Jarislowsky Fraser, Standard Life Investments, and Sigma Capital, a multi-billion Long Short hedge fund. Her experience includes managing investments of institutional global portfolios and investment research positions in consumer, healthcare, and industrials. Strasser’s experience also includes Strategic Advisory to healthcare and consumer companies as well as in the family office sectors. She serves on the board of the New America Alliance. She earned a bachelor of science in finance and International business from HEC and an executive diploma from the Harvard Business School. Strasser has a passion for opening the lines of communication, and bridging people and investment acumen together from around the world.
View the complete list of awardees