Speakers

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Utilising impact investment strategies to minimise risk, promote impact and increase returns

Victoria Adams is Managing Director of For Purpose Investment Partners, a not-for-profit social impact investment manager created to pursue an important mission - bringing private sector capital and capabilities into businesses and projects with important social roles. FPIP’s key sectors of focus are Disability, Aged Care, Social & Affordable Housing, Skills Education and Mental Health.

Victoria has 20 years’ experience across investment and corporate advisory, including 10 years in impact investment. Victoria was most recently an Executive Director for Pollination, having previously spent seven years in the Investment Team at the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (“CEFC”) as Head of Social Infrastructure.

Victoria has significant corporate finance and investment banking experience gained from roles at Deloitte, Goldman Sachs, and Macquarie Capital, which she joined after starting her career as a Civil Engineer.

Victoria holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) and a Masters of Commerce from the University of New South Wales, and is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Session: Opening remarks from the chair

Mara is Company Director, investor and advisor to companies, governments and research agencies who seeks collaborative initiatives that advance sustainable development and digital transformation.

She was raised in Brazil and educated in the US, and have been calling Australia home for 30 years.

Her executive career has spanned finance, science/research, non-profit and consulting sectors. She is committed to climate transition and digital transformation for social, environmental and economic benefits, and to fostering innovative climate solutions that value nature and social inclusion.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Utilising impact investment strategies to minimise risk, promote impact and increase returns

Diana has over 20 years’ global investment and asset management, corporate finance, business leadership and management experience, including building and reshaping investment platforms. She was most recently Head of Real Assets and Private Markets at the $110bn NSW Government Sovereign Investment Manager (TCorp) responsible for business and investment strategy development and implementation, and as a member of the Investment Leadership Team responsible for oversight and implementation of the investment model. Other roles include the Head of Infrastructure at the $65bn Cbus industry superannuation fund, Director at KPMG advisory and Credit Suisse investment bank. Diana has lived or worked in Africa, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Russia, Japan, Australia and Europe. She has lead transactions and asset management activities across multiple asset classes and sectors and held non-executive director appointments on Boards.

Qualifications include Masters of Business Administration (Cambridge University), Chartered Financial Analyst, Honours Financial Analysis and Portfolio Management (First Class, University of Cape Town), Bachelor of Business (University of Technology, Sydney) and graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. In 2019 Diana also won the Money Management and Super Review Investment Professional of the Year award.
 

Session: Navigating risks and opportunities from technological advancements in the investment industry

Background in financial services in strategy development, transformation, risk management, regulatory programs, talent management and operational excellence. Industry experience in Asset Management, Fixed Income, Equities, and Capital Markets in Asia, North America and Australia.

Master of Business Administration (MBA) from University of New South Wales and a law degree (honours) from University of Tasmania.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Utilising impact investment strategies to minimise risk, promote impact and increase returns

Kylie has worked in Australia and internationally at the intersection of mainstream capital markets, impact investment and philanthropy since 2004 and she is committed to mobilising capital to solve environmental and social challenges.

Session: Partner presentation: Nature-based investments for a sustainable future

Sarah Clawson is responsible for all client relations and capital raising across New Forests' business. This includes providing strategic direction and coordination for fund raising and client services functions across New Forests’ investment strategies. Sarah is responsible for driving a best practice approach within New Forests’ investor relations team and ensuring coordination of capital raising campaigns, determining strategies to expand New Forests’ client base, and applying a consistent approach to managing client services across the business.

Sarah has over 20 years of experience in marketing, client relations, and communications in the sustainable and responsible investment sector worldwide. In her previous roles she managed marketing and membership recruitment for international sustainable investment groups in the EU and Australasia, as well as developed educational responsible investment programs designed for international institutional investors. Sarah has a Bachelor of Arts in French and English literature from Colgate University and is a Fulbright scholarship recipient.

Session: CHAMPAGNE ROUNDTABLES - Guidance for progressing on the career path you want and deserve

Nicole Cook is an experienced executive and management consultant, having spent most of her career in professional services roles in established and startup businesses, with a particular focus on the human resources sector.

Ms Cook has been the executive director & chief executive of SBE Australia since April 2021. SBE is Australia’s leading program and expert network for scaling women-led businesses.

