Judges

Nicholas Anderson is a portfolio manager for Thornburg Investment Management. He joined the firm in 2016 as an equity research analyst, was promoted to senior equity research analyst in 2020, an associate portfolio manager in early 2021, and portfolio manager in late 2021.

Nick holds an MBA with honors from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a BA with honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a Robertson Scholar. Prior to joining Thornburg, Nick worked for Prudential plc and Eastspring Investments in Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Singapore. He is a CFA charterholder.

Maury Apple is a Managing Director responsible for the identification and underwriting of new investments and surveillance of H/2’s portfolio, with a focus on special situations, liquid markets and corporate credits.  Mr. Apple is also one of the partners primarily responsible for H/2’s risk management process.  Mr. Apple’s 21 years of experience have included direct experience with complex capital structures, restructurings, mergers, divestitures and distressed transactions.  Mr. Apple’s experience also includes corporate roles in strategic planning, financial analysis, corporate development and operations.  Prior to joining H/2, Mr. Apple was a Vice President in the Restructuring and Recapitalization Group for Gleacher & Company and its predecessors.  Mr. Apple holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in business administration from the Wharton School, with a focus in accounting and information systems.

Nancy Aversa, CFA, partner, is a research analyst at William Blair Investment Management. She focuses on U.S. large-cap consumer companies. Before joining William Blair in 2015, Nancy worked in the research department and on the portfolio teams of Federated Investors for 10 years. During her time at Federated, Nancy covered a broad range of U.S. consumer cyclicals and consumer staples equities for both long-only and short-only portfolio strategies. Before that, she was a consumer research analyst with Victory Capital Management. Nancy started her career in investment banking with McDonald Investments. She is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society Chicago. Nancy received a B.Com. from the University of Windsor and an M.B.A. from the University of Windsor.

Madina Baikadamova is an Analyst with the Health Care Research Team. She is responsible for fundamental research on companies in the U.S. medical distribution sector. Before joining Brandes, Ms. Baikadamova was a Senior Analyst at Verno Capital, a Moscow-based hedge fund. Ms. Baikadamova earned her MBA at Columbia University’s Columbia Business School, her MA in economics from the New Economic School in Moscow and her BS in information technology from Bauman Moscow State Technical University. She is fluent in Kazakh and Russian. Her experience began in 2011 and she joined Brandes Investment Partners in 2018.

Mr. Balkin has over 35 years of capital market experience working with both public and private companies and is currently a Portfolio Manager at Rail-Splitter Capital Management, a Chicago-based asset management firm specializing in small cap stocks. He recently served as the Chief Executive Officer and a Director of a public company called Foresight Acquisition Corporation, where he led the merger with a $2.2 billion-dollar private health care company.

Prior to Foresight, Mr. Balkin was a partner and formerly the co-Manager of the William Blair Small Institutional portfolio and the William Blair Small Cap Growth Fund, which he and his partners started in 1999. He and his team managed nearly $1.8 billion dollars in total assets and were named among the top small cap funds multiple times by publications such as Barrons, Morningstar, Lipper, and Institutional Investor Magazine. Mr. Balkin was also a frequent guest on CNBC and Bloomberg discussing his views on small cap stocks.

From 2005 to 2008, Mr. Balkin was a partner at Magnetar Capital, LLC, a multi-strategy hedge fund located in Evanston, Illinois. While at Magnetar, Mr. Balkin was the Portfolio Manager in charge of the small cap long-short strategy and was also the Chief Investment Officer of Magnetar Investment Management, a wholly owned asset management subsidiary of Magnetar Capital. He rejoined William Blair & Company in 2008. He originally joined William Blair in 1990, working in the sell-side institutional research sales group, specializing in small cap growth companies.

Prior to joining William Blair, he was the co-founder of Cityview Associates, Inc., a real estate firm specializing in “value-added” real estate transactions. Prior to starting Cityview Associates, Mr. Balkin had various roles at First Chicago and Bankers Trust. In addition to his work with William Blair, Mr. Balkin has helped dozens of small companies grow as an angel investor, mentor, and board member. He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Performance Health Systems, LLC and is a member of the board of directors of Nasdaq-based Horizon Technology Finance Corporation “HRZN”. Mr. Balkin is also an advisor to several other public companies.

Mr. Balkin is active in many charities and is on the board of the Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces, Good Sports and is a major advocate and fund raiser for Cystic Fibrosis and the Illinois Holocaust Museum. Mr. Balkin graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics from Northwestern University, where he was an all-Big Ten player and two-year Captain of the team.

William Benton, CFA, CPA, partner, is a global equity research analyst and is co-director of research for the global equity team. He covers large-cap consumer/communication services companies. Previously, Benton covered mid- and large-cap technology, media, and communication services companies. Before joining William Blair Investment Management in 2007, he was a technology research analyst with the firm’s sell-side research group for 10 years. In this position, Benton was twice named “Best on the Street” in The Wall Street Journal’s annual analyst survey. Before joining William Blair in 1997, he worked at SBC Warburg, U.S. Cellular, May Company, and Monsanto. Benton is a member of the CFA Society Chicago and holds the CMA® designation. He received a B.S. in finance from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and an M.B.A. from Dartmouth College’s Amos Tuck School of Business Administration, where he was a Tuck Scholar.

Chris Benway is Associate Director of Research at Janus Henderson Investors, a position he has held since 2023. He also serves as a Research Analyst, since 2018, and is team leader of the Industrials & Materials Sector Research Team. Prior to Janus Henderson, he was a research analyst at Kayne Anderson Rudnick from 2014. Before that, he was a research associate with Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management from 2012 and an equity analyst with Palisades Investment Partners from 2010. Chris began his career with Liberty Mutual Group as a senior underwriter.

Chris earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Colorado – Boulder, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa. He earned his MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and has 14 years of financial industry experience.

Anthony Bevacqua is a Senior Associate in Brookfield’s Infrastructure Group, where he focuses on structured equity and debt investments. Prior to joining Brookfield in 2022, Mr. Bevacqua worked in the power, utilities, and infrastructure investment banking group at Mizuho Securities. Previously, Mr. Bevacqua held various roles at Blackstone and Deloitte.

Mr. Bevacqua holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Science in Accounting degrees from James Madison University and is a Certified Public Accountant in New York.

Karl W. Brewer, CFA, is the founder of Cervecero Investments.  Prior to that, Karl was principal, partner, and portfolio manager of William Blair Investment Management. He joined the firm in 1996 as an analyst and became a portfolio manager in 1999. Before joining William Blair, Brewer spent six years in the mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance departments at Lehman Brothers. He is a CFA® charterholder. Brewer received a B.A. in economics from Washington and Lee University in 1988 and an M.B.A in finance, accounting, marketing, and management and strategy from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Nathan is a Senior Portfolio Manager for Macquarie Asset Management’s (MAM’s) Ivy Mid Cap Equities Team, where he is responsible for making day-to-day investment decisions for the team’s strategy.

Nathan joined Ivy Investments as an Investment Analyst and was appointed Assistant Portfolio Manager in 2011 and Portfolio Manager in 2014.

Nathan earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance (Honors) from the University of Iowa and a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in finance and accounting from Vanderbilt University. Nathan holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation.

Ryan Burgess, CFA, joined Durable Capital Partners as an investment analyst in 2019. He has 17 years of investment experience. Burgess came to Durable from T. Rowe Price Group, Inc., where he was vice president and portfolio manager of the smaller companies equity strategy, an institutional stock portfolio focused on U.S. small- and midcap stocks. Before that, he was a portfolio manager at SouthTrust Bank and later, a portfolio manager at Evergreen Asset Management. Burgess is a CFA® charterholder. He received a B.S. in business from the University of Alabama and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Brad joined Five Points Capital in 2008, and worked previously at McColl Partners (now Deloitte Corporate Finance), and Bank of America Corporation.  Outside of work he enjoys spending time with his wife and four children, serving in his church and community, and exploring the beaches and mountains of North Carolina. Given his weekend schedule typically includes cheering his kids at swim meets or dance competitions, he has postponed any realistic hopes of developing his golf game or scheduling fishing trips. Brad is a lifelong fan of the Atlanta Braves and will almost never turn down an opportunity to watch a baseball game. He also enjoys supporting the UNC Tar Heels, especially when they take on any of their in-state rivals.

