Retirement Industry People Moves

Art by Subin Yang

Mutual of Omaha Retirement Services Hires Internal Wholesalers

Mutual of Omaha Retirement Services has added two new internal wholesalers, both of whom joined the company’s Retirement Services Sales Desk in July.

Keith Bruneau joins Mutual after having spent more than 20 years in the retirement plan industry in various internal sales roles at several industry-leading organizations. He is located in Quincy, Massachusetts.

Adam Kriz joins Mutual after having worked the past three years with financial advisers in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana on their annuity and mutual fund products. Prior to that, he held sales roles at several well-known organizations. Kriz is located in Lincoln, Nebraska.

“We’re excited to welcome Keith and Adam to the Mutual of Omaha Retirement Services team,” says Brandy Honeyman, internal sales manager for Mutual of Omaha Retirement Services. “Their talents and passion to help set others up for success in retirement will no doubt make an immediate impact.”

Wells Fargo Advisors Selects Head of Independent Advisor Group

John Tyers will join Wells Fargo & Company on July 30 as head of the Independent Advisor group at Wells Fargo Advisors. He will report to Jim Hays, head of Wells Fargo Advisors. In this role, Tyers will oversee the leaders and businesses of Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, First Clearing, and the registered investment adviser (RIA) custody business.

“I am thrilled to bring John on board as I believe we have enormous growth potential in our independent advisor channels,” Hays says. “With John’s past experience leading so many facets of the independent experience throughout his career, we are set to make these already strong independent businesses even more powerful.”

Tyers joins from wealth management fintech, AdvisorEngine, where he was chief growth officer. Previously, he was with Citizens Financial Group leading their private wealth segment.

At both Bear Stearns and Charles Schwab institutional services, Tyers led efforts on custody services and platforms for RIAs, independent broker dealers, single and multi-family offices, and trust companies.

Tyers earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia, completed a fintech program at the University of Oxford’s Said Business School, and also completed an executive strategy and innovation program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School.

Jennison Associates Announces Senior Hires

Jennison Associates has made several senior hires.

Ryan Rampersaud has joined in a newly created role as head of client advisory group for Jennison Associates, effective immediately. Rampersaud leads a 12-person team charged with servicing activities for Jennison’s institutional and sub-advisory clients, related third parties and strategic partners. He reports to Loraine McEvoy, global head of distribution, and is based in New York. Rampersaud has 16 years of relationship management and client service leadership experience. He joins from AQR Capital, where he was head of client solutions. Prior to AQR Capital, he was at BlackRock as global head of client service management.

Earlier in 2021, Jennison welcomed Eran Klein and Elizabeth Murphy as managing directors of institutional business development, based in Chicago and New York, respectively.

Alongside Jennison veteran Andrew Beiger, Klein and Murphy will report to senior Jennison professional MacKenzie Hurd, who is leading the newly formed institutional business development team. The team is responsible for the development and management of relationships with North American institutional asset allocators.

Klein joined from Stone Harbor Investment Partners, where he was a partner and relationship manager. Murphy joined from Franklin Templeton, where she was senior vice president of institutional sales. She previously held roles at BlackRock and Deutsche Bank.

Lauren Godlasky was also hired in early 2021 as a managing director in institutional business development and investor relations. Based in New York and reporting to McEvoy, Godlasky is responsible for investor relations and outreach for the firm’s traditional and alternative solutions in the health care space. Prior to this, Godlasky was head of investor relations at Gotham Asset Management and began her career at Goldman Sachs Asset Management.

“Over the past year, Jennison Associates has engaged in a strategic enhancement of our client support capabilities, with the goal of ensuring we can continue to meet our clients’ evolving needs,” says McEvoy. “Our new colleagues are helping us address client investment and reporting needs, meet demand for Jennison’s investment solutions and provide an in-depth understanding of Jennison’s investment capabilities and insights.”

Curtis Butler, managing director, has also joined Jennison as a client portfolio manager, effective immediately, and is based in New York. Butler is part of a 10-person client portfolio management team. In a newly created role, he will offer clients insight and expertise on Jennison’s growth equity strategies and drive the development of analysis and thought leadership. Butler reports to Peter Clark, head of client portfolio management, product and strategy. Butler has 25 years of industry experience and joins the firm from J.P. Morgan, where he was an investment specialist and client portfolio manager.

In July, Jennison also announced the hire of Guillaume Mascotto as head of environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy.

“We are delighted to attract such talented individuals to our firm,” Jennison CEO Jeffrey Becker says. “Each is highly experienced in their respective fields, and we expect that they will complement our existing high-quality teams. Jennison has placed superior client service at the heart of our business for more than 50 years, and these hires reflect our ongoing commitment to client service well into the future.”

U.S. Institutional Services Head Joins Franklin Templeton

Franklin Templeton has appointed Mike Foley as head of U.S. institutional services, responsible for providing leadership, innovative strategic direction and driving growth for U.S. institutional distribution.