Prior to SBE, Ms Cook held senior executive roles in startup businesses that grew to global powerhouses. She was also a management consultant, and developed a deep expertise in growing technology businesses.

Session: Practical, real world strategies to close the gender pay gap

Cassandra Crowe is the head of Consultant Relations, Australia and New Zealand. She is a vice president of T. Rowe Price Group, Inc., and T. Rowe Price Australia Limited.

Cassandra’s industry experience began in 2005, and she has been with T. Rowe Price since 2019, beginning in the Consultant Relations, Australia and New Zealand Group. Prior to this, Cassandra was employed by Allianz Retire+ Powered by PIMCO as the head of Research and Consultants.

Cassandra became a director of the CFA Society Sydney in 2016, and she currently is a member of the Board. Cassandra also is an executive founding director of the Bloomberg Women’s Buy Side Network for Australia and New Zealand.

CFA® and Chartered Financial Analyst® are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

Session: Protecting your investment strategy from the risks of greenwashing

Mary is the founder and Managing Director of Seven Advisory, helping companies progress with purpose and Impact.

Previously Mary was the Head of Impact for HESTA a $78B superannuation fund leading the responsible investment, government relations and CSR programs. She has held senior roles in financial services organisations for over 15 years and is passionate about authentic progressive capital delivering a better world for all.

Mary is a 2015 Churchill Fellow awarded for the completion of international research on equity for women in pension systems. She is a current Board Member of The Emergency Services Telecommunication Authority (000), Victoria University, The McKell Institute and Emily’s List Australia. She has served as the Chair of the Ministerial Advisory Council for Gender Equality in the State of Victoria and was a past Chair of Reclink Australia. 

She is a former Mayor, Deputy Mayor and elected Councillor for an inner-city municipality.

She holds a Master of Finance (Corporate Advisory).

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Empowering gender partnership – how can women and men can work together to drive change

Marion has 20 years’ experience in management consulting and financial services in the UK and Australia including with Perpetual, Credit Suisse and Booz & Co.

As the Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer of Australian Ethical, she is responsible for driving and championing Australian Ethical’s strategic direction and the execution of their key initiatives.

Marion holds a BSc in Business Administration and Economics, Stockholm University and an MBA from London Business School.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Maximising returns and growth through practical diversity – leveraging diverse teams for enhanced business outcomes

Rebecca is the Head of Client Business and Strategic Partnerships for Regal Partners. Initially joining Regal Funds Management in 2019 as Global Head of Distribution and Marketing, Rebecca has over 18 years’ experience in financial markets.

Rebecca began her career at Citigroup Global Markets Australia where she worked for nearly ten years on the derivatives and structured sales desk within the Institutional Client Group. Immediately prior to joining Regal, Rebecca was at Pendal Group where she worked in several roles, including the Head of Client Experience and Head of HNW and Family Office.

Rebecca holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Sydney, majoring in Finance and Commercial Law.

Session: CHAMPAGNE ROUNDTABLES - Developing the skills and strategies needed to achieve success for you and your organisation

Session: Overcoming imposter syndrome

Jovana is a passionate investment professional with more than nine years’ experience in the finance industry. As an Investment Analyst at Tribeca Investment Partners, she is responsible for providing research and investment recommendations across multiple strategies, including Tribeca's Long/Short Fund, Small Companies Fund and the Micro Cap Fund. Prior to this, Jovana held similar roles at Firetrail Investments and Contact Asset Management, co-owned by Australia's second oldest publicly listed company, Washington H. Soul Pattinson. She started her career in assurance and corporate advisory, specifically mergers and acquisitions.

Jovana holds a Bachelor of Business from the University of Technology, Sydney with majors in Accounting and Finance and has completed Piano Level 2 (Grade Six of Eight) from the Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB). She is fluent in English, Serbian and Croatian.

Session: Leadership skills for women in investment

Catherine firmly believes that every leader has a powerful contribution to make to the world. But they can’t do it alone. They need to connect with and influence their team, customers, suppliers, investors and networks to support them on the journey. And this requires effective leadership communication.

In fact, as the world leverages the power of technology, digital and social media, virtual reality, automation and AI, the power of - and need for - effective interpersonal communication skills grows stronger, especially for leaders.

