Preeti Singh was until recently an LP reporter in the private equity area at the Wall Street Journal. She graduated from the Graduate School of journalism at Columbia University, and has worked in a range of roles and financial journalism. She has spent time as a Content Manager for publishing company in executive search prior to entering journalism, and is known for her ability to cultivate deep relationships across the industry, and to get the first scoop and industry moves. 

Eugene O’Callaghan is a business and investment advisor based in Dublin, where he advises a range of asset managers and sovereign wealth funds on strategic initiatives. He was formerly director of the Irish Strategic Investment Fund and prior to that Director of the National Pensions Reserve Fund of Ireland. He started his career as an accountant. 

Geri McMahon is a partner at AON and Co-head of Responsible Investment at the firm. She started her career at Price Waterhouse Coopers in Sydney, and spent time as a fixed income trader before moving to a healthcare technology, business and ultimately moving to AON in 2018. She wrote a powerful LinkedIn post about returners, which led me to want to find out more about returnship programs and their value. 

Emma Jane Joyce is a sustainability specialist at the National Treasury Management Agency based in Dublin. She spent most of her career at the Agency holding roles such as Head of Responsible Investment and Investment Director. She’s a member of the Ireland steering committee of the CDP Global Environmental Reporting System. 

James Brooke Turner is Director of Yoke and Co and Investment Director of the Nuffield Foundation. He was voted one of the inaugural four Inspiring Leaders in the Voluntary Sector and writes about financial governance for charities. Our conversation starts with his study of art history, how he found that discipline and the perspective and insight it gave him for his ultimate career in finance.

LaRoy Brantley is a managing principal at Meketa Investment Group. He has over 20 years experience in an investment consulting capacity. We first met when we joined Cambridge associates earlier in our careers. He has had multiple public fund board positions and has a particular focus on raising awareness of diverse investment managers. 

Welcome back to the Fiftyfaces Podcast where we are delighted to bring you Series 3 of 2022, which features critical thinkers from all walks of life. We hear about the value added of active management, the robustness of sustainable investing terminology, the role of politics in promoting inclusion and economic empowerment and the opportunity in Africa. 

In Series 2 of the 2022 podcast we discussing taking a stand – a stand against climate change, against bias, against  recruitment processes that aren’t generating the results and against stereotypical thinking. We hear from another 10 inspiring guests from around the world.  From the academic who realized he could make a better impact with his sustainable finance agenda in the world through publishing papers and writing books, to the fund manager with a passion for improving after school education to a head of asset management who is changing the recruitment process from the ground up.

Margaux O’Brien is Investment Director at the University of California investment office, based in Oakland, CA. She previously spent over 14 years in the fund of hedge fund area, where she specialized in equity long/short and other equity hedge funds. Prior to that she was an investment consultant.

A joyful discussion with a renowned hedge fund allocator and a reminder of the importance of humility and how this can be a secret weapon in overcoming performance anxiety.