Bill Hortz

Founder & Dean
The Institute for Innovation Development


Bill Hortz is a business innovation writer, independent business consultant, and Founder/Dean of the financial services business innovation focused Institute for Innovation Development.

Bill has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry including creatively restructuring and developing internal/external sales and strategic account departments for 5 major financial firms; entrepreneurially pioneering new markets in the early days of the financial advisor fee-based movement and financial alliance programs in the US;  and created many non-traditional and engaging advisor educational events with major financial firms including OppenheimerFunds, Neuberger&Berman, Peregrine Asset Management (USA), and Templeton Funds Distributors.

His wide ranging experiences have led  Bill to a strong belief, passion and advocation for strategic thinking, innovation creation, and strategic account management as the nexus of business forces needed to address a business environment challenged by an accelerating rate of change.
Bill loves working with senior executives, sales/strategic account departments, and financial advisor teams in developing effective ways of using innovation resources and developing innovation skills. He considers himself a life-long “student of human nature” and is well known for his enthusiasm, creativity and resourcefulness. 

Bill is married, with two grown children (and 2 grandchildren!), living in the Tampa Bay area. He enjoys reading, engaged conversation, bicycling, spelunking, and traveling with his family.  
Little known facts: Bill worked on the last remaining docks of NYC as an underage teen, worked for the man in Hong Kong that the book Tai-Pan was based on, and constantly seeks out off-off-off Broadway theatre, performance art and modern art museums.

Ian Martin

Chief Administrative Officer
Ultimus Fund Solutions

As Executive Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer, Ian works across all business lines to ensure that integration and synergy goals and activities are completed on time while meeting key financial targets. He also has executive management business line responsibilities within the Transfer Agent and Distributor.

Ian is a seasoned veteran in mutual fund processing, shareholder servicing, efficiency and quality control. Prior to joining Ultimus, Ian was Executive Vice President and led the Transfer Agent, Shareholder Servicing and Dealer Clearing Services departments at U.S. Bank Global Fund Services. He was also Chairman of the Board for Trust Advised Portfolios.

Prior to joining Fund Services, Ian was vice president and group manager of Mutual Funds and Entitlement Services department for U.S. Bank, where he oversaw all aspects of mutual funds, asset file, pricing, income, proxies and corporate actions.

Ian received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. He joined Ultimus in 2019 and has been in the mutual fund industry since 1992.

Mark Spina

COO and President
FLX Distribution

Mark Spina is Chief Operating Officer and President of FLX Distribution. Mark is responsible for developing and delivering cost-effective and customize distribution solutions to FLX Distribution’s members. He is focused on building an effective marketplace, that efficiently connects financial services companies to proven distribution professionals, in individual and team formats. Prior to FLX, Mark was Head of Americas, Advisor & Intermediary Solutions, at Russell Investments.

Prior to Russell, he was Head of US Intermediary Distribution at what is now Amundi Pioneer. Earlier in his career, Mark spent 14 years with Voya Investment Management, the final seven years as Head of Intermediary Distribution. Mark has extensive experience managing sales, national accounts, product, data and marketing teams in the US and globally. Mark has been a Board member of FLX since March of this year. He is also a board member of the MMI’s Gateway to Leadership.

Mark received an MBA in Finance and International Business from The Gabelli School of Business at Fordham University and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bucknell University.

Tim Kresl

Principal, 
Distribution Insight
Broadridge Financial Solutions

Tom Pelleiter

Director,
Distribution Insight,
Broadridge Financial Solutions

What are the key industry trends that we’re tracking, viewed through the lens of industry assets and flows? In this session, we’ll share unique data and insights from Broadridge’s unparalleled distribution dataset on AUM and flows by channel, product category, and strategy.