It’s with this in mind, that Catherine’s mission is to equip both current and future leaders and with the knowledge, skills, resources and confidence to communicate in a way that connects more meaningfully with their stakeholders and increases their ability to influence others so they can achieve their goals and make a positive impact.

For over 20 years, through her individual coaching, group workshops and strategic consultancy, Catherine has empowered leaders at Fortune 500 organisations, some of Australia’s leading corporates and small-to-medium businesses, as well as entrepreneurs as they launch and scale their start-ups to realise their full potential.

She hopes she can do the same for you.

Session: ESG measurements - effectively analysing and using ESG data and reporting

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION: Empowering gender partnership – how can women and men can work together to drive change

Srimathi is a property analyst focused on investment analysis, strategic asset management, due diligence and reporting. Srimathi has over 7 years of real estate investment analysis experience.

Prior to joining Barwon in 2016, Srimathi worked as an Associate with CBRE Global Investment Partners, Singapore from 2013 to 2015 where her role included due diligence on investment opportunities, regular re-forecasting of these investments and managing and monitoring the performance of clients’ investment portfolios across the Asia Pacific Region.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Utilising impact investment strategies to minimise risk, promote impact and increase returns

Izzy founded Kakariki Capital after identifying what she believes will be one of the biggest, and most important investment opportunities of our time, the decarbonisation of our planet.

Previously, Izzy spent 7 years at Morrison & Co, a leading global alternative asset manager with excess of $25bn+ FUM, where she was responsible for research and origination in carbon and environmental markets. Izzy has experience across a range of disciplines, including portfolio strategy management, and unlisted and listed investment management.

Izzy currently sits on the board of the Montessori East Foundation as Treasurer. Izzy has a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in Economics and Finance (with Distinction) from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION: Maximising returns and growth through practical diversity – leveraging diverse teams for enhanced business outcomes

Anne is an experienced investment professional, having worked in Advisory and Investment Banking roles. Anne is an Actuary (AIAA), a Fellow of FINSIA, and holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) from The University of Melbourne.

Anne is the co-founder of Women In Investments, a networking group that seeks to support stronger connections and career development for women in the investment management industry.

Anne is also a Director of The Mac.Rob Foundation (her alma mater). Anne has a strong appreciation for the outstanding, free education she has accessed in Australia which had set her up for a fulfilling career. She feels passionate about giving back to the next generation of women from diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.

Session: Elevating efficiency and returns through an effective data and analytics strategy

Cheryl is a credit analyst at Coolabah Capital, an independent long-short fixed income manager with funds under management in excess of $7 billion. She undertakes fundamental credit research and ESG analysis on North American, European and Australian entities, with a focus on financial institutions. Prior to her role at Coolabah Capital, she was at AustralianSuper between 2018 and 2021. Cheryl managed an alpha-generating securities lending portfolio by arranging and negotiating trades with various counterparties. She also developed a top-down investment process for credit and enhanced the investment process for the fund’s G10 currencies overlay strategy.

Currently a teaching associate for Monash Business School’s Department of Banking and Finance, Cheryl continues to pursue her interest in academia. Cheryl is a CFA charterholder and holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance) / Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from Monash University.

Session: Opening remarks from the Chair

A senior funds management professional with over 19 years experience in business strategy, sales, client management, operations and marketing. As Director of a Responsible Entity, I have oversight of financial, operational, legal compliance and risk for a number of managed investment schemes. I am a globally connected and driven individual with creative trouble shooting abilities, offering a strong strategic skill set with highly attuned interpersonal and presentation capabilities.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Utilising impact investment strategies to minimise risk, promote impact and increase returns

Amanda has 15 years’ experience in investment management with a focus on Sustainable Investment. She has strong communication skills and sales background to build and foster client relationships.

She holds a Masters in Applied Finance.

Session: FIRESIDE DISCUSSION- The impact of climate change on investment strategies, risks & opportunities

Liza has over 20 years’ experience in the superannuation sector and is a specialist and passionate advocate for Responsible Investments and Sustainable Finance.

As Head of Responsible Investments, she has led the development and implementation of the Fund’s Responsible Investment policies, the execution of the Climate Change Strategy and also manages the ESG policy implementation including manager and asset class ESG reviews.