Brad received his BS in business administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Morehead Scholar).  Portfolio Expereince includes; ARC Health, Avantus, Bevolution, Blake & Pendleton, Executive Information Systems, Fertility Specialists Network, Gen4 Dental Partners, Glo Skin Beauty, The Industrial Service Group, Raptor Scientific, SignatureMD, ToxStrategies, Westwood Laboratories.

J. Brian Campbell, CFA, is a co-lead portfolio manager for the small-cap, small-mid cap, midcap, and all-cap 25 strategies and a member of The London Company’s investment team. Campbell has more than 15 years of industry experience, beginning his career in 2000 as an equity analyst at INVESCO-National Asset Management. Before joining The London Company, Campbell spent six years as a portfolio manager and director of research at Hilliard Lyons Capital Management He is a CFA® charterholder and a member of the CFA Society Virginia. Campbell received a B.B.A. in finance, with honors, from the University of Kentucky, and an M.B.A. from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.

Melissa Chadwick-Dunn is a portfolio manager for RS Investments and member of the RS Growth team. RS Investments was acquired by Victory Capital in July 2016 and is a Victory Capital investment franchise.

Ms. Chadwick-Dunn began her investment career in 1992 and joined the RS Growth team in 2001. She has been a co-portfolio manager and analyst for the Victory RS Small Cap Growth Fund and Victory RS Select Growth Fund since 2007 and subsequently assumed co-portfolio manager roles for several additional RS growth funds. Previously, she was an equity analyst at Putnam Investments covering international small-cap stocks.

Ms. Chadwick-Dunn holds a B.A. in economics and an M.A. in international relations from the University of Chicago and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Steve Cheng is a director at Liberty Mutual Investments. He works within the global private markets group and leads distressed portfolio activities. He has 12 years of investment industry experience in public and private markets with a focus on credit. Previously, he worked at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Nomura Securities International, Varde Partners, and Global Bankers Insurance Group. He also has experience in the actuarial pension space with predecessor firms of Willis Towers Watson. He received a B.A. from Duke University and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Alan R. Christensen is the president and head of investment risk at Fayez Sarofim & Co. He is a member of Fayez Sarofim & Co.’s executive and investment committees and is on the board of Sarofim Trust Company. Christensen is also a co-manager of the mutual funds that Fayez Sarofim & Co. manages for The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation and a portfolio manager for a variety of institutional and high-net-worth clients. Additionally, he serves as a director of Sarofim Irish Collective Asset Management Vehicle (ICAV). Over the years, Christensen’s areas of research responsibility have included companies in the technology and industrials sectors. Before joining Fayez Sarofim & Co. in 2005, Christensen was a director at Alvarez & Marsal and a senior manager in capital markets at Accenture. He received at B.A. in economics and history from Washington & Lee University, graduating cum laude, and an M.B.A with distinction from Cornell University. Additionally, Christensen is a graduate of the Center for Houston’s Future Leadership Forum and is a member of YPO (Young President’s Organization). He previously served on the boards of Annunciation Orthodox School, Palmer Memorial Endowment Fund, and the Tompkins County Community Foundation.

Jon K. Christensen, CFA is a Portfolio Manager and a Senior Research Analyst with primary research responsibilities for the small and mid-capitalization healthcare and industrials sectors.  Before joining Kayne Anderson Rudnick in

2001, Mr. Christensen was a Portfolio Manager and Senior Research Analyst for Doheny Asset Management and has approximately 28 years of equity research experience. He earned a B.S. in Mathematics/Applied Science from the University of California, Los Angeles, and an M.B.A. from the California State University, Long Beach. Mr. Christensen is a Chartered Financial Analyst charterholder.

Joseph’s primary responsibilities include credit analysis of portfolio and non-portfolio companies, idea generation, and investment recommendations. Prior to joining Silverback in 2017, Joe was a Managing Director and Senior Research Analyst at Southpaw Asset Management where he invested primarily in stressed and distressed credit with additional experience in equity and equity-linked securities including post-reorg equity, convertible debt/preferred stock, and options.

Before joining Southpaw, Joe was an Associate Director in the High Yield Research Group at UBS where he covered autos and industrials. He also held positions in the Risk Management divisions of Deutsche Bank and UBS Securities and worked as an analyst at Group G Capital, a market-neutral long/short credit fund.

Joe graduated from the Carroll School of Management at Boston College with a BS in Economics in 1999 and an MBA from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University in 2005. He also studied for one year at the London School of Economics. Joe has been a Chartered Financial Analyst since 2008.

Chad Cleaver is the lead portfolio manager for the Emerging Markets Small Cap Equity strategy and a portfolio manager for the Emerging Markets Growth strategy. His idea generation, security selection, portfolio construction, and risk management responsibilities, and macro-level analysis, are leveraged across the two strategies managed by the Driehaus Emerging Markets Team.

Mr. Cleaver began his career with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and joined Driehaus Capital Management in 2004. He received his A.B. in economics from Wabash College in 2000 and his M.B.A. from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2004. Mr. Cleaver is a CFA charterholder.

As a credit analyst, Kira is responsible for coverage of the global investment-grade consumer, food, beverage, and tobacco sectors as well as the US investment-grade retail sector. She performs fundamental credit analysis and formulates investment recommendations on corporate bond issuers. She is a member of a team that manages the Fixed Income Credit Research portfolios.

Prior to joining Wellington Management in July of 2018, Kira was a credit analyst for Putnam Investments in Boston, where she was responsible for the consumer, retail, food, beverage, and tobacco sectors across investment-grade, high-yield, and leveraged loans (2012 – 2018). She started her career as a financial advisor for Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (2007 – 2010).

Kira earned both her MBA (2012) and her BS in applied economics and management from Cornell University (2007). Additionally, she holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute.

Mark Corigliano founded Corigliano Investment Advisers and manages the Energy Security Fund, a long/short equity fund in the oil & gas and energy transition sectors. He was employed at DUMAC, Inc., the investment management company of Duke University, from 2014 to 2022. In 2017, he was named Head of the Private Investments Team, a group of approximately eight investment professionals with responsibility for roughly half of DUMAC’s capital. Prior to this appointment, he co-led the Public Securities Team, which oversees DUMAC’s investments in equities, hedge funds, and commodities. He also served as an Adjunct Professor at the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He instructed a class on Alternative Energy and lectured on commodity investing and alternative investments.

In 2009, Mr. Corigliano founded Belltower Advisors LLC, a $200 million investment management firm that utilized a long/short equity strategy to generate superior risk-adjusted returns in the energy, mining, and materials sectors. Prior to founding Belltower Advisors, he invested in a similar fashion with New York-based Proxima Alfa Investments. Mr. Corigliano initiated his investment career at DUMAC where he managed a $200 million portfolio of private equity investments in the natural resources sector and implemented a unique and successful commodity futures trading program. He started his career with Schlumberger, the world’s largest oil service company, where he performed engineering services in the Gulf of Mexico for major exploration and production companies. Mr. Corigliano received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University and an M.B.A. (beta gamma sigma) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is also a CFA charter holder.

Jim is one of the founding partners of Stone Harbor Investment Partners and is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. In his role as CIO and Head of Emerging Markets Debt at Stone Harbor, Jim heads a team that manages emerging markets and global high yield portfolios for institutions including public and private pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, and insurance companies globally. Prior to helping found Stone Harbor in 2006, Jim served as a Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager for Emerging Markets Debt, and as a member of the Investment Policy Committee at Citigroup Asset Management. He held similar positions at Salomon Brothers, which he joined in 1992, prior to it being purchased by Citigroup in 1998. Jim began his career as a fixed-income Trading Associate at Lehman Brothers in 1989. He is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society New York. Jim attained a BS in Finance from the University of Vermont in 1989 and serves on the Board of Advisors of the Grossman School of Business.