He will oversee the firm’s U.S. institutional direct sales, consultant relations and relationship management teams. Foley will join the firm on September 7. He will be based in Franklin Templeton’s New York City office and report to Jeff Masom, head of U.S. distribution for the firm.

“Since our acquisition of Legg Mason just over a year ago, Franklin Templeton has experienced a transformative period of growth and opportunity. We are thrilled for Mike to join our team as we continue to build upon the firm’s combined strengths in delivering our broad range of investment capabilities to U.S. institutional clients,” says Masom. “Mike’s vision, leadership and his extensive experience in serving clients across market cycles will be instrumental in our efforts to continue to deliver the exemplary service our clients expect and rely on.”

In his new role, Foley will develop the firm’s strategy for acquiring new business and retaining existing client assets across the U.S. institutional and consultant channels. He will work to identify areas for product development and new market opportunities for Franklin Templeton strategies. Foley will also serve as a liaison to institutional distribution leaders at the firm’s independent specialist investment managers.

“Following the acquisition, the combined footprint of the organization and commitment to innovation creates great potential to expand on a well-established institutional business,” says Foley. “I look forward to working with a very talented team of experienced colleagues to drive growth strategically and deliver the best outcomes for Franklin Templeton’s broad array of institutional clients and consultants.”

Foley joins Franklin Templeton from Guggenheim Investments, where he led the institutional client group for the Americas and Europe. Prior to that he was with BlackRock, where he led its U.S. pensions group after heading its U.S. and Canada institutional consultant relations team. He previously held distribution leadership roles at AllianceBernstein.

Foley holds a bachelor of science degree, with honors, in economics and engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point and a master’s in business administration from Harvard Business School. He has also served in the United States Army.

Amundi US Appoints Fixed Income Head

Amundi US has appointed Jonathan Duensing, CFA as senior managing director and head of Fixed Income, U.S. Duensing has been a senior member of the U.S. investment team for 25 years, originally joining Smith Breeden Associates (today Amundi US) in 1996. Most recently, he served as managing director, director of Investment Grade Corporates, and portfolio manager, a role he held since 2017.

“Jonathan has played a key role in helping build our fixed income organization and advising on new products and our strategic direction,” says Ken Taubes, chief investment officer, US. With 28 years of investment experience, he is also a skilled portfolio manager with a broad base of investment knowledge across fixed income markets.”

Domini Hires Director of Engagement

Mary Beth Gallagher has joined Domini as director of engagement.

Gallagher, an attorney and former executive director of a non-profit organization representing institutional investors, has been defending social justice and human rights issues for most of her professional career.

Gallagher will be responsible for spearheading Domini’s engagement efforts. She will continue to build on Domini’s strategic plans for engaging corporations in areas such as worker’s rights in the supply chain, climate change mitigation, health and racial justice, as well as develop new initiatives and campaigns.

In her last role as executive director, Gallagher represented institutional investors in stewardship and shareholder advocacy with corporations to encourage more disclosure and responsible business practices to advance systemic change. She graduated from American University, Washington College of Law in 2008 and is a Member of the New York Bar, admitted November 2009.

Fiduciary Trust Adds Trust Counsel in Northern California

Fiduciary Trust International, a global wealth manager and wholly owned subsidiary of Franklin Templeton, announced that David Oh has joined the firm as trust counsel serving clients in Northern California. He works out of the organization’s office in San Mateo.

“David is highly regarded within the Bay Area as a trusted specialist in estate planning, trust, probate, and taxation law,” says Gene Todd, executive vice president for business development at Fiduciary Trust International, and the firm’s regional managing director for Northern California. “As we continue to build up our team in Northern California to support clients during today’s ever-changing market environment, David’s expertise will help us strengthen the personalized tax and estate planning strategies we craft for individuals and their families, as well as endowments and foundations.”

Oh joined Fiduciary Trust International from Charles Schwab & Co., where he served as a director of Tax, Trusts and Estates, and focused on developing customized tax planning, estate planning, business succession, and retirement planning solutions for high-net-worth clients. He previously worked as a member of the Personal Financial Services group for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as well as an attorney in private practice.

“With changes to tax legislation at the federal and state levels on the horizon, clients need to have tax law experts on their side who can work with them to identify tax-efficient strategies for growing, preserving, and transferring their wealth across generations, while achieving their financial and philanthropic goals,” says Oh. “Fiduciary Trust International has established itself as a collaborative tax and estate planning advisor and resource across the country, including Northern California. I look forward to working with my new colleagues to review and implement tax and wealth management approaches for meeting the evolving, complex needs of our clients.”

Oh received his master of laws in taxation from the Boston University School of Law, and holds a juris doctor with a concentration in taxation law from the University of the Pacific. He also graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a bachelor of arts in legal studies and a minor in Asian-American studies.