Liza joined Aware Super through our merger partner Health Super in December 2006 as an analyst in the Compliance, Legal and Risk Team. Before joining Aware Super, Liza held various roles at Mercer Legal where her primary focus was on trustee education and corporate secretarial duties.

Liza represents Aware Super on a number of working groups and committees including Investors Against Slavery & Trafficking APAC (IAST-APAC); ESG Research Australia; the Australian Sustainable Finance Initiative (ASFI); the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA); 40:40 Vision; the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) and the UN convened Global Investors for Sustainable Development Alliance (GISD). Liza holds a Post Graduate Diploma of Applied Finance at Kaplan Education.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION: Empowering gender partnership – how can women and men can work together to drive change

Jill is an accomplished senior finance executive with experience across the private and public sector spanning financial markets, investments, treasury, balance sheet management, investment banking, governance, strategy, and risk management.

She is the Chief Investment Officer for Suncorp’s $20b portfolio of investments and funds under management. Prior to joining Suncorp, Jill was the Executive Director of Financial Risk Management in the NSW Department of Treasury where she was responsible for developing and implementing the strategy around the optimisation of the state’s finances and balance sheet. Prior to the NSW Government, Jill held roles at Barclays in both Investment Banking and Financial Markets, most recently a Managing Director and Head of Macro - Australia and NZ, and at Prudential Financial as a Senior Investment Analyst (USA).

Jill holds a Master of Business Administration from the AGSM (NSW), a Bachelor of Music (performance) from Rutgers University (NJ, USA) and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Originally from the US, Jill lives in Sydney with her husband, two children and new-ish puppy. In addition to spending time with family, interests include running, hiking, Muay Thai (kickboxing), scuba diving, travel, food and wine.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Maximising returns and growth through practical diversity – leveraging diverse teams for enhanced business outcomes

Highly accomplished finance and accounting professional with over 17 years experience developing funding solutions and providing financial advice to corporates and private equity firms,including specialist advice on business transformation strategies to effect change and drive profit. Have led numerous sale and acquisition processes as well as re-financings of corporations in Australia and mid-sized and large private equity transactions, cultivating strong relationships with financial institutions, law,accounting and private equity firms. Effective negotiator,balancing persuasiveness and diplomacy to achieve results that benefit all parties. Proven success generating superior revenue and client outcomes and expanding and strengthening client relationships. Highly collaborative team leader inspiring superior performance by developing,coaching and mentoring employees. Visionary change agent with a consistent record of transforming challenges into opportunities and initiating new procedures within a team to elevate efficiency and effectiveness.

Superior financial analysis and judgement has increased profits and shareholder value within risk and governance requirements. Reputation for remaining calm and focused under pressure to develop workable solutions to complex issues. One of the youngest executive directors at UBS globally. Negotiating complex multi-million dollar transactions between financiers, vendors and acquirers. Devising financing solutions for businesses in challenging declining financial markets. . Corporate governance through investment committees and as a board member. Knowledge across most industries

Session: Leveraging AI and automation in your investment processes to improve efficiency and maximise returns

Joanna has 13 years’ quantitative investment experience including senior roles at Acadian, where she was a senior portfolio manager, and Blackrock, where she was a portfolio manager within scientific equities, ran index portfolios and was Head of Sustainable Investment in Australia. Joanna is also a Lecturer at the University of Technology, Sydney and at New York University.

Joanna holds a CFA accreditation, has a PHD in Economics from Yale University, and was awarded a Fulbright scholarship. She has a Bachelor of Laws and Economics (Honours) from the University of New South Wales.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Critical trends, strategies and lessons from across the investment sector

Zarmeen Pavri is a transformational and values- based leader and have over 28 years’ experience in the funds management, responsible investment, impact investing and international development sectors. She is an accomplished C-suite executive and NED, with a proven track record in growing successful organisations and now work solely in applying her lived and work experience towards creating positive impact within the investment sector.

