The Fiftyfaces Podcast

Aoifinn Devitt
The Fiftyfaces Podcast

A series that showcases the diversity and richness of the investment world through showcasing inspiring investors and their stories. 

  1. Raudline Etienne of Daraja Capital: The Power of Being First When Scouring for Talent

    2 DAYS AGO

    Raudline Etienne of Daraja Capital: The Power of Being First When Scouring for Talent

    Raudline Etienne is the Founder and CEO of Daraja Capital, an investment and advisory firm providing seed capital to new, diversely owned, private fund managers and independent sponsors. She has over 25 years of experience in institutional investing and consulting and previously served as CIO for the New York State Common Retirement Fund, the third largest public fund in the U.S. Prior to her role as CIO, she spent more than a decade advising institutional investors at various firms and holds a number of trustee and board roles.  We start by discussing her roots in architecture and the structure and scaffolding as well as discipline that it enabled her to bring to her investing career. When discussing managing a team at the New York State Common Retirement Fund she discusses developing green and opportunity portfolios, and how this open door approach enabled them to identify new and original talent. Moving then to her work at Daraja, we trace the discipline of “spotting talent” which was enabled through her time as a consultant and as an allocator.  We also talk about the art of growing an investment management business, the barriers to entry and how to overcome them. This podcast is brought to you with the kind support of Longview Productions. At Fiftyfaces Productions Ltd. we want to hear from you!We are now at over 290 podcasts in the main  #fiftyfacespodcast and over 300 including our spin-off series and special themes.We have championed hundreds of stories and amplified hundreds of role models. We have discussed difficult topics and empowering ones, and have moved the conversation on at every turn.Now, as we look to 2025, we want to continue to improve and develop content that adds to the richness of our professional lives with no agenda other than to enable more people to achieve their potential.Please #write to us, #comment here or #complete the google form here https://lnkd.in/gj54v3Zz to tell us what you like, dislike and how we can improve. And you can always support us on Patreon here https://lnkd.in/gQ7zmEuB. Every little helps.

    35 min
  2. Frank Dixon: Why System Change can be the Answer to Everything

    NOV 26

    Frank Dixon: Why System Change can be the Answer to Everything

    Frank Dixon is an expert on Systems Change.  He has been interested in sustainability since his MBA, joined one of the first ESG research firms, saw ESG wasn’t enough, and has been working on system change ever since.  Our conversation traces the evolution of Frank’s thinking around the need for system change and what this actually means. He established Global System Change and developed the System Change Investing (SCI) approach. It provided the first model for rating companies on system change performance and integrating system change into corporate sustainability strategies.He also developed a true whole system approach to sustainability, described in the Global System Change books. It provides systemic solutions for all major areas of society. In the financial and corporate sectors, SCI offers the most advanced and effective sustainability strategies.We discuss the rising pushback against responsible investing/corporate sustainability and Frank argues that current approaches were not coming close to resolving SDG problems, even under supportive administrations.   He now is of the opinion that system change will dominate the sustainability field at some point, arguing that as our systems continue to break down and cause growing problems for companies, investors and society, we’ll realize that we must change them to turn things around and avoid catastrophic collapse.  This podcast is brought to you with the kind support of Longview Productions. 🎉At Fiftyfaces Productions Ltd. we want to hear from you!🎉We are now at over 290 podcasts in the main  #fiftyfacespodcast and over 300 including our spin-off series and special themes.🎉We have championed hundreds of stories and amplified hundreds of role models. We have discussed difficult topics and empowering ones, and have moved the conversation on at every turn.🎉Now, as we look to 2025, we want to continue to improve and develop content that adds to the richness of our professional lives with no agenda other than to enable more people to achieve their potential.🎉Please #write to us, #comment here or #complete the google form here https://lnkd.in/gj54v3Zz to tell us what you like, dislike and how we can improve. And you can always support us on Patreon here https://lnkd.in/gQ7zmEuB. Every little helps.

