As the universe of products and portfolios both expand and become increasingly complex, investment platform leaders have assumed an increasingly large and crucial role in ensuring the best financial outcomes for clients.
Advisors and end clients increasingly rely on these professionals, who not only monitor markets, trends, global uncertainty and the impact of the Fed, the White House and Congress, but also vet investment products and managers, determine suitability for clients and portfolios, and engage in frequent communications with advisors, clients and the public.
The following executives have demonstrated excellence in all these tasks, tirelessly supporting industry professionals and their clients with high-performance investment platforms that navigate through a myriad of needs, questions and circumstances. Please join us in congratulating the honorees who are listed below in alphabetical order.
Michael Arone, Chief Investment Strategist, State Street Investment Management
As Chief Investment Strategist for State Street Investment Management’s SPDR Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), Michael Arone analyzes the intersection of economics, public policy and market sentiment to create better investor outcomes.
With three decades of experience, he previously served as State Street Investment Management’s Global and EMEA Head of Portfolio Strategy as well as a senior portfolio manager in the firm’s Global Active Quantitative Equity Group.
Arone holds a Bachelor of Science in finance from Bentley College. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and is a member of the Boston Security Analysts Society and CFA Institute. Arone is also author of “Uncommon Sense,” which seeks to help investors think beyond conventional wisdom.
For example, despite the stock market’s bullish performance, Arone believes investors should start moving their money into “real assets.”
“What worked in the past may not work as well in the future, as higher interest rates and sticky inflation pose new risks to portfolios,” Arone said. “Financial advisors should consider creating an allocation to real assets, which include real estate, commodities, natural resources, infrastructure and precious metals, including gold. A diversified allocation to real assets has outpaced both stocks and bonds so far this year.”
Mary Ann Bartels, Chief Investment Strategist, Sanctuary Wealth
Mary Ann Bartels is the Chief Investment Strategist for Sanctuary Wealth. In this role, she provides investment guidance and market analysis, identifies themes and determines asset allocation strategies. Bartels currently focuses on newer opportunities, including the technology underpinning decentralized finance (DeFi), cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse.
Bartels believes investors next year should continue to park their money in stocks, bonds and precious metals.
“We believe the equity market remains in a secular bull trend that is supported by strong earnings growth, expanding margins and the support of lower interest rates,” she said. “Lower rates will also support the fixed income markets in 2026. Leadership is expected to remain with Tech and Tech related companies around artificial intelligence. The industry leader should also remain semiconductors.”
She held executive roles at Merrill Lynch and Bank of America where she analyzed economic trends and produced research on stocks, bonds, commodities and ETFs. Previously, Bartels held portfolio manager roles at Zweig-Avatar in New York and at Batterymarch in Boston.
Bartels holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Arts in business and economics from Fordham University.
Sonali Basak, Chief Investment Strategist, iCapital
As Chief Investment Strategist for iCapital, Sonali Basak works with the firm’s 120,000 clients, including advisors, investors and fund managers, on portfolio allocation and private market strategies. Basak is focused on advisor and investor education in alternative strategies.
“Private markets are not monolithic—from private credit to buyout, venture, real estate, infrastructure, and hedge funds, investors are actively seeking alpha and diversification beyond the concentration of mega-cap stocks in public markets,” Basak said. “As access to these strategies grows, advisors need deeper guidance on how asset classes will perform across macro conditions.”
Basak previously worked for Bloomberg News for almost 12 years, most recently as the Lead Global Finance Correspondent and Anchor for the flagship market open show for Bloomberg Television. She hosted the firm's annual Bloomberg Invest conference and created the “Wall Street, By Basak.” newsletter on LinkedIn.
Basak holds a bachelor’s degree from Bucknell University, a Master of Science in journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School and an Master of Business Administration in quantitative and corporate finance from NYU’s Stern School of Business.
Stephanie Link, Chief Investment Strategist And Equity Portfolio Manager, Hightower
Stephanie Link manages various equity strategies in Hightower’s Investment Solutions group, which offers solutions to the firm’s advisor community. She frequently works with advisors and their clients, advising on the economy and markets.
With over 30 years of industry experience, Link is a frequent contributor to CNBC, making appearances on The Halftime Report, Squawk Box, The Closing Bell and Power Lunch.
“Working frequently with our advisor practices that choose to outsource their clients’ assets to Hightower, helps me to focus on the economy, the markets, and investments,” Link said. “As a regular CNBC contributor, our advisors and clients can watch my commentary in real-time, and the live appearances keep me in check on the macro and individual stock selection for my equity portfolio.”
She previously served as Senior Managing Director and Head of Global Equities research at Nuveen, where she co-managed the CREF Stock Variable Annuity Portfolio, which had $200 billion in assets, and managed a US Core portfolio with almost $4 billion, while leading a team of 33 investment professionals. Link also was Chief Investment Officer and Co-Portfolio manager of Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust at TheStreet.com. She served as Managing Director of Institutional Sales and Director of Research Prudential Equity Group.
Link earned a Bachelor of Science in finance at Boston College. She is a member of the Investment Council at private equity firm KKR.
Harison Sidhu, Chief Investment Officer, Cambridge Investment Research
Harison Sidhu is First Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Investment Products and Research, at Cambridge Investment Research, where he helps match product innovation with the evolving needs of advisors and their clients. He has 15 years of experience in wealth management and investment solutions.
“Investment leadership must design platforms and solutions that meet the needs of advisors with different business models,” Sidhu said, addressing how investments leadership can serve a broad range of advisors. “That means listening first, then providing flexible, scalable tools that work for solo practices as well as large enterprises. By prioritizing choice and innovation, we empower advisors to deliver the right solutions for their clients.”
Under Sidhu’s leadership, Cambridge has grown its alternative investments business and helped investors access private markets through strategic partnerships. He has held senior roles at Fiduciary Trust, BlackRock and Choate Investment Partners.
Sidhu holds a Master of Business Administration from Babson’s F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business and a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Rutgers University.
Thomas Lee, Senior Editor and Staff Writer at Wealth Solutions Report, can be reached at thomas.lee@wealthsolutionsreport.com.