Catherine P. Crain is a vice president at Fayez Sarofim & Co. and co-portfolio manager of the mutual funds that Fayez Sarofim & Co. manages for The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. Crain also serves as a portfolio manager for a variety of institutional and high-net-worth clients. Crain joined the firm in 1993 in equity research. Over the years, her areas of research responsibility have included transportation, media and entertainment, and consumer products. Before joining Fayez Sarofim & Co., Crain was a financial analyst in the investment banking division at Merrill Lynch & Co. She received a B.A. with highest honors in the Plan II Liberal Arts Honors Program at the University of Texas at Austin, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Crain received an M.B.A. from the University of Texas. She is a life member of the University of Texas’s McCombs School of Business advisory council and has also served on the board of trustees for The Joy School and Presbyterian School of Houston.

Anil Daka, CFA, is a global equity research analyst. He covers midcap industrial companies. Before joining the firm in 2011, Anil was an equity analyst at Morningstar, where he was responsible for equity research coverage in the
global industrials sector. He is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society Chicago. He received a B.Tech. in metallurgical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology and an M.B.A. from the University of North
Carolina.

Andrew Davis is senior vice president of strategy for Cox Enterprises. He oversees the strategic planning, new venture development, and sustainability teams.

Prior to joining Cox, Davis spent nearly 12 years with T. Rowe Price in the U.S. Equity Division. As an investment analyst at T. Rowe, he researched and managed public company investments in the North American transportation industry. During his last three years at T. Rowe, Davis was the Director of Private Investments, managing the firm’s $20B private venture investment portfolio. His responsibilities included management of sourcing, investment diligence, ongoing analysis, and external relationships.

Prior to his career as an investor, Davis spent seven years at Deloitte & Touche LLP where he was a manager in the business valuation services group. There he was responsible for client projects related to acquisition accounting, tax valuations, and bankruptcy reorganizations.

Davis has an MBA in Economics and Finance from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a bachelor’s degree from Berry College in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance

Dan Draper (MBA ’99) is Chief Executive Officer at S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P OJI), responsible for all aspects of the index business globally. S&P OJI is the world’s leading index provider and offers investment professionals around the world an array of products from core indices such as the S&P 500® to broad comprehensive benchmarks.

Before joining S&P OJI, Mr. Draper held asset management, wealth management, and investment banking leadership positions in New York, London, Hong Kong, and Jakarta with Invesco, Credit Suisse Asset Management, Lyxor Asset Management, iShares/Barclays Global Investors, Goldman Sachs, UBS Wealth Management, and Salomon Brothers.

Mr. Draper earned an MBA from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Bachelor of Arts in economics from the College of William and Mary in Virginia. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) charterholder and holds the Chartered Market Technician®, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, Financial Risk Manager, Certified Financial Planner®, and Chartered Financial Consultant® designations.

Mr. Draper is the Chairperson for the Index Industry Association and Trustee of the Committee for Economic Development (CED) of The Conference Board. He is a chartered director and fellow at the Institute of Directors in the UK and a board leadership fellow at the National Association of Corporate Directors in the U.S. In addition, he is a fellow of the 2017 class of the Aspen Institute Finance Leaders Fellowship and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.
Mr. Draper serves as a board director for the Lyric Opera of Chicago and Delta Dental of Virginia. He is a member of The Board of Advisors, Center for Excellence in Investment Management at UNC Kenan­Flagler Business School, as well as The Board of Advisors of the Boehly Center at the Mason School of the College of William & Mary.

Mr. Draper is executive sponsor of Black Organization for Leadership & Development (BOLD), an S&P Global people resource group, and recipient of the Male Ambassador Award from Women in Derivatives (WIND) in 2022.

Tyler Dunaway, CFA, is an investment research analyst for American Century Investments, a premier investment manager based in Kansas City, Missouri. In this role, Dunaway provides fundamental research and equity analysis for the U.S. small-cap value and small-cap income strategies. Previously, he served as an investment research analyst supporting investment teams within the firm’s global growth-U.S. discipline. Before joining American Century Investments in 2019, Dunaway was a financial advisor for Morgan Stanley. He has worked in the industry since 2014. Dunaway is a CFA® charterholder and a member of the CFA Institute. He received a B.A. in business and economics from the University of Kentucky and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

As an equity research analyst on the Small Cap Opportunities Team, Paul conducts fundamental analysis on small-cap investments, focusing on the industrial, materials, energy, and utilities sectors. His research supports the investment decision making for a range of portfolios managed for clients of the firm. He works in our Boston office.

Prior to joining the firm in 2016, Paul was a partner at Monarch Partners Asset Management (2010 – 2016), where he was a small-/mid-cap analyst covering industrials, materials, and energy and a co-portfolio manager of Monarch Partners’ micro-cap value strategy. Before that, he served as a small-cap generalist on the small-cap value team at Chartwell Investment Partners (2006 – 2010) and as a research associate at Federated Investors (2003 – 2006).

Paul earned his BS in finance and economics with Honors from Carnegie Mellon University (2003). Additionally, he holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society Boston.

Peter Fauler, CFA, is a managing director and senior research analyst at Nuveen. In this role, he serves as a member of the leveraged finance team and is responsible for covering the services sectors. Previously, Fauler covered the automotive, metals and mining, transportation, aerospace and defense, non-bank financials, and industrials sectors. Before joining the leveraged finance team, he worked in structured finance and investment-grade research for global public fixed income. Before that, Fauler served in Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America’s private markets, where he invested in corporate private placements, lease finance, and private equity across a variety of industries. Fauler has 18 years of experience in the financial services industry and is a member of the CFA Institute and the North Carolina Society of Security Analysts. He received a B.S. in business administration and economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.S. in mathematical finance from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Jason Fernandez, is a senior investment associate at Ubiquity Management, which he joined in 2022, focused on private investments across digital infrastructure. Before joining Ubiquity, Jason worked as an investment banker at Truist and research analyst at Bank of America across equity and high yield securities where he covered digital and energy infrastructure. Jason received a B.S. from the University of Maryland and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, where he was a member of the investing program.

Mitchell Forss is a global equity research analyst at Principal Asset Management. He focuses on mid- and large-cap technology companies after previously covering financials. Forss joined Principal Asset Management in 2022 as an analyst. He received a B.A. in history from the University of St. Thomas and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Jennifer L. Foster is Co-Chief Investment Officer at Chilton Investment Company, Inc. where she has worked for 26 years. Jennifer’s previous roles at Chilton include equity analyst, Director of Research, and Portfolio Manager. During her tenure at Chilton, Jennifer has served on the Risk Committee, the Responsible Investment Committee, the Executive Committee, and the Board of Directors.

Prior to Chilton, Jennifer worked at GE Capital as part of GE’s Financial Management Training program.  She graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in English from Boston College and earned an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School. She currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Center for Excellence in Investment Management at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School,   on the Board of Trustees at St. Luke’s School in New Canaan, CT, and as a trustee for the Mather Homestead Foundation in Darien, CT. Jennifer is married and has three grown sons.

Jonathan Fox, CFA, is a portfolio manager for the Select Equity team at Allspring Global Investments. He joined Allspring from its predecessor firm, Wells Fargo Asset Management (WFAM). Before that, Fox served as an associate portfolio manager with the team and earlier, as a research analyst. Previously, he worked at William Blair as an equity research summer analyst, and served as an investment banking associate at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. Fox began his investment industry career in 2007. He is a CFA® charterholder and is a member of CFA Society Chicago. Fox received a B.A. in public policy studies and an M.S. in business administration, with an emphasis in corporate and investment finance, from Duke University.

