We Are Here To Talk About Fundraising.

Yelena Pelimskaya, CFA

Principal

Yelena is a Principal at Cerity Partners, where she is a member of the Investment Office, the Manager Research Group, and the Private Markets Committee. Prior to joining Cerity Partners, Yelena served as Director of Research at Permit Capital Advisors, LLC. She was responsible for due diligence on all new and existing managers and oversaw all aspects of the research process. Before Permit Capital Advisors, LLC, she spent seven years at Veritable, LP where she focused on manager research across a multitude of asset classes. Yelena earned B.S. in Astrophysics and M.S. in Economics from Lehigh University. She is a CFA charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of Philadelphia.

Carolyn Patton, CFA

Head of Private Market Client Solutions

Carolyn Patton, CFA joined TIFF Investment Management in 2022 and serves as head of private market client solutions and a member of the Senior Management Team. Over her 25+ year career, she has worked with institutional clients and consultants across the globe. Prior to joining TIFF, Carolyn represented Sustainable Growth Advisers. She has worked in senior strategy and distribution roles at leading investment firms including Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Janus Capital Group, and Deutsche Asset Management. Carolyn served as President of the AIMSE where, in partnership with the TOIGO Foundation, she helped spearhead the AIMSE Scholarship program to promote diversity and inclusion within asset management. Carolyn is a CFA© charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of Philadelphia. She received her B.A. in Economics from The University of Virginia.

Nora Pickens, CAIA

Managing Director, Investments

Nora serves as Managing Director of Investments at Mill Creek Capital Advisors, LLC. She has primary responsibility for evaluating fixed income and alternative income strategies across MCCA’s investment programs. Prior to joining MCCA in 2017, Nora was Director at FS Investments, where she helped launch focused investment programs and conducted investment research. Prior to FS, Nora was a Credit Analyst at Standard & Poor’s with primary research coverage of the energy sector. She previously held various analyst positions at Bear Stearns and Goldman Sachs.Nora earned her Bachelor of Arts in business economics from Brown University and received an MBA from the Yale School of Management. She holds the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation. Additionally, Nora serves as a member of the Board of Directors at CAIA Pennsylvania.

Mimi Drake

Partner, Co-Market Leader

Mimi is a Partner and Co-Market Leader in the Pennsylvania office at Cerity Partners.Prior to joining Cerity Partners, Mimi served as Co-Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Permit Capital Advisors, LLC. She was responsible for client development, sourcing and managing as well as the strategic and business functions of the firm. She also contributed to the sourcing and evaluation of investment opportunities. For six years prior to joining Permit Capital Advisors, LLC, Mimi served as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Defiance Asset Management, LLC. Mimi has worked in the investment industry since 1995. Earlier in her career, she spent several years at Miller Anderson & Sherrerd/ Morgan Stanley Institutional Asset Management, where she worked on both the marketing/client service and portfolio management sides of the business. Mimi received her MBA in Finance from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and her B.A. in Economics from Trinity College (cum laude). She attended Harvard University’s Radcliffe Publishing Course and spent three years in magazine publishing prior to Wharton. Mimi Chairs the Board of Hudson Global, Inc. (HSON) and serves on the Board of Stockholm-based Evolution AB, Verus LLC and the Advisory Board of Crazy Aaron’s Thinking Putty. She also serves on the Board of Trustees at The Shipley School, the Philadelphia Financial Scholars and Ben Franklin Technology Partners. She is also a Chairman Emerita of the Board of Directors of the 100 Women in Finance Association and Foundation, a global organization with over 20,000 members in 31 locations across 5 continents. Mimi is a member of Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and also serves as a guest lecturer for Wharton’s Advanced Management Program’s Social Entrepreneurship Class.

