‘What’s Important Now’ 2022 Theme: Innovations in Defined Contribution
Series III: Gender Equality and Retirement
It has been two years since William Gale and Grace Enda of the Brookings Institution published, “How Does Gender Equality Affect Women in Retirement?”. William Gale will join us to discuss the research that underpinned the authors’ original recommendations and what it will ultimately take to “fix a retirement system that was not designed to accommodate women’s experiences.” Our distinguished panelists will share their unique observations and their active roles in improving retirement access and outcomes for women.
Moderator:
Ashwini Apte, CAIA, CIMA, AIF, AIFA
Defined Contribution Institutional Consultant Relations Lead
BlackRock
Ashwini Apte, CAIA, CIMA, AIF, AIFA, has served 18 years in the defined contribution industry. She is a senior member of the Institutional Distribution team within BlackRock’s US & Canada Defined Contribution Group. Ashwini is primarily responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with institutional DC consultants in North America, and is also responsible for overseeing some relationships with direct institutional plan sponsor clients.
Ashwini was previously with NEPC, where she was a Senior Consultant within the Defined Contribution Practice Group. She worked with DC plans in all aspects of plan evaluation consulting. Prior to joining NEPC in 2005, Ashwini was a retirement financial advisor at Morgan Stanley where she constructed and implemented comprehensive retirement portfolios through the use of strategic asset allocation techniques and risk performance analytics.
Ashwini earned a Masters in International Finance from Brandeis University and a B.A. in Economics from Brandeis University. She became a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designee in 2009, an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) designee in 2015, and an Accredited Investment Fiduciary Analyst (AIFA) in 2018, and a Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) in 2019. She also holds both Series 7 and Series 63 licenses.
Panelists:
William Gale
Arjay and Frances Fearing Miller Chair – Federal Economic Policy
Director of the Retirement Security Project, The Brookings Institution
William Gale is the Arjay and Frances Miller Chair in Federal Economic Policy and a senior fellow in the Economic Studies program at the Brookings Institution. His research focuses on tax policy, fiscal policy, and saving behavior. He is co-founder and co-director of the Tax Policy Center, a joint venture of the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute. He is also director of the Retirement Security Project.
Gale is the author of Fiscal Therapy: Curing America’s Debt Addiction and Investing in the Future (Oxford University Press, 2019). He is also the co-editor of several books, including most recently Wealth After Work: Innovative Reforms to Expand Retirement Security (Brookings 2021); as well other volumes on retirement saving, the estate tax, and fundamental tax reform.
He has published research in top scholarly journals, including the American Economic Review, Journal of Political Economy, and Quarterly Journal of Economics. In 2007, a paper he co-authored received the TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award Certificate of Excellence.
He has written extensively in policy-related publications and newspapers, including op-eds in CNN, the Financial Times, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post.
He served as President of the National Tax Association from 2019 to 2020 and as vice president of Brookings and director of the Economic Studies program from 2006 to 2009. Prior to joining Brookings in 1992, he was an assistant professor in the Department of Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles, and a senior economist for the Council of Economic Advisers under President George H.W. Bush.
Gale attended Duke University and the London School of Economics and received his Ph.D. from Stanford University in 1987. He lives in Fairfax, Virginia, where he serves as President of the Pozez Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia. As a person who stutters, he also serves on the Board of Myspeech. An avid tennis player, Gale is married to Diane Lim and is the father of two grown children and the step-father of four.
Jessica Fox, CRPS
Head of Mid-Market Consultant Relations
Nuveen Retirement Investing
Jessica is the Head of Mid-Market Consultant Relations for Nuveen Retirement Investing. She leads a team of dedicated retirement investment professionals focused on meeting the growing demand for Nuveen investment and TIAA Lifetime Income Solutions in the defined contribution marketplace. Jessica has over 15 years of experience in the financial services industry, and over a decade of experience in defined contribution, defined benefit, and nonqualified executive benefits, contributing to thought leadership and industry publications while frequently speaking at industry events. Prior to joining Nuveen, she was Vice President of Strategic Relations at Prudential Retirement responsible for broadening and strengthening partnerships with key intermediary firms across the country. Previously she held various business development and funding analytic roles at MullinTBG, a leading provider of executive benefit solutions and financing strategies. Jessica began her career in the mortgage industry at Citigroup. Jessica graduated with a B.A. in Communications and B.B.A. in Marketing from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and holds the FINRA Series 7 registration, a CRPS designation, as well as life insurance and annuity licenses. Jessica also serves a Co-Chair for the Chicago Chapter of WiPN (We Inspire, Promote, Network) and as a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion ambassador and committee member for the organization.
Jaimee Niles
Outreach Relationship Manager
Ascensus (Program Administrator for Illinois Secure Choice)
Jaimee Niles is a Relationship Manager for the Illinois Secure Choice program. Jaimee works with employers and employees throughout the state of Illinois to help them understand and navigate the IL Secure Choice program. With over 25 years of experience in financial services, Jaimee has held marketing and communications roles with Pacific Life, MetLife, The Life Foundation, Merrill Lynch and HSBC. Jaimee is FINRA licensed, Series 6 & 63 and has a B.S. degree in Business Administration from Drake University. Jaimee lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.