Jack Fraser co-founded Philadelphia-based Seamark Capital in 2000 and for the past 18 years has co-managed the Seamark Fund, a long/short public equities investment partnership focused on growth industries. From 1996 to 2000, Fraser was a team leader and officer at Friess Associates and the Brandywine Funds equity mutual funds. From 1985 to 1996, he was vice president of institutional equities at Credit Suisse First Boston. From 1983 to 1985, he worked at Merrill Lynch Capital Markets, Institutional Equities. Fraser received a B.S.B.A in economics from Bowling Green State University in 1981 and an M.B.A. from The Ohio State University in 1983.

Paul Galat is a research analyst at William Blair Investment Management. In this role, he focuses on U.S. mid-cap industrials companies. Before joining the firm as a research analyst in 2019, he was the managing partner and founder of PDG Capital for three years. Before that, he was a managing director at Advisory Research, Inc. for four years. Paul received a B.S. in finance (with an emphasis on accounting) from Miami University and an M.B.A. (with an emphasis on finance) from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.

Jeffrey Germain, CFA, is director of the investments group at Brandes Investment Partners. In this role, he has analyst responsibilities on the basic materials research team and is a member of the international large-cap investment committee. He joined Brandes Investment Partners in 2001 and is a limited partner of the firm’s parent company. Previously, he was a financial analyst with Harcourt and CFO of Golf Destinations. Germain received a B.S.B.A. with a concentration in finance from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Robert joined Silverback in April 2021 and leads Business Development and Investor Relations. Prior to joining Silverback, he was an Account Executive at SAS Institute, where he advised executives in asset management and banking on software and emerging technology solutions to optimize their data analytics processes. Robert founded the firm MaRa Associates Consulting in 2016, where he worked with emerging hedge funds, research providers and FinTech companies to establish and optimize their market engagement and business development practices.

Before founding MaRa Associates, he was the Head of Investor Relations at Hathersage Capital Management, a global macro hedge fund. Robert started his career as an Institutional Trading Analyst with Best Execution Trading Service in 1998. He then held various positions at Lazard Asset Management, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, and New York Life Investment Management, covering corporate pensions, endowments, and foundation clients.

Robert graduated from Duke University with a dual degree in Political Science and History in 1998, and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business in 2008.

Dennis C. Greenway II, CFA, is a senior analyst and portfolio manager on the Franklin Street Partners equity team. Before joining Franklin Street Partners in 2015, he gained extensive investment experience in research and portfolio management positions with Belltower Advisors, Proxima Alfa Investments, PENN Capital Management, and Wachovia Securities. Greenway is a CFA® charterholder. he received a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1999 and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School in 2006.

Neil Guha is a Senior Research Analyst at Balyasny Asset Management, focused on investing in recently public companies across the fintech/payments, internet / vertical SaaS, financials and energy/renewables sectors. BAM’s ECM team invests both at the time of an IPO or equity offering as well as afterwards, and they operate as a generalist L/S team.

Neil joined BAM in April 2021 from Morgan Stanley, where he was an Executive Director in the ECM group and responsible for covering the firm’s Financials/Fintech clients. Prior to that role, Neil was Co-Head of Morgan Stanley’s Natural Resources ECM group.

Neil began his career at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in various capital markets and investment banking roles, with a particular focus on banks and diversified financials

Neil holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering and Economics from the University of Virginia.

Charles Harris is the director of research and senior research analyst for industrials at ClearBridge Investments, where he leads the firm’s team of sector research analysts. He has 33 years of investment industry experience. He joined ClearBridge Investments in 2011, and has a wide range of experience, having worked as a senior equity analyst at SAC Capital, a managing director at EMS Capital/M. Safra & Co., a partner at Saranac Capital Management, a director at Salomon Brothers Asset Management, a director at INVESCO, a managing director at CIBC World Markets, and an associate research director at Value Line. Harris received a B.A. in political science from Vassar College.

Ryan Hill is an equity analyst for the Growth Equity Strategies Team at Loomis, Sayles & Company covering healthcare companies. He joined Loomis Sayles in 2014 after completing the MBA program at Duke University, during which time he interned for William Blair & Company in Chicago as an equity research analyst. Previously, Ryan was a mechanical engineer at Waters Corporation for three years where he was a named inventor on four patents and a design engineer/technologist at GE Aviation for two years. He earned a BS and an MS in mechanical engineering from Boston University. Ryan is also a member of CFA Society Boston.

Joseph Hintz, CFA®, is an Assistant Portfolio Manager for Royce Investment Partners, where he works on the portfolios that use the firm’s Small-Cap Quality Value Strategy.

Prior to joining the firm in 2021, Mr. Hintz was a Senior Investment Analyst (2021) at American Century Investments, as well as an Investment Analyst (2015-2021) and an Investment Analyst Summer Associate (2014). A classical violinist, he was previously a Violin Fellow at New World Symphony (2007-2010) and has performed in orchestras, chamber ensembles, and festivals across the U.S., Europe, and Japan. He also participated as an orchestra member on multiple recordings, including one that won multiple Grammy awards.

Mr. Hintz has an MBA from Johnson at Cornell University, a Master of Music from the University of Michigan, and a Bachelor of Music from Oberlin Conservatory of Music. He is a CFA® charter holder and a member of the CFA Institute.

Brian Hogan (MBA ’90) is the retired head of Fidelity Investments’ investment solutions and innovation organization. He had a 27-year career at Fidelity starting in 1994. He held several analyst roles before becoming director of U.S. equity research, equity portfolio manager and global head of research. For nine years he was president of the equity and high yield group at Fidelity before assuming his final role as head of investment solutions and innovation. He has maintained strong ties to UNC Kenan-Flagler since completing his MBA.

As a member of the Global Industry Research Leadership Team, Gardiner is responsible for recruiting, motivating, developing, and retaining investment talent. He also engages with team leaders on strategic planning, resource requirements, new investment approaches, and key business decisions; acts as a fiduciary and supervisor; and is involved in many of the group’s strategic cross-functional initiatives. In addition to these responsibilities, Gardiner also serves as a member of the firm’s Investment Stewardship Committee.

Gardiner joined Wellington Management as a member of the Equity Product Management Team in July 2012. During his time within that team, he worked closely with investors to help ensure the integrity of their respective investment approaches and led commercial oversight of various product platforms. Prior to joining Wellington Management in 2012, he spent three years at Cambridge Associates (2007 – 2010), most recently as a senior associate team leader within the consulting group.

Gardiner earned his MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College (2012), as well as his BA in history from Bowdoin College (2006). Additionally, he holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society Boston.

Paul Howanitz, CFA, is a portfolio manager and senior investment analyst for American Century Investments, a premier investment manager based in Kansas City, Missouri. In this role, Howanitz co-manages the U.S. value yield strategy and provides fundamental equity research and analysis for all strategies managed by the large-midcap value team. He has been a member of the team since joining American Century Investments in 2015. Previously, Howanitz was a quantitative research associate and a regional sales rep with MFS Investment Management. Howanitz has worked in the investment industry since 2008. He is a CFA® charterholder and member of the CFA Institute. Howanitz received a B.A. in administrative science from Colby College and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Dane serves as a Corporate Credit Associate for Diamond Hill and joined the firm in 2021.

Prior to joining Diamond Hill, Dane was a Senior Analyst, Commercial Card Portfolio Management for KeyCorp from 2019 to 2021. From 2018 to 2019, Dane was an Analyst, Enterprise Commercial Payments for KeyCorp.

Dane has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Ohio University and is a and is a Level II Candidate in the CFA Program.

Eric Isch is an assistant vice president in research for Unum. Isch, who joined Unum in 2017, covers autos, building materials, diversified manufacturing. and transportation across investment-grade and high-yield portfolios. Isch has 14 years of experience in credit analysis and fixed income. Before joining Unum, he was the senior analyst covering investment-grade autos at Wells Fargo Securities, while also assisting in coverage across the industrials and materials sectors. Before his stint in fixed-income research, Isch worked in debt capital markets at Wells Fargo Securities, originating investment-grade bond offerings in industrials and financials. He has a B.S. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.B.A. from Duke University.