Brian Donnelly

Consultant
SME Forum

Scot Hawthorne

J.P. Morgan Chase

Stephen Alepa

CEO
Olmstead Associates

Vinay Kant

Global Head of Technology, Digital & Marketing
JP Morgan

Pinki Mehta

Managing Director, Head of Global Marketing Services and Digital Experience
Alliance Bernstein

James Keenan

Director, Digital Strategy
AMG Funds

Michael Korik

VP, Fidelity Institutional - Client Relationship Technology
Fidelity

Best For: Marketing Leadership; Sales Leadership; Enablement Leadership Open to All

As MarTech stacks continue to grow in importance, so does their ultimate value: delivering a 360 view of the client. Yet getting alignment and sponsorship for these 360 view initiatives present their own challenges. How do we frame the value proposition in a way that avoids it sounding like “just another platform”? In this session we’ll explore the lessons learned on the journey.

Bill Sheldon

SVP, 
Financial Services Practice
MarketBridge

Bill rejoined MarketBridge in 2016 to help lead the Financial Service Practice.  Bill has more than 25 years' experience working with Financial Services and Tech clients on go-to-market issues and data-driven approaches to sales and marketing effectiveness. 

Prior to returning to MarketBridge, Bill was the Chief Solutions Officer at Angoss Software with responsibility for the design, development, and deployment of predictive analytic solutions within financial services, including FundGUARD™, a predictive analytics solution for the Asset Management industry.
Before that, Bill was Chief Operating Officer for CFM Partners, a leading provider of SaaS Governance, Risk and Compliance solutions in the Asset Management industry.

While previously at MarketBridge, Bill led the Tech Practice and the Decision Sciences Practice for nearly 15 years, working on go-to-market with leading technology clients such as Microsoft and IBM.  He began his career with Accenture in the Washington, DC office.

He holds a BA from the University of Virginia, and an MBA from the American University in Washington, DC.

Steven Lewis

SVP, Financial Services Practice
MarketBridge

Steven leads the Go-to-Market solutions practice with MarketBridge, guiding the development and delivery of strategic efforts with sales and marketing leaders. He brings a differentiated go-to-market point of view that fuses insights and innovation with a focus on data, customer experience, business imperatives and an understanding complex routes to market, to drive effectiveness and cohesion across organizations he consults with.

Steven has deep industry expertise within Financial Services and Tech (channel), working withindustry leaders in both industries to understand market and business dynamics and enable the development and implementation of innovative go-to-market solutions

Steven joined MarketBridge in 2007 and rejoined in 2020, following four years with Hero Digital, leading the CX business strategy practice. Steven holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing science from Acadia University (Canada) and an M.B.A. from Dalhousie University (Canada).

Best For: Exec Management; Business Leaders; Enablement Open to All

Last year, distribution enablement changed overnight as the industry went virtual. A recent McKinsey study found that asset managers with the strongest digital and remote capabilities pre-Covid saw, on average, a 12% increase in gross sales in 2020, while their more traditional, field-centric counterparts saw a decline of 2%. Moving forward, MarketBridge has found the #1 enablement priority of market leaders is to better leverage their existing technology tools and data and analytics investments to drive the digital enablement of their go-to-market model. We believe this starts with the radical alignment of sales and marketing to create shared objectives around revenue growth, seller productivity and data-driven engagement. In this session, we will present our recent survey results as Financial Advisors navigate the post-COVID landscape, face new needs and expectations, and engage with Asset Management firms differently than before. We will connect these insights to strategic distribution imperatives that sales and marketing teams need to make in the coming year. In addition, we will share our Maturity Model for Distribution Enablement allowing you to benchmark your maturity level and identify potential gaps (from technology, messaging, content and channel alignment). 

Attend the session for: 

1. Insights from Financial Advisor on their expectations from Asset Management providers (based on 2021 survey results)
2. Our Maturity Model for Distribution Enablement
3. A Strategic approach to drive a superior advisor experience, improve seller productivity, and ultimately to gain competitive advantage in a challenging market environment.
 

 

Steve Richards

Founder
ExecVision

Steve Richard is the founder of ExecVision & Vorsight.  Steve’s mission and life's work is to help as many sales teams as possible become wildly successful.  He has been featured in numerous publications including The Harvard Business Review, The Washington Business Journal, and The Washington Post. 

