This week, we speak with Christine Hurtsellers, CEO of Voya Investment Management LLC. The firm manages over $250 billion in assets across fixed income, senior loans, equities, multi-asset strategies and solutions, private equity, and real assets. Hurtsellers has been named to numerous “most influential” finance lists, including Barrons top 10 most influential women in wealth management
We discuss how her firm managed its way through the pandemic: The challenge was keeping employees engaged and mentally healthy even as they were feeling detached during the entire year. She wanted to keep employees connected to their colleagues despite the lack of physical proximity. They are still WFH and plan on returning to the office in the Fall. Post pandemic, Voya will continue with a hybrid system of teamwork in the office but WFH for other kinds of work.
Hurtsellers discusses her prior experience as a bond fund manager — she was CIO of Fixed Income at Voya, managed the $650 billion retained portfolio of GSE wraps at Freddie Mac, and PM for securitized assets at Alliance Capital Management — affected her outlook on equities, elevating the preservation of capital as a key part of her investment philosophy. Ultra-low yields are
She explains how raising 5 children, including one on the autism spectrum, has given her insights into the challenges for working mothers. This has helped Voya maintain its position as one of the best places to work in finance.
A list of her favorite books is here; A transcript of our conversation is available here.
You can stream and download our full conversation, including the podcast extras on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Google, Bloomberg, and Acast. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here.
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business next week with Matt Ishbia, CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage. UWM is the number 1 wholesale lender and the number 2 overall mortgage lender in the nation. The 9,000 person firm went public in the biggest SPAC ever (UWMC) in January of this year. Ishbia is also the author of “Running the Corporate Offense: Lessons in Effective Leadership from the Bench to the Boardroom.”
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
East of Eden by John Steinbeck
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