Ryan Johnson has 23 years of industry experience and is a Director on the Public Securities Group’s Real Asset Debt team.  In this role, he contributes to the portfolio construction process as well as corporate credit research and trading.  Prior to joining the firm in 2022, Ryan was a portfolio manager at Mesirow Financial, specializing in corporate credit research and trading.  His experience also includes trading structured products and government securities for Columbia Management after starting his career in credit research at Stein Roe & Farnham.  Ryan earned a Bachelor of Arts degree form the University of San Diego and a Master of Business Administration from Northwestern University.  He holds a Series 65 license and sits on the board of directors for the Dominic Fouts Memorial Cancer Fund.

Garrett Jones runs Orchard Brook Capital, a private investment fund with a short bias.  Prior to Orchard Brook, he spent nine years as an analyst at Greenlight Capital reporting to founder David Einhorn.  Earlier in his career, Garrett worked at Nicusa Capital, a L/S fund focused on micro-cap activism and shorting fraud, and in the Dallas and Dubai offices of the management consulting firm Booz & Company.  He holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA from Dartmouth College.

Jim Jones, CFA, partner, is a portfolio manager on William Blair’s Mid Cap Growth and Small-Mid Cap Growth strategies. Previously, he was a research analyst focused on U.S. small-cap industrials companies for the U.S. growth equity team beginning in 2010 and also served as the team’s co-director of research from 2017 to 2019. Before joining William Blair in 2010, Jim was an investment analyst at Federated Investors. Before that, he was a research analyst at Credit Suisse and an associate at Ashton Partners. Jim has the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society Chicago. Jim received a B.S. in accounting from Miami University and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina.

Amritha Kasturirangan is a portfolio manager on the Rising Dividends fund at Franklin Templeton. She has worked for FT in the US and Asia since joining the firm in 2009. Prior to that, she worked in equity research covering the Biotechnology sector at Goldman Sachs, and in investment banking at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and management consulting at PricewaterhouseCoopers. She is a graduate of Wharton and the University of Cambridge, U.K.

Colin Kelly, CFA, is managing director of equities and portfolio manager of equity strategies at Curi Capital following Curi’s acquisition of KDI Capital Partners. Before the acquisition, he was a portfolio manager and senior research analyst at KDI. Additionally, he managed a long/short equity portfolio for Opus Trading Fund; managed the proprietary trading group at Schonfeld; and served as an associate in the structured finance group at Square 1 Bank. Kelly is a CFA® charterholder. He received a B.A. in economics and geography from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.B.A. from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management where he was a Roy H. Park Fellow. Kelly is currently enrolled in the Master of Applied Data Science program at the University of Michigan.

Ellyn V. Korzun is an investment management leader with significant experience in: investment performance; bond portfolio construction and management; investment strategy communications and thought leadership; and recruiting and talent development. At TIAA, she led a top-performing team investment team that delivered consistent track records of outperformance for $5+ billion in fixed income assets across multiple strategies during varied market environments. As Interim Chief Investment Officer for the Investment Management Group, she oversaw all investment-related activities and support functions; guided risk management as well as human capital considerations. She participated in TIAA’s Emerging Leaders Program for top enterprise talent, and was nominated as an inclusive leader.

Previously, Ellyn advised clients within Goldman Sachs’ Investment Management Division, including constructing and managing fixed income separate accounts for its Private Wealth  Management clientele.  As a Recruiting co-captain, she contributed meaningfully to hiring efforts over a decade.  Other prior roles included institutional fixed income sales at Credit Suisse First Boston and Chemical Securities.

She graduated magna cum laude from Duke University with an AB in Economics and Spanish and obtained an MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School.

Ellyn also formerly served as an Advisor in Residence at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, focused on career coaching, and participated in its AIM board.

Philip Kriger is a director at Liberty Mutual Investments (LMI), the investment arm of Liberty Mutual Insurance, with more than $90 billion in assets under management. He works with Liberty Mutual Investment’s global fixed-income research platform, analyzing and investing in healthcare and technology companies across the capital structure and in public and private markets. Kriger received a B.A. from University of California, Los Angeles and an M.B.A., with a concentration in investment management, from University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Abhishek Kumar is an investment analyst and head of ESG at Hunter Capital Management. He began his career a decade ago as an ESG analyst at MSCI. Since then, Kumar’s experience has spanned ESG-driven fundamental investing, advisory, and operating roles at Arisaig Partners, Oberweis Asset Management, and Amazon’s Project Kuiper. He received a B.A. in physics and economics from Bates College and his M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Connor Leonard serves as president and board member of Arbour National, an insurance holding company based in Raleigh, North Carolina, that is dedicated to the long-term ownership of specialty P&C carriers. Before forming Arbour National, Leonard was a development lead and shareholder at Investors Management Corporation (IMC), focusing on new acquisitions while also working closely with IMC operating companies such as Golden Corral and Hart Lumber. From 2016 to 2018, Leonard was the public securities manager at IMC, where he invested a dedicated public market portfolio utilizing a long-term, business owner mentality. He has guest lectured on investing at Google, Santangel’s Investor Forum, the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, the University of Virginia’s Darden Business School, and on the “Invest Like the Best” podcast. Leonard received a B.S. in business administration, with a concentration in finance, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Miles Lewis, CFA®, is a Portfolio Manager, Principal for Royce Investment Partners. He is the Lead Portfolio Manager for portfolios that use the firm’s Small-Cap Quality Value Strategy. Additionally, he is a Portfolio Manager for Royce Pennsylvania Mutual Fund.

Prior to joining the firm in 2020, he was a portfolio manager (2014-2020) and investment analyst (2010-2014) for the Small-Cap Value Fund and Strategy at American Century Investments. Prior to that, he worked on debt restructurings at MBIA Insurance Corp. (2006-2008) and Chanin Capital Partners (2003-2006). Mr. Lewis holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from The College of William and Mary and a master’s degree in business administration from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. He is a CFA® charter holder and a member of the CFA Institute.

Joyce Lin, CFA, is a research analyst with the Franklin Equity Group at Franklin Templeton Investments. In this role, she focuses on equity research and analysis of companies in the telecommunications, industrials, and life sciences tools industries. Lin’s prior experience includes research in the midstream oil and gas, insurance, industrials, and financial services industries. Before joining Franklin Templeton Investments in 2014, Lin was a research associate at Cooke & Bieler, a value-based investment management firm. She is a CFA® charterholder. Lin received a B.A. in government and psychology from Harvard University and an M.B.A. in economics, finance, and international business from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business.

Joe Maguire, CFA, has been with Penn Capital since 2005. As director of research, he is responsible for guiding the firm’s day-to-day global investment research process. He chairs the equity risk committee and serves as a senior portfolio manager for Penn Capital’s Small to Mid-Cap Equity strategy and Convertible strategy. Before joining Penn Capital, Maguire was a senior audit associate for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, and conducted private equity research for AMS Inc. He received a B.B.A. in accounting from The College of William & Mary and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Scott Marolf is a senior investment analyst for American Century Investments, a premier investment manager headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. He is based in the company’s Kansas City, Missouri office.
Scott provides fundamental research and equity analysis for the technology and consumer discretionary sectors for the U.S. Large Cap Growth team. Previously, he provided fundamental research and equity analysis for the U.S. Opportunistic Mid Cap Growth and U.S. All Cap Growth strategies. Prior to joining American Century Investments in 2008, Scott worked as a senior auditor at Americo Financial Life & Annuity and as an auditor for Sprint Corporation. He has worked in the industry since 2003.
Scott holds bachelor’s degrees in business administration and Spanish from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and a master’s degree in business administration from Indiana University.

Michael Mazza is the chief operating officer of the Artisan Partners Credit Team. In this role, he is responsible for supporting the team’s investment process, technology, and data. Additionally, he will assist with managing broker-dealer relationships, team resourcing, and talent onboarding and development. Prior to joining the Credit team in September 2021, Mr. Mazza was a director in the Trade Operations group at Artisan Partners and oversaw middle office functions for the firm’s credit and alternative strategies. Before that, Mr. Mazza worked at Brandes Investment Partners where he managed fixed income operations. Earlier in his career, he was a senior vice president of investment operations at Zurich Investment Services Limited. Mr. Mazza holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Fordham University.