Outside of work, Steve enjoys scuba diving, skiing, running, and watching lots of football.  He lives in Arlington, VA with his wife Ellen and their four kids ages 5, 7, 9, and 11.

Best For: Internal Sales Desk Leadership; Field Sales Leadership; Enablement; Training and User Adoption Open to All

The pandemic has highlighted what was already beginning to surface before. Internal Sales personnel are amongst the most effective sales personnel. A combination of technology, information, and business processes are being combined to deliver improved results that hybrids and external field sales personnel should already be using as well. It’s become cliché to say your external sellers are now just internal sellers. But is it true? And will the end of the pandemic mean that field sales will return to their old status quo? In this fast moving session Steve will explore what’s changed, what’s stayed the same, and what you need to do about it using a framework approach that is proving to be powerful.

Ed Garry

Senior Director
Salesforce Financial Services Practice
Huron Consulting

Open to all SME Forum Members and Guests

Join Huron for some CRM insights and whole lot of fun at the SME Forum conference social. Register by April 19th to receive your custom drink kit to shake, stir and enjoy a cocktail during happy hour.

Bring your appetite for innovation and we will bring the cocktails and mixologist.

 

Dave Kriz

VP, Sales Strategy
HeyDAN/Fugent

Brian Ferguson

Vice President, Head of Internal Sales
Prudential Annuities®
 

Brian Ferguson, CIMA® is Vice President, Head of Internal Sales for Prudential Annuities. He is responsible for developing and driving the strategic direction of the Internal Sales team, including recruiting, talent development, and delivery of sales results. Brian was previously Director, Internal Sales, with direct responsibility for the Wirehouse & Bank and Advisor Channels. Prior to joining Prudential in July 2015, Brian worked for 13 years at BlackRock, including four years at Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, which merged with BlackRock in 2006.

In his most recent role as Vice President, Sales Strategy, Brian was responsible for creating and executing retail sales strategy across mutual funds, separately managed accounts and exchange traded funds. His previous experience at BlackRock included roles as Associate Asset Management Advisor, Tactical/Hybrid Sales Specialist, Regional Sales Desk Manager and U.S. Private Client Business Manager. Brian earned his bachelor’s degree from The College of New Jersey and his MBA from The Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts. He is also a Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA®).

Brian lives in New Jersey with his wife Jill, and their two daughters Abigail and Alexis

Simon McGowan

Vice President Sales and Marketing
Rocky Mountain Insurance Network

Simon McGowan is VP of Sales and Marketing for Rocky Mountain Insurance Network, a premier Brokerage General Agency helping advisors provide their clients with the excellence, expertise, and professionalism they deserve. Prior to that, Simon was a Virtual Regional Vice President at Transamerica where he assisted advisors in helping their clients achieve financial security. His goal is to be the go-to advisor for advisors. Right out of college, Simon owned and operated a successful restaurant and catering business for almost 15 years before selling it and pursuing a new path. Simon is passionate about helping others achieve their financial security and helping his agents and advisors due the same. Simon holds a FINRA series 6 and 63, as well as all lines of insurance including Life/Health/Property/Casualty/LTC Certification.

When he’s not working, you can find him chasing one (or often, all) of his three young daughters. He and his wife Stefanie have three young daughters. He is also an avid golfer (but exceptionally bad at it) and loves to get up to the mountains in the winter to ski and snowboard. 

Trent Blossom

Internal Sales Manager
MFS Fund Distributors, Inc.

Trent Blossom, CIMA, is an internal sales manager with MFS Fund Distributors, Inc., a subsidiary of MFS Investment Management® (MFS®). In this role, he manages the firm's internal sales team for broker/dealer and independent firms.

Trent joined MFS in 2013 as a sales representative and assumed his current role in 2018. He previously worked at MetLife Investors in its Income and Protection Solutions Group, beginning his career in financial services in 2012.

Trent earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Bowdoin College. He is a registered principal and holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst® (CIMA®) designation.