After leaving the traditional funds management world more than 8 year ago, Zarmeen explored how investment can be used to create dual returns -financial returns and impact returns. She now dedicates her life towards being as impactful as she can be at every level of her corporate and personal life. She is a rare breed of the hybrid investment professional and work at multiple levels of the investment ecosystem. She works at the 'market building' level, educating institutional Asset owners on how to view their portfolios using an 'impact lens' and wear also various Governance hats as an NED that can influence at the Board level & Investment committee level. She works as a 'market enabler' through the ESG and Impact Advisory work, to integrate impact into the investment decision making processes or to help design new funds that can create real world impact. Lastly, she works as an market participant, being an Investment Manager running a Climate Tech fund, deploying capital to climate tech ventures.

Being the alchemist, disrupter, translator and bridge builder, she is passionate about transforming the capital and investor markets to being a force for good and know how to unlock potential and create long-term value creation, which enables prosperity for all stakeholders, society and planet.

Zarmeen loves working off a clean sheet of paper, empowering others to create something from nothing and this is coupled with all the commercial experience and investment experience, that facilitates growth in good ways and hence her passion to also mentor emerging leaders, start-ups and in particular, as a DEI advocate.

She works with integrity and ethics and work hard to collaborate unique talents and super powers and form a collective intelligence far greater than working in silos.

She believes that if you want to address real world problems which are systemic issues then be prepared to break and disrupt the current systems, do things differently and use creativity to reimagine a new world where everyone can create a healthy and thriving planet and society!

Session: Navigating the latest ESG investment trends to maximise returns

Emma joined Maple-Brown Abbott in May 2020 as Head of ESG. Before Maple-Brown Abbott, Emma spent 14 years with BT, most recently as Head of Customer Governance and Sustainability where she had responsibility for the organisation’s product governance and sustainability functions across superannuation, investments and insurance. Prior to this, Emma held strategy and operations roles in BT’s private wealth, superannuation, investments, platforms and advice divisions. Before BT, Emma worked in blue-chip technology and financial services organisations in Sydney and London. Among industry collaborations, Emma served as co-Chair of the Australian Sustainable Finance Initiative (ASFI) technical working group on meeting community expectations and has experience across the asset owner, corporate and investor pillars of the ESG value chain.

In her current role, Emma is responsible for the development and implementation of Maple-Brown Abbott’s ESG strategy, policies and governance. She also oversees the integration of ESG risks and opportunities into investment decision-making, engagement and proxy voting initiatives across the Australian, Asian and Emerging Markets strategies as well as stakeholder communications. In addition, Emma is co-Portfolio Manager of the Australian Sustainable Future Fund.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Maximising returns and growth through practical diversity – leveraging diverse teams for enhanced business outcomes

Sophia joined Maple-Brown Abbott in October 2019 as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director. Prior to Maple-Brown Abbott, Sophia was the Chief Operating Officer, Pan Asia, for Janus Henderson Investors based in Singapore, having previously been with Henderson Global Investors as Chief Operating Officer, Australia, from 2013.

Prior to this, Sophia spent eight years with the Macquarie Group, principally in its asset management division, with experience across strategy, mergers and acquisitions, product and marketing. During this period she spent time based in Sydney, New York and Philadelphia. Sophia started her career as a solicitor at King & Wood Mallesons.

Sophia has extensive leadership experience across financial services and asset management businesses within Australia and globally.

Session: The economic outlook in 2023 and beyond – key factors shaping investment strategies and opportunities

Deborah is an experienced Company Director in banking, mortgage broking, superannuation, funds management, fintech, financial advice and education industries. Her expertise in public policy, innovation and retirement issues, is reflected in appointments to the Reserve Bank Payments System Board, the Federal Government's Retirement Income Review Panel, the Comprehensive Income Products for Retirement Framework Advisory Committee and as inaugural Chair of ASIC's Digital Finance Advisory Board.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Maximising returns and growth through practical diversity – leveraging diverse teams for enhanced business outcomes

Kimberley Reid is a seasoned expert in building high performing organisations with more than twenty years in the field, ten years as a lawyer and policy advisor and the past ten years as a senior executive responsible for talent, culture and capability in banking, government and professional services.

Session: Investment industry outlook 2023 – navigating the trends and changes

Kylie-Anne Richards serves as the Deputy Chief Investment Officer and is a Fortlake Asset Management Board member. With extensive domestic and international industry experience, she has held positions such as Head of Financial Engineering for the Asia Pacific at Macquarie Group in Hong Kong, Head of Indexation and Quantitative Trading Research at CLSA in Sydney, and Director and Portfolio Manager at QTR Capital, a proprietary trading business.