Antoine McIntosh serves as Research Associate for Diamond Hill and joined the firm in 2022.

Prior to joining Diamond Hill, Antoine was an Equity Research Analyst for Sterling Capital Management from 2014 to 2022. He also served in a number of positions for SEI Investments from 2010 to 2014.

Antoine has a Bachelor of Science, Economics from Susquehanna University.

Ms. Pieroni joined Yacktman in November 2022 as Partner and President. Prior to Yacktman, Molly founded MC2 Institute, an executive advisory firm serving major technology, industrial, financial services and business services companies. Prior to MC2, she served on the leadership team of Highside Capital, a $5B global equity long short hedge fund based in Dallas and New York. Before joining Highside, Molly was a co-founder of JatoTech Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm investing in Texas and California. JatoTech’s portfolio companies were acquired by Broadcom, Silicon Labs, Intel and Qualcomm. Prior to JatoTech, Molly was a Principal at Boston Consulting Group, and she was part of the initial team that established the Dallas office for the firm. Molly began her career as an investment banking analyst in New York. Molly holds a BBA from William and Mary and an MBA from Harvard.

Matt Mildenberg is a Vice President at Axum and is primarily involved in sourcing, underwriting, deal execution and portfolio management at the firm.  Prior to joining Axum, Matt worked as a Senior Associate for Five Points Capital, where he assisted with lower middle market private equity and private credit investing in a range of industries. He previously worked as a Credit Analyst for Bank of America in its Leverage Finance group, where he assisted with underwriting large corporate loans for leverage buyouts, M&A and other debt financings in a range of industries. Outside of work, Matt enjoys travel, playing the piano, running and cycling. He raises money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) and takes part in annual 100-mile Ride to Cure cycling events across the US.  Matt received a BS in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, concentrating in Finance, and an MBA from the Kenan-Flagler School at the University of North Carolina, concentrating in Capital Markets and Investments. Matt is a CFA Charter holder.

Bill Monroe is the portfolio manager of the Putnam Small Cap Growth Fund. Previously at Putnam, he was an analyst in the equity research group, responsible for conducting fundamental analysis and valuation of small- and midcap companies in the industrials sector and making buy/ sell recommendations. Monroe joined Putnam in 2012 and has worked in the investment industry since 1996. Previously, he was a senior investment analyst at Federated Investors, an investment analyst at American Century Investment Management, an interdepartmental analyst at Ariel Capital Management, an investment analyst at Mercer Investment Consulting, and a fund accountant at Bisys Investment Services. He received a B.A. in finance from Miami University and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business.

Before forming XM Capital Partners, Alexander Moore was a portfolio manager of the equity relative value and event-driven strategies at Carlson Capital from 2010 to 2020. In the equity relative value strategy, Moore specialized in the basic materials sector, with a particular focus on agriculture, bioenergy, and chemicals; in the event-driven strategy, he analyzed publicly announced mergers and special situations such as spinoffs, carveouts, and reverse Morris trusts. Before joining Carlson Capital, Moore was an analyst at Brookline Avenue Partners, a multi-strategy hedge fund specializing in merger arbitrage, from 2006 to 2009. He began his career as a vice president in the Latin American research group at J.P. Morgan from 1999 to 2003. Moore received a B.A. in economics and Spanish from the University of the South and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Davis Morrison is an Associate at SharpVue Capital, working for the private credit and equity team. Davis is responsible for underwriting new investments and monitoring SharpVue’s existing portfolio companies. He received a BBA in Finance from the College of William and Mary’s Mason School of Business and an MBA from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School. He began his career as a management consultant at Accenture.

Win Murray is director of research at Diamond Hill. Before joining the firm in 2022, Murray served in a variety of roles at Harris Associates L.P. from 2003 to 2021, including director of U.S. research, co-portfolio manager of the Oakmark Select Fund, and research analyst. From 1999 to 2003, he served as equity analyst for Colonial Management/Fleet Bank; a senior portfolio manager at ASB Capital Management from 1997 to 1999; and an equity analyst at Federated Investors from 1996 to 1997. Murray received a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.B.A. from Georgia State University.

Kevin Nicholson, CFA, is the chief investment officer of Boardage Partners. He has more than 20 years of experience in the investment management industry, 12 of them focused exclusively on basic materials, mining, and metals. In 2013, Nicholson founded Boardage Capital Management, an investment management firm focused on investing in the basic materials sector. Boardage uses fundamental research to identify investment themes both long and short to generate consistent returns through any market cycle. Nicholson leads the investment process and is responsible for managing all the firm’s assets. Before launching Boardage, Nicholson was a founding principal at Belltower Advisors, a long/short equity hedge fund that invested across the energy, materials, and mining sectors. Nicholson spent three years at Belltower, where he helped launch the fund and guide its growth to $600 million in peak assets. He oversaw the mining and metals portion of the portfolio. Before joining Belltower, Nicholson worked as an analyst with Proxima Alfa Investments, where he focused on the metals and mining industries. Previously, Nicholson was a portfolio manager at City National Asset Management, where he managed large-cap equity strategy and portfolios for foundations, pensions, and high-net-worth individuals. Nicholson began his career at Northwestern Trust and Investors Advisory, where he managed large-cap growth equities and fixed-income strategies. Nicholson is a CFA® charterholder. He received a B.A. in business from the University of Puget Sound and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler School of Business.

Peter Orlando is an analyst at Southpoint Capital. Before joining the firm in 2020, he worked at American Century Investments, a mutual fund manager based in Kansas City, where he analyzed public companies in the technology, financial, healthcare, communication, and industrials sectors. Orlando began his career in 2011 at Bloomberg LP. He received a B.S. in television and radio from Ithaca College, graduating magna cum laude, and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Nate serves as a Portfolio Manager for Diamond Hill and joined the firm in 2009. Prior to joining Diamond Hill, Nate was a Tax Consultant with Deloitte & Touche LLP from 2008 to 2009. Nate has a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance from The Ohio State University (summa cum laude, with honors) and a Master of Accounting from The Ohio State University (with distinction).

Portfolio Manager/Research Analyst Fidelity Investments Clayton Pfannenstiel is a portfolio manager and research analyst in the Equity division at Fidelity Investments. Fidelity Investments is a leading provider of investment management, retirement planning, portfolio guidance, brokerage, benefits outsourcing, and other financial products and services to institutions, financial intermediaries, and individuals.

In this role, Mr. Pfannenstiel co-manages the Fidelity Select Aerospace and Defense Fund and covers the aerospace and defense industries.

Prior to assuming his current position in 2021, Mr. Pfannenstiel was a research analyst in Fidelity’s High Income and Alternatives division covering the airline, aerospace & defense, ground transports, maritime shipping, and packaging industries.

Before joining Fidelity in 2018, Mr. Pfannenstiel was a summer intern at Artisan Partners covering transports. He also served as a research associate at both Sirios Capital Management covering capital goods and Credit Suisse covering payment processors and IT services. Prior to that he worked at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch as a junior research analyst covering payment processors and IT Services. He has been in the financial industry since 2009.

Mr. Pfannenstiel earned his bachelor of arts degree in economics and Asian studies from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and his master of business administration from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – Sloan School of Management. He is also a CFA® charterholder.

Patrick Quinn, CFA, partner, is the director of research and head of the U.S. growth and core equity strategies for William Blair Investment Management. He is also a member of the leadership team for William Blair Investment Management and sits on the firm’s extended leadership group. Before joining William Blair in 2004, Quinn was an institutional equity trader with Strong Capital Management. He is a member of the CFA Institute and CFA Society Chicago. Quinn received a B.S. in accounting and finance from Indiana University and an M.B.A. with honors from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business.