Best For: Sales and Distribution Management; Sales Ops; Distribution Enablement; All levels of Reporting & Analytics; Training and User Adoption Open to All

The role and importance of the inside sales professional has changed exponentially over the last 12 months. Companies who drive more, higher quality engagements by following up with the right advisor, with the right message at the right time, will come out on top. Join us for a panel discussion with sales managers from three financial firms to hear how they adapted to drive more engagement from the inside sales teams and externals turned internal.

Elaine Villas-Obusan

The SME Forum

A seasoned asset management leader, Elaine is a senior executive in marketing with significant experience in developing and leading strategic initiatives for complex, global, high growth organizations.

She has a deep understanding of the current issues and evolving trends affecting the industry which has helped in launching new products and services as well as designing channel segmentation strategies. Throughout her career, she has partnered with the distribution and investment teams working with C-suite executives to create holistic, outcome focused programs to increase revenue, engage and retain clients.

In her current role as a consultant at Wells Fargo Asset Management (WFAM), she is responsible for leading and implementing the marketing strategy behind the launch of Remi, the firm’s proprietary customized Separately Managed Account Platform (SMA). The platform assists financial advisors in building tax-efficient and customized solutions for their clients.  She is also a valued partner to the sustainable investing team, working collaboratively, developing messaging and positioning to broaden awareness of the company’s growing Sustainable Investing capability.

Prior to her WFAM, Elaine was a Director and Head of Investments and Intermediary Marketing at Foresters Financial, where she led the product marketing team responsible for developing and implementing the firm’s digital first go-to-market strategy including management of the firm’s content. Previously, she held a variety of senior product marketing roles at leading asset management firms including Aberdeen Asset Management where she was Head of Intermediary Marketing in which her team won several mutual fund awards for risk diversification. She also worked at Four Wood Capital Partners, as Director of Strategic Marketing and Vice President of Marketing for the Transparent Value Equity mutual fund at Guggenheim Partners. She started her career at OppenheimerFunds working across integrated, digital, brand and product marketing where she was part of the award winning “Globalize Your Thinking” campaign.

Elaine has a Bachelor of Business in marketing and land economy from University of Western Sydney - Hawkesbury, Australia and holds a FINRA Series 6 license.

Barron Tiedemann

Head of Wealth Management, Americas
Aberdeen Standard Investments
 
Barron Tiedemann is the Head of Wealth Management, Americas at Aberdeen Standard Investments. Barron is responsible for management of the U.S. Distribution efforts. He joined the firm in 2014 bringing over 15 years of industry experience. Previously, he was with Gabelli Asset Management as Regional Vice President, PIMCO as a Vice President, External Consultant and Oppenheimer Funds as a Vice President, Wealth Management Consultant. Barron earned a B.S. in Marketing from Jacksonville University, Florida. Barron holds Series 7, 24, and 66 licenses, a member of the Investment and Wealth Institute through which he earned his CIMA designation from the Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania.

Cochleen Sands

Executive Director, Lifecycle Marketing & Client Experience
J.P. Morgan Asset Management

Cochleen is a Marketing Director with J.P. Morgan Asset Management, focusing on Lifecycle Marketing and Client Experience.  In this role, Cochleen is focused on creating segmentation strategies, multi-channel campaigns and experience maps that increase awareness and build adoption among financial professionals.

Prior to joining J.P. Morgan in 2016, she held marketing positions with Equitable (formerly AXA US), in New York, and The Glenmede Trust Company, in Philadelphia. Cochleen started her career in Finance in 2005 working for A. Michael Lipper, founder of Lipper, Inc.She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre from Drew University, as well as a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Seton Hall University.

Cochleen blends her expertise in marketing with her extracurricular passions by serving as a board member for Music in Montclair, which hosts a concert series of classical and chamber music; as well as Spectrum360, an organization dedicated to providing innovative services and opportunities to individuals of all ages on the autism spectrum.