Kylie-Anne is a tenured academic at the University of Technology Sydney, focusing on research and teaching in sustainable finance, green finance, ESG, and high-frequency finance. She has developed and lectures Sustainable Finance subjects in the Master of Finance, MBA, Executive MBA, Master of Financial Planning, and Microcredential programs. An internationally published academic, her papers have appeared in journals such as the 'International Journal of Financial Engineering' and 'Statistical Inference for Stochastic Processes.'

She completed her PhD at the University of NSW (UNSW) School of Mathematics and Statistics and was awarded the QRSLab Boronia Managed Funds PhD Scholarship in 2011. Kylie-Anne also holds a Master of Finance (Financial Engineering) from The University of Hong Kong, a Bachelor of Science (Mathematics and Statistics), and a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance) from The University of Melbourne.

Session: Practical, real world strategies to close the gender pay gap

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Critical trends, strategies and lessons from across the investment sector

Dr Laura Ryan is Head of Research at Ardea IM and is responsible for both the Portfolio Research and Client Solutions teams.

The Portfolio Research team is responsible for developing value-added trade recommendations to drive portfolio performance and improve client outcomes. The Client Solutions team undertakes independent quantitative research to help clients solve investment problems.

Laura is an internationally published academic with papers appearing in ‘The Journal of Portfolio Management’ and ‘The Journal of Forecasting’, ‘The Journal of Investing’ and ‘The Journal of Retirement’ among others.

Previously, Laura was Senior Vice President (Quantitative Research) and a member of the Australian senior management team at PIMCO. With 24 years investment experience, Laura’s other roles include Manager of Quantitative Strategy at Commonwealth Bank, Quantitative Manager at AMP Capital and Lecturer in Statistics at the Australian National University (ANU).

Laura holds a Ph.D. in statistics from the ANU, a Master of Quantitative Finance from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and an Honours degree in Actuarial Studies from the ANU. She is also an Adjunct Associate Professor at UTS.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Critical trends, strategies and lessons from across the investment sector

Jo Spillane is an Executive Director and Global Head of Private Capital Markets for Macquarie Capital. In her role, Jo advises government, corporate and financial sponsor clients on access to equity capital for significant private capital transactions across sectors such as infrastructure and energy, telecommunications, healthcare and transport. Since 2015, PCM has raised over AUD230bn of equity for these deals. Jo is responsible for Macquarie Capital’s relationships with many of the world's largest institutional investors, including pension funds, superannuation funds, sovereign wealth funds and asset managers. She provides advice and guidance to these investors on deal flow and investment opportunities that meet individual mandates and strategic objectives.

Jo leads a global team of executives covering North America, UK/Europe, Japan, Korea and China and is responsible for the global connectivity of capital flows for transactions across these regions. Jo has been with Macquarie for over 25 years in a range of leadership roles and businesses spanning both listed markets and private capital. She is on the Infrastructure Partnerships Australia Advisory Board, and is a member of Chief Executive Women, the Hawthorn Club and sits on the Hawthorn Club Membership Committee for APAC.

Jo is passionate about diversity, equity and inclusion and is a proud parent to three children.

Session: CHAMPAGNE ROUNDTABLES - Real world strategies to overcome challenges facing women in the investment industry

Session: Modern technology- A playbook for investors

Alice Tang is a senior financial services executive and she drives sustainable growth through innovation and meeting and exceeding clients’ requirements.

In her role as Chief Operating Officer at MA Asset Management, she is a collaborative leader and a problem solver who is leading 6 functional teams expanding her companies platform in New York, Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia.

During her 16 years at Macquarie Group, she supported the investment bank, asset management and the retail bank as a pioneer on many fronts – the first infrastructure assets bought on the balance sheet, the acquisition and integration of a property development company, managing Chinese retail property funds for global institutional investors and risk management and governance for minority controlled infrastructure assets.

As a transformation leader, she led the global implementation of Salesforce for 1200 investment bankers across 30 different countries. The implementation applied her deep understanding of financial services to a technology platform which allowed: bankers to collaborate in a matrix organisational structure, compliance teams to manage emerging regulations and senior management to access actionable insights to drive the business. The change formed the backbone of the modern cloud architecture and ignited the digital transformation journey for the business.