Nick Schommer is a Portfolio Manager at Janus Henderson Investors. Prior to joining Janus in 2013, Nick spent a year working as an associate portfolio manager at Thornburg Investment Management. Before that, he was a research analyst at Marsico Capital Management for more than four years, leading the coverage of the financial services sector on a global basis. Previous to his investment management career, Nick was a captain in the United States Army and served in Iraq and Kuwait. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for exceptionally distinguished service during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Nick received his bachelor of science degree in chemistry from the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he was recognised as a Distinguished Cadet and Phi Kappa Phi. He earned his MBA from the University of California – Los Angeles, Anderson School of Management, where he was a Student Investment Fund Fellow. Nick holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and has 16 years of financial industry experience.

William E. Schramm, CFA, is a member of the credit team at MetLife Investment Management, focusing on municipal bonds. Before joining the firm, he was a foreign exchange trader in Ford Motor Company’s derivatives execution group. Schramm also spent over four years as a fixed-income analyst in the portfolio management group at RBC Global Asset Management, performing credit research and trading money market, corporate, government, and municipal securities. He began his career as an investment accountant at Thrivent Financial, where he supported the private equity and fixed income groups. Schramm is a CFA® charterholder. He received a B.S. in finance and a B.A. in economics from St. Cloud State University and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School. Schramm also serves on the Advisory Council for the School of Public Affairs at St. Cloud State University, and on the Foundation Board at Minnesota Valley Lutheran High School.

Gil is the Director of Equity Research, overseeing all equity research analysts covering sectors across global equity for Ivy Funds. He joined Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) as part of Delaware Funds that were involved in a transaction that closed on April 30, 2021.

He joined Ivy Investments as an Equity Investment Analyst and was appointed Director of Research in 2016. He was named assistant portfolio manager to the Small Cap team in 2000, assisting in the management of three mutual funds and institutional accounts. He was portfolio manager of Ivy Small Cap Growth Fund and Waddell & Reed Advisors Small Cap Fund from 2003 to 2010, and of Ivy VIP Small Cap Growth from 2003 to 2006. He was lead portfolio manager of small cap growth institutional accounts from 2010 to 2016.

Prior to founding Choice Equities Capital Management (CECM), Mitchell spent five years at KDI, a Barron’s 2015 top 100 hedge fund where he was an analyst and portfolio manager of FDS. Previously, he was a junior partner at Anchor Capital, a private investment management company focused on small to micro cap US equities. Mitchell graduated cum laude from Clemson University in 2003 and earned his MBA from the University of North Carolina in 2008. Mitchell has nine years of investment experience with primary areas of focus in small caps and distribution companies across various consumer and industrial verticals.

Lamar Small is an Investment Director at UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust, leading portfolio strategy, portfolio management and investment selection for the Trust’s Private Credit portfolio as Asset Class Head, totaling approximately $8.5B in commitments.

Prior to UAW RMBT, Lamar was a Senior Hedge Fund Researcher at Mercer where he performed investment due diligence on hedge fund managers for potential inclusion into the firm’s multi-billion dollar direct portfolio. Before Mercer, he was a Quantitative Modeling Associate at Credit Risk Management where he created proprietary quantitative models for financial institutions and was an Analyst at NCM Capital where he performed equity research on the Industrials sector. Additionally, Lamar has three years of combined international experience living in Japan and Brazil and six years of engineering experience in the automotive industry.

Lamar has an MBA in Investment Management from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kentucky with a minor in Japanese Studies. He is highly proficient in both Japanese and Brazilian Portuguese and is both a CFA Charterholder and a CAIA Charterholder.

Mr. Cullen P. Smith joined The London Company of Virginia as an Equity Research Associate in 2022 after working as an Equity Research intern at Artisan Partners. Cullen received his MBA with a focus on Capital Markets and Investments from UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School and a Master of Forestry from Duke University. At Kenan-Flagler, Cullen was a lead analyst for the student-run Global Perspectives Fund.

Will Smith, CFA, is a portfolio manager on Sterling’s Mid Cap Value and Small Cap Value strategies.  Prior to joining Sterling, he was with Goldman Sachs in London as a sell side analyst covering the media and telecommunications sectors.  Prior to Goldman Sachs, he worked for Jefferies covering the global media sector.  Will also worked at Capital Group and LNG Capital, a distressed debt hedge fund, in London and Sydney.  Will received his B.E. in Structural Engineering from Vanderbilt University and his M.B.A. from the London Business School.

Trey Snow, CFA, is the director of research and senior research analyst at The London Company, a long-only equity manager in Richmond, Virginia. In this role, he coordinates the firm’s research activities and manages the analyst team. Previously, he was a senior equity analyst for the Teachers and Employees Retirement System of Georgia, where he helped manage multiple domestic and international equity portfolios. Snow has worked in buy-side, sell-side, and hedge-fund roles as an equity analyst at IronOak Advisors (Ridgeworth Capital Management), Priority Capital Management, BB&T Capital Markets, and Mentor Investment Group. Snow began his investment career in 1995 as an analyst at the Virginia Tech Foundation. He is a CFA® charterholder and an active member of the CFA Society of Richmond. Snow received a B.S. in finance and an M.B.A. with a finance concentration, both from Virginia Tech.

Brian Solomon is an associate portfolio manager for the Capital Appreciation Strategy, including the Capital Appreciation and Capital Appreciation Equity ETF funds, and is the CAF fixed income team lead at T. Rowe Price Investment Management. He is a vice president and member of the Capital Appreciation Investment Advisory Committee and a member of the Capital Appreciation Equity ETF Investment Advisory Committee. Brian also is a vice president of T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.

Brian’s investment experience began in 2015 when he joined T. Rowe Price, beginning in the T. Rowe Price Associates U.S. Equity Division. Prior to this, Brian was employed by Delta Airlines as a financial analyst.

Brian earned a B.S. in finance from Clemson University and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina. Brian also has earned the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation.

Kevin joined Plexus Capital in 2016 and is a Vice President on the investment team, focusing on deal originations, transaction structuring and due diligence, and portfolio monitoring. Prior to joining Plexus, Kevin began his career at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in the Sports Finance & Advisory Group, providing investment banking and capital markets solutions to clients in the sports and entertainment industry.

Kevin is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.

Kathleen will be judging the Alpha Challenge for the first time this fall. She joined the Alternative Investments team at Unum Group in 2023, which represents approximately $1.3B of the broader Unum Investments portfolio (~$50B AUM). The Alternative Investments portfolio includes, but is not limited to, positions in private credit, infrastructure, real estate, and private equity. Prior to working at Unum, Kathleen spent ~18 years at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, now Truist Securities, including approximately 11 years in Syndicated and Leveraged Finance and 6 years in High Yield Capital Markets. She has covered a wide range of sectors during her career including Healthcare and Energy. Kathleen has B.A. in Economics from Vanderbilt University.

Andrew Stone, CFA is a Senior Portfolio Manager focusing on corporate credit and multi-sector investment strategies at UIA Investment Management, LLC.  He leads the firm’s corporate credit investment activity and manages the Core Fixed Income Fund.  Prior to joining UIA-IM, Mr. Stone served as a Director in the Fixed Income Group at Invesco Institutional.  During his 21 years at Invesco, he held various positions, including Portfolio Manager, and Senior Credit Research Analyst.  Prior to joining Invesco, Mr. Stone served six years on Active Duty in the US Army as a Field Artillery Officer.  He is a graduate of US Army Airborne and Ranger Schools.  Mr. Stone holds a Master of Business Administration from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and a Bachelor of Science from the United States Military Academy at West Point.  He is a Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) charterholder.

Edward Su is a founding Portfolio Manager of the Paradice Emerging Markets Team, joining the firm in July 2018. Prior to Paradice, Edward was an Associate Portfolio Manager for the Developing World Strategy at Artisan Partners and an Associate Portfolio Manager for the Global Opportunities Strategy at Thornburg Investment Management. Edward has also held positions as a Research Analyst at Crystal Rock Capital and as an Associate at Devon Value Advisers. Edward holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and is a CFA Charterholder.