Rocco Benedetto

Head of Field Sales, US Wealth Management Intermediaries
Invesco

Rocco Benedetto is Invesco’s Head of Field Sales, US Wealth Management Intermediaries (WMI) and is a member of the senior distribution leadership team. He leads the field efforts to position Invesco as the firm of choice and primary resource for advisors and strategic partners to turn to for help in making investment decisions and building businesses.

Mr. Benedetto joined Invesco as part of the 2019 combination with OppenheimerFunds and previously served as OppenheimerFunds’ Senior Vice President and Head of Broker-Dealer Channel.

He joined OppenheimerFunds in 1997 as a Regional Sales Representative and served in sales and leadership positions, including leading the firm’s Separately Managed Account business, and as Head of Internal Sales and Learning & Development.  

Mr. Benedetto earned his BA in Finance from St. John’s University and an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

 

Scot Hawthorne

J.P. Morgan Chase

Tom McKinnon

MFS Investment Management
Global Distribution Strategic Capabilities
 

Tom McKinnon is a director in the Global Distribution Solutions Division of MFS Fund Distributors, Inc., a subsidiary of MFS Investment Management.   His primary function is to partner with senior distribution management and corporate management to enable smooth, on-time implementation of distribution technologies . Tom joined MFS in 1998 and has served in a variety of positions during his tenure.  Tom earned his bachelor’s degree from Saint Anselm College.

Megan Weber

Product Owner
Invesco

The User Engagement Manager role at OppenheimerFunds and Invesco was intended to continuously evaluate and refine how technology supports and improves the sales workflow. As a previous sales consultant, empathizing with our users was a core pillar of how we gathered, understood, and evangelized best practices as well as captured pain points for improvement.

This hands-on approach allowed our team to align with senior leadership objectives and our partners in technology to drive user-centric change across the distribution technology landscape.

John Ho

Executive Director, Global Head of Sales Experience
J.P. Morgan Asset Management

John leads the Sales Experience Platform team within JPMorgan Asset Management. The Sales Experience Platform encompasses Salesforce, data visualization, and sales efficiency tools.

Best For: Training and User Adoption; Product Managers; Sales Leadership; Marketing Leadership Open to All

Over the past year, behaviors toward and expectations of technology have changed. In many cases, the consumerization of workplace technology has advanced significantly. Has the pandemic experience driven improved user adoption of workplace tools? Have we reached a tipping point? Join us as we explore new and perhaps not so new techniques that have been used to help onboard and drive learning and adoption of tools for the sales organization.

Loren Fox

Director of Ignites Research
Financial Times

Loren Fox is the Director of Ignites Research, a Financial Times unit offering business intelligence on the asset management business. Previously, he was a senior research analyst at Strategic Insight, producing market intelligence on the mutual fund industry. Prior to that, Loren was a business journalist for many years, having worked at Institutional Investor, Business 2.0, and other publications, and he is the author of the book Enron: The Rise and Fall (2002). As an industry expert, Loren has spoken at numerous conferences and has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and other publications. He earned his BA from Johns Hopkins University and his MS from Columbia University.

Suzy Schwartz

Head of Global Business Analytics
Global Institutional Group
State Street Global Advisors

Suzy Schwartz is the Head of Global Business Analytics for the Global Institutional Group at State Street Global Advisors. In her role, Suzy drives analytics strategy to proactively inform the leadership team to build and execute on SSGA’s business strategy. Suzy has been with State Street since 2007. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from Trinity College in Hartford, CT, where she was a member of a two-time College Squash Association National Championship Team. She also holds a Masters in Public Administration and Certificate in Public Finance from the University of Pennsylvania. Suzy was a recipient of SSGA’s Pursuit of Excellence Award, and served as the first female President of Boston’s Tennis & Racquet Club.

Mehul Merchant

Senior Vice President
Brookfield Asset Management

Mehul Merchant is Senior Vice President at Brookfield Asset Management. His team is responsible for supporting global fundraising efforts for private funds from a sales strategy, process and analytics standpoint. He is based in New York and has been at Brookfield for two years.