    37 min
  3. Carol Geremia of MFS Investment Management - Why Fiduciary Responsibility is always in Fashion

    NOV 19

    Carol Geremia of MFS Investment Management - Why Fiduciary Responsibility is always in Fashion

    Carol Geremia is president of MFS Investment Management® (MFS®) and head of Global Distribution. She leads the firm's worldwide client-facing teams as well as product and marketing strategy. Since joining MFS in 1984, Carol has held roles focused primarily on fiduciary responsibility, stewardship and sustainability, and she has actively engaged with clients at all levels to ensure that the firm builds products and services aligned with their needs. Carol is a member of the Investment Company Institute's Board of Governors, the City Year Seven Generations Board, the MFS Charitable Oversight Committee and as an Advisory Council member for Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Inc. Carol’s career journey had an unconventional start in that she initially pursued a career in fashion.  We probe this intriguing fact and consider the similarities between the two worlds of fashion and investing. One aspect that is similar is the existence of trends and fads – and the importance of developing an eye to detect one forming and then of discerning which ones are likely to endure.  When we translate this into the world of investment products it is clear that investing also has cycles, fads and fashions and that “reading the room” or client appetite in this respect is a critical skill.  Carol charts her rise through MFS by referring back to a common touchstone – the importance of putting clients first.  She describes her mentors, and how she learned to overcome anxiety around performance in front of clients and how critical it was that she had found a home in which it was possible for her to be her authentic self.  This is a searing portrait of leadership through compassion and self-awareness.   This podcast is brought to you with the kind support of Longview Productions. 🎉At Fiftyfaces Productions Ltd. we want to hear from you!🎉We are now at over 290 podcasts in the main  #fiftyfacespodcast and over 300 including our spin-off series and special themes.🎉We have championed hundreds of stories and amplified hundreds of role models. We have discussed difficult topics and empowering ones, and have moved the conversation on at every turn.🎉Now, as we look to 2025, we want to continue to improve and develop content that adds to the richness of our professional lives with no agenda other than to enable more people to achieve their potential.🎉Please #write to us, #comment here or #complete the google form here https://lnkd.in/gj54v3Zz to tell us what you like, dislike and how we can improve. And you can always support us on Patreon here https://lnkd.in/gQ7zmEuB. Every little helps.

    41 min
  4. Steve Foresti: Senior Advisor at Wilshire: From a Vision to Reality

    NOV 13

    Steve Foresti: Senior Advisor at Wilshire: From a Vision to Reality

    Steve Foresti is a Senior Advisor, Investments, at Wilshire, where he has spent almost 30 years.  He previously held a role as Chief Investment Officer, among other roles and is currently in a part-time role as he pursues other interests.  Steve was recommended to us as a guest because of his extraordinary career arc in which he overcame a substantial loss of vision as a child to pursue a fulfilling career. We begin by discussing Steve’s career journey and turn then to the nature of the condition that caused his loss of vision from the age of around 7 and his family’s coping strategy at that time.  We hear about his parents’ efforts to ensure he was in the right educational stream and challenged at every opportunity. It was at this stage that it became clear how much setting the bar high and having high expectations mattered.  Taking this theme forward into his career, we hear about the colleague whose small gestures such as giving him a ride to work and allowing him to avoid a long commute made a massive difference to his quality of life, and then discuss the technological advances that have made impaired vision less of a hindrance in the work place. This podcast is brought to you with the kind support of Longview Productions.  🎉At Fiftyfaces Productions Ltd. we want to hear from you! 🎉We are now at over 290 podcasts in the main  #fiftyfacespodcast and over 300 including our spin-off series and special themes. 🎉We have championed hundreds of stories and amplified hundreds of role models. We have discussed difficult topics and empowering ones, and have moved the conversation on at every turn. 🎉Now, as we look to 2025, we want to continue to improve and develop content that adds to the richness of our professional lives with no agenda other than to enable more people to achieve their potential. 🎉Please #write to us, #comment here or #complete the google form here https://lnkd.in/gj54v3Zz to tell us what you like, dislike and how we can improve. And you can always support us on Patreon here https://lnkd.in/gQ7zmEuB. Every little helps.

    34 min
  5. Matt Whineray: Former CEO of NZ Super Fund: Towards a Total Fund Portfolio Approach

    NOV 6

    Matt Whineray: Former CEO of NZ Super Fund: Towards a Total Fund Portfolio Approach

    Matt Whineray recently retired from the role of Chief Executive Officer at the NZ$77 bn NZ Super Fund, where he had spent close to 16 years in a series of roles, culminating in CEO but which included 4 years as CIO. He previously worked in a series of corporate finance roles, and currently holds a number of Chair and Board roles. Our conversation starts with his early career in finance, which saw him move from New Zealand to New York and Hong Kong.  We discuss the moment he knew that he wanted to take his family back to New Zealand and its natural bounty and how he acted upon that.  Moving then to his role at the NZ Super Fund we discuss the nature of the entity, its governance and overarching objective.   As one of the instigators of a total fund portfolio approach, we dig in in some detail as to what that means and how it evolved. There are various other unique characteristics of NZ Super too and Matt discusses its commitments around sustainable investing and what return and volatility it could tolerate. We end with Matt’s current chapter, a retirement that includes a portfolio of board roles including Netball New Zealand as well as a good deal of travel. This is a fascinating insight into a unique institution that punches well above its weight in investment innovation. At Fiftyfaces Productions Ltd. we want to hear from you!We are now at 284 podcasts in the main  #fiftyfacespodcast and over 300 including our spin-off series and special themes.We have championed hundreds of stories and amplified hundreds of role models. We have discussed difficult topics and empowering ones, and have moved the conversation on at every turn.Now, as we look to 2025, we want to continue to improve and develop content that adds to the richness of our professional lives with no agenda other than to enable more people to achieve their potential.Please #write to us, #comment here or #complete the google form here https://lnkd.in/gj54v3Zz to tell us what you like, dislike and how we can improve. And you can always support us on Patreon here https://lnkd.in/gQ7zmEuB. Every little helps.