David Hyman, CFA

Partner

David Hyman is a Partner and senior investment consultant at Mercer. He develops client relationships across various financial intermediaries, including registered investment advisors and regional banks, and drives the advancement and growth of client investment platforms and portfolios. David is a voting member of Mercer’s Wealth Management Investment Committee and sits on Mercer’s Wealth Management Strategic Research and Equity Strategic Research Teams. David joined Mercer in 2011 after having worked at Evaluation Associates since 1999. Prior to Evaluation Associates, David worked as an investment research analyst at American Planning Group, a wealth management firm that serves high-net-worth individuals. David received an AB in Communications and Political Science from the University of Michigan and an MBA in Finance from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) designation and is a member of the CFA Institute and the New York Society of Security Analysts; David also holds the Series 3 and 30 licenses. David serves as an Investment Committee member of the Westport (CT) Public Library and served as a Trustee of The Conservative Synagogue of Westport (CT).

David Lees, CFA, CAIA, MBA

Senior Partner

David E. Lees is the Senior Partner and a founding member of myCIO Wealth Partners, LLC. myCIOWealth Partners provides financial consulting services to over $12 billion of investment assets ofindividuals, families, endowments, defined contribution, defined benefit plans and trusts. Prior to the separation of the Investment Advisory group from Ernst and Young LLP, David was aPartner and Chairman of Ernst & Young’s National Investment Advisory Council responsible foroverseeing the research and due diligence of Ernst & Young’s Investment Advisory Practice. He alsoserved as Ernst & Young’s National Director of the Wealth Advisory Services. David was recognized by Barron’s as #5 on the “Top 100 Independent Advisors” list in 2018 and has been included on the list since its inception in 2008. David has also been recognized as a Barron’s Hall of Fame Advisor. myCIO Wealth Partners was recently ranked as one of the Top 50 Independent RIAs in the country in 2022 and has also been recognized by the Financial Times in the “FT300” as one of the Top 300 Registered Investment Advisers in the country. David served as a member of the Board of Directors and Chair of the Wealth Committee at Bryn Mawr Bank Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiary, The Bryn Mawr Trust Company, symbol (BMTC) for 12 years until January 2018. David was an Adjunct Professor of Finance and Portfolio Management in Villanova University’s School of Business for five years teaching Portfolio Management and Corporate Finance Courses.

RJ Smolenski

Managing Director of Investment Research

As Pitcairn’s Managing Director of Investment Research, R.J. is responsible for managing all aspects of the investment manager research process and open architecture investment platform. With over two decades of industry experience and a Pitcairn tenure dating back to 2000, R.J. has held a multitude of investment roles. Prior to Pitcairn’s move to open architecture in 2008, R.J. supported the firm’s proprietary investment program as an analyst, developing keen insight into investment management styles, portfolio analysis, and client service. In 2008, R.J. was a key member of the firm leadership responsible for the collaborative, multi-disciplinary build of Pitcairn's open architecture investment program, including a pioneering tax overlay program, a program he built and managed for its first five years and now provides oversight to. In 2011, he was named Director of Research and was named Managing Director in 2019 for his contributions to the firm. R.J’s research expertise is in equities and, under his leadership, Pitcairn domestic equity portfolios have significantly outperformed the market, since inception, while also tallying a double digit annualized total return over the first decade of the open architecture program. He also led the development of Pitcairn’s sustainable investment offering, which launched in 2016, and currently represents an area of significant growth for the firm. R.J. is a critical, hands-on resource for Pitcairn's ultra-high-net worth families, designing custom portfolio solutions and educating clients on wide ranging topics from investment management and market commentary, asset allocation, tax management, and manager selection. R.J. is a frequent speaker at industry conferences on an array of topics such as the use of alternative investments in high-net-worth portfolios, the use of sustainable investment solutions in family offices, and the state of the global equity market.

Narayan R. Chowdhury, CFA

Managing Director

At Franklin Park, Narayan is responsible for the analysis and evaluation of private equity investment opportunities, monitoring clients’ portfolios and conducting industry research. He is also involved in the development and implementation of Franklin Park’s technology platform, and regularly interacts with clients on investment and portfolio matters. Prior to Franklin Park, Narayan worked with Hamilton Lane and Public Financial Management. He is a CFA Charterholder and a member of the CFA Institute. Narayan received a B.A. in Mathematics and Economics from Bucknell University.