Best For: Institutional Management; Sales Management; Marketing Management; Technology Leadership; Enablement Open to All


The SME Forum and Ignites Research have partnered numerous times over the years on surveys of the member companies to inform our collective intelligence and spark meaningful discussions. This is the latest such survey: it aims to better understand efforts at using data-driven approaches to sales and marketing on the Institutional side of the asset management business, with some comparisons to the Retail (or advisor-sold) side of the business. Much of this survey updates and continues the SME Forum/Ignites Research done in 2017 on the same subject.

Beverly Dube

Head of Strategy
SalesPage Technologies

Annie Courchene

VP, Business Intelligence
State Street Global Advisors

Justin Bates

MD of Operations, Data and Technology
Swan Global Investments

Kevin Faranetta

Director of Sales Reporting
New York Life Investments

Best For: Data Managers; Reporting & Analytics; Product Management; Sales Management; Marketing Management; Technology Leadership; Enablement Open to All

ETFs continue to gain in popularity as a passive, low-cost, high-performance investment vehicle. While being traded on the secondary market delivers accessibility to investors, it can result in loss of transparency with distribution data that is available with other products. In a climate where data is so important to your strategy, guess work is not acceptable. Learn from your peers on challenges and opportunities with using ETF data to inform their sales, marketing, and client service efforts.

Denise Wypiszenski

President/Co-CEO
4U Platform

Former Smith Barney Wall Streeter-turned-fintech-entrepreneur Denise Wypiszenski is a founder and co-CEO of 4U, the financial industry's first real-time digital marketplace where the currency is engagement. Prior to 4U, Wypiszenski founded an executive search and consulting firm, Orchid Network LLC and The Orchid Alliance, a network of independent financial industry consultants that provide solutions-based services to banking and Wall Street clients. Denise began and spent most of her career with Smith Barney, where she most recently served as COO - Western Division, Director.  She received her B.S. cum laude from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, double majoring in Finance and Banking. 

Arin Epstein

Co-CEO
4U Platform

Arin Epstein is a founder and co-CEO of 4U, the financial industry's first digital marketplace where the currency is engagement.  Arin is a certified engineer by training and a technology strategist, responsible for product strategy and development for 4U. His experience spans high-growth fintech startups and the largest institutions on Wall Street. Prior to 4U, Arin co-founded ICA Strategies, a consulting firm that assists small to mid-sized investment and wealth management firms with growth strategies. He spent over 20 years of his career at Smith Barney, where he was a technology strategist who first ran the business side team responsible for the Advisor Desktop and Client Website; he then spent time on client development and segment marketing tech solutions. Arin received a B.A. in Physics from Reed College and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University.  

 

Gal Steinberg

VP Partnerships & Strategic Alliances
RevenueGrid

Gal leads Revenue Grid’s partnerships and strategic alliance with Salesforce, and has years of experience in the Salesforce ecosystem.

Prior to Revenue Grid Gal held various senior alliances and Channels positions with Infogroup, a data complier and PDFfiller - in document workflow and eSignature space where he worked closely with Salesforce and other CRM providers to generate awareness and monetize the company products through channels and alliances.

Gal has over 15 years of experience in various marketing and product marketing positions, and on a personal note, Gal has 3 boys that currently live in Israel and practices Landscape photography as his hobby.

Andy Ziegler

Andy Ziegler has over 15 years of experience creating, leading, and executing innovative and strategic solutions to complex business challenges.  He has consulted to investment firms on their sales & distribution, marketing, client service, and client reporting, data management, and strategic technology direction. Andy has proven leadership skills and extensive background launching transformational programs resulting in increased client satisfaction and productivity. Additionally, he has experience deploying new business models, formulating effective go-to-market strategies, developing pricing and client segmentation models with attention to budgets, time frames, quality, and business specifications. Andy is effective at storytelling through data, leveraging data-driven analytics and technology to discover business insights, opportunities, and trends.

