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The brightest names in financial services gathered in New York City last November 6, 2024 for the prestigious 2024 InvestmentNews Women to Watch Awards. Held at the iconic Tribeca 360, New York, the awards ceremony brought together hundreds of industry leaders to honor the women who have made the most profound impact in finance over the past year.
Now in its celebrated fifth year, the Women to Watch Awards have become a hallmark event for recognizing excellence, innovation, and leadership within financial services. This year’s awards honored top professionals who are breaking boundaries, fostering inclusive workplaces, and empowering the next generation of women in finance.
At the heart of this memorable evening was a moving tribute by Gloria Garcia Cisneros, of LourdMurray, who was named Rising Star of the Year and took a moment on stage to thank her grandmother, emphasizing the values and sacrifices that guided her journey to success.
“For me, this award isn't just for me,” Cisneros shared, “it's for young women, for Latinas, immigrants who need to see that success is possible, even when the path isn’t clear.” Cisneros’ words resonated deeply with attendees, reminding everyone of the power of representation and resilience.
The ceremony was hosted by Emmy-winning anchor and public speaking expert Kerry Barrett, known for her work helping executives and teams overcome their fears of public speaking. Barrett guided the audience through the evening as the winners were announced, celebrating trailblazers, rising stars, and champions of diversity and philanthropy.
Excellence Awardees – the standout finalists in each category – had been announced in recent weeks, but the final winners were revealed live on stage, creating a memorable and inspiring evening that left attendees motivated to continue making a difference in the financial world.
Among the evening’s honorees, Lindsey Lewis, of the American College of Financial Services, won the Female Trailblazer of the Year award for her contributions to financial education. “It’s really impactful because I’ve spent countless days and nights working toward changing the demographics of client-facing advisors in finance,” she shared.
Lewis candidly shared the challenges of working in a male-dominated field, including moments of weariness and doubt that come with pushing for change. Despite these feelings, Lewis acknowledged that being part of an event like this renewed her sense of purpose. “This year, I definitely had a level of skepticism and, like, cynicism and fatigue,” she admitted, “but seeing everyone here reminds me why it’s worth pushing forward.”
Shauna Mace, Head of Practice Management at SEI, main event sponsors, emphasized the broader impact of the work being recognized: “The work that happens in our business is just so important for families and for the lives of all of the families that these advisors and financial planners touch. It's important work, and for us to be a part of supporting that, for the future of business owners that are advisors, but also the families and individuals they support, it's absolutely critical work.”
InvestmentNews would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our sponsors who made this year’s Women to Watch Awards an unforgettable evening. Fidelity Charitable and SEI served as award sponsors, supporting the celebration of these exceptional industry leaders. A special acknowledgment to Commonwealth, our Video Sponsor, whose contributions helped us capture every memorable moment of the night.
Our Social Media Sponsor, Cambridge, helped expand the reach of this event, while the Photo Booth Sponsors, RFG Advisory and Strong Her Money, brought fun and engagement to the evening. Park Avenue Securities created a glamorous welcome as our Red Carpet Sponsor, and The American College of Financial Services served as our Education Sponsor, recognizing the importance of continued learning in finance.
This year’s Women to Watch Awards once again highlighted the exceptional achievements of women in finance, setting the stage for continued progress and inspiration within the industry. InvestmentNews extends its congratulations to all the winners and applauds their unwavering dedication to excellence, diversity, and community service. For more details on the awards and the honorees, visit InvestmentNews Women to Watch Awards.
As the new year begins, we take a moment to look back and celebrate the remarkable achievements of women in financial advice. The past year brought its share of challenges—rising inflation, increasing interest rates, and shifting regulations—but it also highlighted the resilience, innovation, and leadership of the women driving our industry forward.
These extraordinary professionals not only guided clients through uncertainty but also redefined excellence in their practices. Whether building independent businesses or thriving within larger organizations, they proved that success requires not just expertise, but collaboration, vision, and an unwavering commitment to progress.
The Women to Watch Awards recognizes these trailblazers—women who have risen above challenges, championed their clients, and made a lasting impact on the financial advice landscape. This commemorative guide celebrates their accomplishments and honors the invaluable contributions they’ve made over the past year.
As we reflect on these achievements, let this guide serve as a testament to the power of women in shaping the future of our industry. Here’s to a year of success, innovation, and inspiration—driven by the extraordinary women we celebrate today.
To all the awardees and honorees, thank you for inspiring us. Your achievements remind us why we do what we do—and what’s possible when women lead the way.
Here’s to a new year filled with even greater success.
James Burton
Global Managing Editor
InvestmentNews
InvestmentNews celebrated achievements that measurably advanced women in all aspects of the investment industry, at employers of all sizes. We invited individuals to nominate themselves or third-party candidates and/or companies who exemplified these outstanding accomplishments through their leadership, passion, creativity, and willingness to help others along the way.
Nominations were open from June 3 – July 12, 2024, at 11:59 pm ET.
To submit a nomination, nominees visited the Nominate page of the website. There was no fee to submit a nomination, and only the online nomination form was accepted.
Nomination submissions provided an opportunity to address the category criteria in detail.
The Women to Watch Awards team conducted research and drew on knowledge and information gained through InvestmentNews to support and supplement the nominations received and to ensure that no one deserving of recognition was missed. “Excellence awardees” (shortlisted Finalists), in each category, were determined from both pools of information.
Once all nominations were considered and research was completed, Excellence Awardees (Finalists) were selected in each category and notified via email or phone.
All Excellence Awardees were then invited to finalize their detailed nomination form (“submission”). These submissions were provided to the judging panel for voting and otherwise remained confidential, not being shared with any third parties other than the judges.
Excellence Awardees were officially announced on September 9, 2024, on the website and promoted in InvestmentNews. Promo packages to leverage their achievements across marketing and promotions were made available for purchase.
All submissions from the Excellence Awardees were forwarded to the independent judging panel comprising mortgage and finance industry leaders and senior representatives. The panel assessed and voted for the winners in each category according to the relevant category criteria.
Voting commenced in October 2024, and their judgment was impartial, balanced, incisive, and fair. Any judge with a conflict of interest in a category recused themselves from judging that category.
Using a simple points system to aggregate the judges’ votes, the finalist with the top score in each category was named the winner.
Winners were announced at the event on November 6, 2024, and on the website. They were also promoted in InvestmentNews. Promo packages to leverage their achievements across marketing and promotions were made available for purchase.
