NextGen Leaders Point to Career Growth, Peer Recognition

Every year since 2012, CIO has aimed to identify asset allocators who could one day become CIOs themselves. The NextGen, as they are now called, and the 40 under 40s before that, are regarded as rising stars among investment professionals.

NextGen candidates are nominated either by their CIO or by themselves, with their CIO’s endorsement. Since the inception of the program, more than 125 individuals have been named to the NextGen list, and even more were named to the earlier 40 under 40 list.

NextGen awardees include deputy CIOs, investment directors, portfolio managers and other senior investment professionals across asset classes at some of the leading endowments and foundations, public and corporate pensions, insurance funds, sovereign wealth funds, and other institutional allocator organizations.

Many NextGen point to the program as having helped them advance in in their careers—they point to increased recognition by their peers and their boards, as well as validation of their skills and experience.

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April Wilcox, a senior investment director at the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, is one of three NextGen who has received the recognition while at the fund, including June Kim and Kirsty Jenkinson. When named to the 2022 NextGen class, Wilcox was an investment director at the educators’ fund, and she was promoted to senior investment director earlier this year.

“The NextGen program provided a valuable platform to expand my professional network and connect with peers who are also passionate about innovation in the investment field,” Wilcox says. “The recognition validated my drive to pursue career advancement, embracing new challenges with confidence.”

Wilcox notes that the recognition helped reinforce colleagues’ confidence in her role and the work the CalSTRS team does as fiduciaries: “It demonstrates that leadership is a journey with diverse paths, not a fixed career trajectory.”

“The NextGen honor gradually expanded my network, increased visibility and led to more industry engagement,” Wilcox says.

Alex Ambroz, founder and CEO of the Allocator Training Institute, was named to the NextGen class of 2021. Shortly after, he left his role as a director in the Cleveland Clinic’s investment office to move to Ireland, eventually becoming CIO of European asset manager Aberdeen Group.

“When I was [named] to the list, I always thought, ‘Yeah that’s my goal, to be the next CIO somewhere, and I never thought it would be Ireland,’” Ambroz says.

After a few years at Aberdeen, Ambroz found a passion for teaching about investing, leading him to form the Allocator Training Institute, which provides educational resources for emerging asset allocators. “I realized, after a couple of years, that while I loved investing, something I loved a lot more was teaching investing,” Ambroz says.

Cecelia Chen, director of investments at the Carnegie Corp. of New York and a member of the NextGen class of 2020, says the acknowledgment helped her grow into her current role. Chen previously was a senior investment officer at the Seattle City Employees’ Retirement System.

“Just as others once advocated for me, I’ve made it a priority to champion and nominate talented professionals from pensions and other institutions whose contributions often go unseen but are essential to our industry’s success,” Chen says.

Countless NextGen have risen to become CIOs, including:

Jon-Michael Consalvo (2022), now CIO of the Carnegie Corp. of New York;

Sriram Lakshminarayanan (2019), now CIO of the Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement System;

Jeffrey Mindlin (2019), now CIO of ASU Enterprise Partners;

David Okamoto (2023), now CIO of the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund;

Sharcus Steen (2021), now CIO of the University System of Maryland Foundation;

Richelle Sugiyama (2022), now CIO of the Public Employee Retirement System of Idaho; and

Kelli Washington (2019), now CIO of The California Endowment.

June Kim, a 2019 NextGen at CalSTRS, this month was named deputy CIO for public markets at the California Public Employees’ Retirement System. Bryan Moore, a 2023 NextGen as a deputy CIO, was named interim CIO of the South Carolina Retirement System in August.

Liz Fernando, a member of the NextGen class of 2022 when she was deputy CIO of the U.K.’s National Employment Savings Trust, became Nest’s CIO in 2023. Fernando notes the valuable network of peers the NextGen program has provided.

“The NextGen recognition provided valuable exposure to a network of forward-thinking peers and ideas that continue to share our approach to delivering strong, positive member outcomes,” Fernando told CIO.

Among the 2017 class of what was then called the Top 40 Under 40 were Yup Kim, now CIO of the Texas Municipal Retirement System; Kristin Varela, now CIO at the Hawaii Employees’ Retirement System; and Carlos Rangel, now CIO at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.