Nathan  Stevenson

CEO
ForwardLane

Craig  Leib

Head of Sales Enablement
Invesco

 

Chris McIntyre

Managing Direction
Boston Consulting Group

Chris McIntyre is a Partner in the New York office of The Boston Consulting Group.  He is on the global leadership team for Asset Management and leads the firms work on distribution and investment topics.  He spent 10 years working in investment and distribution roles for leading alternative investment managers.

Emily Pachuta

Chief Marketing and Analytics Officer; Americas
Invesco

Emily Pachuta is Chief Marketing and Analytics Officer for the Americas at Invesco. In this role, she sets the overall advanced analytics and marketing strategy that's designed to accelerate business growth by driving client demand and strengthening Invesco’s reputation with US and Canadian wealth management intermediary and institutional clients. She and her team are responsible for integrating distribution and marketing technology platforms, data science, client insights and digital experience to anticipate and respond to clients in real-time and in context.  Ms. Pachuta also serves as an executive leader on the firm’s Global Marketing and Global Digital priorities.

Ms. Pachuta joined Invesco from BlackRock, where she was a managing director and responsible for setting the US retail marketing strategy for BlackRock and iShares. Prior to that role, she served as head of Client Marketing and Investor Insights for UBS, where she oversaw client marketing and digital experience. She has also held a variety of senior marketing positions at Lincoln Financial Group and Merrill Lynch. Ms. Pachuta has been a frequent media spokesperson and conference speaker about investor mindset and behavior, as well as generational trends.

Ms. Pachuta earned a BA degree from Yale University and an MFA from New York University.

David Master

Chief Marketing Officer
Janus Henderson Investors

David Master is the global Chief Marketing Officer of Janus Henderson Investors, a ~$400bn global asset manager headquartered in London, with a significant presence in Denver, Colorado as well as numerous other locations across the globe.  In this role, he is responsible for the full range of the firm’s global marketing activity, including channel/regional marketing, promotion & advertising, content, brand, RFP, product specialists, product marketing, marketing technology, digital, and value-added programs. 

Prior to joining what was Janus Capital Group in September 2014, Mr. Master was Managing Director, Head of U.S. Marketing & Global Marketing Services at Legg Mason.  Mr. Master’s experience also includes executive roles at Prudential Investments, The Chase Manhattan Bank and The Bank of New England. As well, he has extensive experience as a management consultant in the financial services industry, serving with several consultancies and working with numerous asset managers, broker/dealers, insurance companies and banks. 

Mr. Master holds an AB in Economics from Dartmouth College and an MBA from the Yale School of Management. He has more than 30 years of financial industry experience.

Tom Morelli

T. Rowe Price Associates
US Intermediaries
Head of Wealth Managment

Tom Morelli is the head of U.S. Intermediaries–Wealth Management in the Global Distribution department of T. Rowe Price. He is a vice president of T. Rowe Price Investment Services, Inc., T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., and T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.

Tom’s investment experience began in 1996, and he has been with T. Rowe Price since 2003, beginning as a VP Senior National Account Manager in Banks. Prior to this, Tom was a vice president in the Institutional Sales Group at Pioneer Investments, where he helped start the company's third-party distribution effort.

Tom earned a B.A. in political science from Colgate University and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina, Kenan-Flagler Business School. Tom is a Series 6, 7, 24, 63, and 3 registered representative

Best For: Marketing Management; Sales Management; Investment Product Management; Enablement Open to All

Recent market conditions have accelerated moves to embrace digital distribution more readily. In a recent BCG survey, US Asset Management Distribution Leaders said they plan to double both the number of clients and sales using primarily digital capabilities- from 25% on average to 50%, some as high as 75%. For the majority of those distribution leaders, improving digital distribution capabilities is now a ‘top of house priority’. Borrowing from more advanced industries like media, technology and consumer goods, BCG has also been working with Asset Management clients using advanced data and analytics with high ROI results. For example, predicting redemptions with 90% accuracy and increasing internal teams gross sales volume by more than 40%. NextGen Digital Distribution is real, it's achievable and it’s more timely than ever. Join us to learn more about their journeys, how they are navigating these tectonic changes and what their early results are heralding for the future of the industry.