She is a life-long learner and is committed to giving back to schools and universities. Alice is a former Board member of the UNSW Business School Alumni Board and is currently a mentor with Daystar, an organisation which supports students from diverse socio-economic backgrounds.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Critical trends, strategies and lessons from across the investment sector

Kristin Vaughan is Director of the Clean Energy Innovation Fund at the Clean Energy Finance Corporation. Kristin is responsible for originating and managing investments in early stage clean energy companies. Prior to joining the CEFC, Kristin was an Investment Director at leading private equity firm CHAMP Ventures, where she managed investments across a range of industries including education, manufacturing, logistics, services and retail. Kristin has a chemical engineering degree from the University of Sydney.

Session: The rise of women in investment – challenges, opportunities & strengthening the industry

Kathy Walsh is a Finance Professor and the Associate Dean (Research and Innovation) at the UTS Business School and has a critical role in fostering a vibrant research culture of rigorous, relevant and impactful research. Kathy is widely recognised for her pioneering research in the field of Chinese capital markets, with a particular focus on the internationalisation of the Renminbi (RMB). Her work explores the motivations behind China's push to promote the use of the RMB in international trade and investment and its efforts to digitise the currency. She also analyses the implications of these developments and the challenges and opportunities for global markets. Her insights have helped guide financial institutions in their strategic planning and risk management efforts.

Kathy holds a PhD in finance from the Australian Graduate School of Management and a first-class Honours Degree in Finance from Curtin University. Her academic career spans over two decades, during which she has held various academic roles such as the ANU, Sydney University and UNSW. She has also served as the Research Director for the Centre for International Finance and Regulation and as the President of FIRN. Prior to her academic career, Kathy worked for 10 years in the financial services sector and this practical experience has greatly informed her research.

Session: FIRESIDE DISCUSSION- The impact of climate change on investment strategies, risks & opportunities

Kate Webster is a Senior Responsible Investment Analyst at First State Super (FSS) focusing with the team on integrating responsible investment principles within the c. AUD100bn of investments, including directly held investments and with fund managers. Additionally, Kate is heavily involved in the implementation of the Fund’s Climate Change Transition Plan and establishing a methodology for FSS to measure and monitor the impact of its investments on the environment and society.

Prior to joining FSS Kate has worked in research at the University of Sydney and utilities and infrastructure debt and equity financing at ANZ and Palisade Infrastructure Partners. Kate holds a BSc. (Hons) from Manchester University, UK, an MBA from Melbourne Business School and a Masters of Sustainability from the University of Sydney.

Session: PANEL DISCUSSION- Critical trends, strategies and lessons from across the investment sector

Anna is based in Sydney and joined the Cbus Investment Management team in October 2016 and has oversight of Cbus’ portfolio of external Australian and international equity managers. A key part of Anna’s role is to conduct due diligence on new external managers, monitoring the performance of incumbent managers and benchmarking them against factors including ESG. Setting the overarching portfolio strategy for each sector to ensure the relative investment objectives are met is another key responsibility.

With over 20 years’ experience in manager research, portfolio construction and investment consulting, Anna has previously worked with Willis Towers Watson in both Australia and Germany, Macquarie and ipac securities.

Session: ESG measurements - effectively analysing and using ESG data and reporting

Camille Wynter is the Head of ESG Research, ANZ at UBS where she is responsible for leading the ESG strategy for the equity research division in ANZ. In this role, Ms Wynter develops thematic ESG research as well as Australian company and sector specific research in collaboration with sector analysts. Prior to this, Ms Wynter held the role of Director, Sustainable Finance in CBA’s Institutional division where she was responsible for structuring green and sustainable debt products for institutional clients including corporates and government bodies. Ms Wynter also spent 7 years at AMP Capital in the role of Senior Sustainable Investment Analyst. In this role, she helped manage the Australian Sustainable Share Fund, led engagements with ASX300 company executives and board members, and managed proxy voting on behalf of all the global equity teams. Wynter holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Science from the University of Sydney and a Masters of Sustainability also from the University of Sydney.