    42 min
  6. Tiffany Wilding of PIMCO: Reflections from the Room where it Happened

    OCT 30

    Tiffany Wilding of PIMCO: Reflections from the Room where it Happened

    Tiffany Wilding is a managing director and economist based in the Newport Beach office of PIMCO.  She leads PIMCO’s Cyclical Forum, crafts the firm’s outlook for the global economy, and analyzes key macro risks for the firm’s Investment Committee. Previously, she was a U.S. interest rate strategist in two firms and a Treasury market policy analyst for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where she helped structure and implement the central bank’s response to the 2008 financial crisis.Our discussion starts with Tiffany’s path through finance and spends quite a bit of time discussing her learnings from her time at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York during the financial crisis. We speak about the toolbox available to an institution like this during a crisis and how calm heads must prevail.  Moving then to her role at PIMCO we discuss client needs and how they are evolving as well as the work of the secular forum and what is on their mind against the current backdrop. At Fiftyfaces Productions Ltd. we want to hear from you!We are now at 284 podcasts in the main  #fiftyfacespodcast and over 300 including our spin-off series and special themes.We have championed hundreds of stories and amplified hundreds of role models. We have discussed difficult topics and empowering ones, and have moved the conversation on at every turn.Now, as we look to 2025, we want to continue to improve and develop content that adds to the richness of our professional lives with no agenda other than to enable more people to achieve their potential.Please #write to us, #comment here or #complete the google form here https://lnkd.in/gj54v3Zz to tell us what you like, dislike and how we can improve. And you can always support us on Patreon here https://lnkd.in/gQ7zmEuB. Every little helps.

    35 min
  7. Bonus Episode: Veena Aiyer of QRKIEZ - Get your quirk on  - Connection, Community and Empowerment for Neurodivergent Individuals

    OCT 25 · BONUS

    Bonus Episode: Veena Aiyer of QRKIEZ - Get your quirk on - Connection, Community and Empowerment for Neurodivergent Individuals

    Veena Aiyer has launched a community app for neurodiverse audiences called QRKIEZ.  The goal of QRKIEZ is to be an innovative platform designed to support neurodivergent individuals by fostering social connections, providing mentorship and offering tailored professional services. She previously worked in a series of startups  and tech companies. In our conversation Veena describes her upbringing in India and the path that took her to the US.  She describes her own discovery of neurodivergence and what prompted her to seek to create a means for other neurodivergent individuals to connect and exchange ideas.  We discuss what is missing in the job market and social media universe for this cohort and how simple features of an app can make such a difference. The app aims to connect neurodivergent individuals who share similar interests and passions and has a mission to facilitate the formation of friendships, mentorships, and support services for the neurodivergent, and gain access to service providers, job postings, and other information of interest, help, and fun. Parent and family support are offered as well, and all allies are welcome. There is more information about QRKIEZ on https://www.qrkiez.com/, where you can also sign up in advance for the soon-to-be launched App.🎉At Fiftyfaces Productions Ltd. we want to hear from you! 🎉We are now at 284 podcasts in the main  #fiftyfacespodcast and over 300 including our spin-off series and special themes.🎉We have championed hundreds of stories and amplified hundreds of role models. We have discussed difficult topics and empowering ones, and have moved the conversation on at every turn.🎉Now, as we look to 2025, we want to continue to improve and develop content that adds to the richness of our professional lives with no agenda other than to enable more people to achieve their potential. 🎉Please #write to us, #comment here or #complete the google form here https://lnkd.in/gj54v3Zz to tell us what you like, dislike and how we can improve. And you can always support us on Patreon here https://lnkd.in/gQ7zmEuB. Every little helps.

    21 min

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A series that showcases the diversity and richness of the investment world through showcasing inspiring investors and their stories. 

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