Adam Sues is a partner and portfolio manager of the AMG Yacktman Special Opportunities Fund at Yacktman Asset Management; he also co-manages the AMG Yacktman Focused Fund, AMG Yacktman Fund, and AMG Yacktman Global Fund. Before joining Yacktman Asset Management in 2013, he founded and authored “Value Uncovered,” an investment website focused on value-oriented stock research and fundamental analysis. Sues received a B.A. in business administration from Mount Union College and an M.B.A from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Mark Thompson, CFA, partner, is a portfolio manager on William Blair’s Small Cap Growth strategy. Previously, he was a research analyst and an associate portfolio manager on William Blair’s Small Cap Growth strategy. In Mark’s research role, he focused on U.S. small-cap stocks across sectors. Before joining the firm as a research analyst in 2006, he was a research generalist at Kidron Capital for three years. Before that, he was a research analyst covering healthcare at American Express for two years. Mark is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society Chicago.

Education: B.B.A. and M.B.A., University of Iowa.

Doug Vaughn, CFA, is a Managing Partner of the private credit and equity strategy at SharpVue Capital and he is also the lead of SharpVue’s private credit investment committee. During the course of his career, Doug has led over 40 principal investments in the lower middle market. Prior to founding the private credit strategy at SharpVue, he previously served as Senior Managing Director, Co-Head of Investment Group, and Investment Committee member at NYSE-listed Triangle Capital Corp. He received a BA from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Serena Perin Vinton is a senior vice president and portfolio manager with Franklin Equity Group and portfolio manager of Franklin Growth Fund and Franklin Select U.S. Equity strategies.

Ms. Perin Vinton joined Franklin Templeton Investments in 1991. She served as an analyst and portfolio manager in the international fixed-income group for four years, before joining the Franklin Equity Group in 1995. Her prior equity research responsibilities include analysis of the consumer products and household goods, specialty retail, apparel/footwear/textiles, paper and forest products, building materials and steel industries.

Prior to joining Franklin Templeton, Ms. Perin Vinton worked as a research assistant for a British member of Parliament in London.

Ms. Perin Vinton earned her B.A. in business economics from Brown University. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Charterholder and a member of the CFA Institute. Ms. Perin Vinton is a Trustee of the Scholarship Fund for the University Club of Palo Alto and serves on the Phillips Academy Andover Development Board. Ms. Perin Vinton was recognized by the San Francisco Business Times’ as one of the Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business for 2015.

Peter Wahlstrom is Managing Director, Investment Research at Front Barnett, A Mesirow Company and serves as a member of the Front Barnett Investment Committee. He joined Front Barnett in 2016 from Morningstar where he spent six years as a senior analyst, sector director, and a member of the firm’s Economic Moat committee, a group of senior members of the equity research team responsible for reviewing all Economic Moat and Moat Trend ratings issued by Morningstar. In 2012, Wahlstrom ranked third in the “Specialty Retail” industry in the StarMine Analyst Awards, presented by the Financial Times. Prior to joining Morningstar, Wahlstrom worked in the global investment research divisions of Goldman Sachs and RiverSource Investments (Ameriprise Financial).

Wahlstrom holds a BA in Economics from the University of Illinois and an MBA in Finance from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. He is a board member of the Indiana University Reese Fund and Chiavacci Value Fund, and has been a guest MBA lecturer at Indiana University and the University of Notre Dame.

Andrew Walsh is currently an Investment Officer in the investment research department at Unum, providing credit research for the company’s $44 billion investment portfolio. In this role, Walsh covers securities across the capital structure in the Energy and Natural Resources sectors. Before joining Unum in 2020, Walsh worked at The Tradition Group in Stamford, Connecticut, where he focused on the global gas and power markets. He received a B.A. in economics from Boston College and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Mike West is an analyst on the Global Equity Team at Artisan Partners.  In this role, he conducts fundamental research on technology companies.  He joined Artisan Partners in 2018 after serving as an M.B.A. intern in the summer of 2017.  Earlier in his career, he was a manager in data analytics at Morgan Stanley.  Mike received a B.S. in management from Florida Gulf Coast University and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Ms. Jessica A. Wilson has three years of investment experience. She joined The London Company after her internship at Bank of America Merrill Lynch within their Sales and Trading division. She graduated from the University of Richmond, earning a dual degree with honors of a B.S.B.A. in Economics and a B.A. in Italian Studies. At the University of Richmond, Jessica was a member of the Student Managed Investment Fund where the team managed a portion of the University’s endowment across two strategies. Jessica is a CFA charterholder.

Othilla Wlodarczyk has been a Research Associate on the Artisan Partners long-only Global Equity team since September 2019. She covers Consumer Discretionary, Industrials, and Energy, and focuses on fundamental research with an emphasis on alternative data. Prior to Artisan Partners, she was an Analyst at Tiger Management where she covered long/short consumer and software. Othilla graduated from the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College with an honors degree in Economics and minors in Financial Accounting and International Relations. In her free time, she sits on the Advisory Board of the Swim Strong Foundation and on the admissions committee of the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College.

Conner Wright graduated from UNC with his MBA in 2022 and has since worked as a research analyst at H/2 Capital Partners – a fund that focuses on special situations, liquid markets, and corporate credits. Prior to enrolling at UNC and working at H/2, Conner worked in corporate strategy at The Hartford, a multi-national insurance carrier.

Todd D. Young is a senior equity analyst and portfolio manager at Franklin Street Partners. Before joining Franklin Street, he ran Echelon Point Advisors, an investment consulting firm that advised institutional clients and high-net-worth family offices. Previously, Young was an analyst and portfolio manager at KDI Capital Partners. He has also held equity research analyst positions at RS Investments and Morningstar. Before entering the investment industry, Young served as an infantry officer with the 82nd Airborne Division. He is an Army Ranger School graduate and was awarded two Bronze Stars for meritorious achievement in Iraq and Afghanistan. Young received a B.S.B.A. from the University of Tennessee in 2000 and an M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School in 2007.

Mr. Zackery serves as a Portfolio Manager at Zevenbergen Capital Investments (ZCI), a research-focused investment firm that manages over $4 billion in assets on behalf of institutional, individual, and mutual fund investors. In his role, he applies ZCl’s long-standing investment philosophy and process, positioning clients to potentially benefit from fundamental business trends and technological change. He also coordinates the firm’s proprietary ESG research and integration into its investment decision making. He joined ZCI in 2011 and has had responsibilities in various capacities across the firm. Prior to joining ZCI, Mr. Zackery worked as a Credit Analyst for Banner Bank, where he evaluated the creditworthiness of existing and prospective commercial bank clients. He graduated magna cum laude with a BA in Business Administration, finance concentration, and minor in economics from Western Washington University, where he was a Presidential Scholar. He currently serves as an advisory board member to the Western Washington University College of Business and Economics Investment Management and Scholarship Endowment Fund. Mr. Zackery is a CFA charterholder and member of both the CFA Institute and CFA Society of Seattle.

Sector Expertise: Technology, Consumer Staples, Industrials, Financials, Real Estate and Utilities

Victor Zhu, CFA, CAIA, is a Senior Manager – Multi-Asset at Vanguard. Leading a team responsible for designing and managing multi-asset portfolios worldwide, he specializes in model/custom portfolios, target-date funds, 529 plans, and outcome-oriented portfolio solutions. Victor has also authored white papers and journal articles on a wide range of topics, including inflation hedging, alternatives, commodity investing, glide-path construction, and tax-aware portfolio optimization.

Prior to his current role, Victor served as an Equity Analyst in Vanguard Quantitative Equity Group, where he focused on internally managed active funds. He also worked as a Credit Research Analyst in Vanguard Fixed Income Group. Before joining Vanguard, he held trading and equity research positions at BlackRock and Evercore.

Victor earned a B.S. in finance and statistics from NYU Stern School of Business and an M.B.A. from Yale University. He is also a member of the CFA Society of Philadelphia and chapter executive of the Pennsylvania chapter of the CAIA Association.