Nuveen, the $1.3 trillion asset manager and investment manager of TIAA, has taken the next step in its global expansion with the appointment of Harriet Steel as Global Head of Institutional. She will be based in London, and report to Mike Perry, Head of Global Client Group and Member of Nuveen’s management committee.
In this newly created role, she is responsible for accelerating the growth of Nuveen’s institutional business, developing business strategy to globalize its engagement with clients, leading all direct sales, asset class specialists and consultant relations personnel.
Harriet will oversee and work in partnership with a team of over 250 professionals, across the breadth of Nuveen’s global distribution network, with teams based in the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific.
Further, she will lead the growth of Nuveen’s Insurance client segment, building on the firm’s responsibility to invest and deliver income for the TIAA General Account through a diversified range of strategies spanning public fixed income markets and alternative asset classes including private credit, real estate, and natural capital.
She joins from European private debt manager Pemberton, where she was Partner and Head of Global Clients from April 2023. Previously, she spent over 11 years at Federated Hermes, most recently heading up its international business development. Prior to acquisition of Hermes by Federated Investors in 2018, Harriet was Global Head of Business Development and served as a member of the business’ Executive Committee and a Board Director. In this role, she substantially grew the team of professionals and exponentially expanded its third-party client base across both institutional and wholesale.
Before joining Hermes, Harriet founded Portico Advisors, an asset raising and marketing advisory firm for alternative investment managers, including hedge funds, private equity and real estate strategies. Her extensive experience has also comprised investment roles including markets and trading roles in fixed income at Bankers Trust and Morgan Stanley.
Harriet also brings strong international experience and credentials as her career has spanned the world including roles in London, New York and Paris.
Mike Perry, Head of Global Client Group at Nuveen, said: “In a world where institutional investors want to do more with fewer managers, the need for scale, diversification, and global reach have never been more important. Nuveen’s institutional business assets and revenues continue to grow at impressive levels ahead of the global industry as a whole, and we expect to take it to the next level with someone of Harriet’s calibre and experience now at the helm.”
Harriet has also been a prominent voice across the industry on business, economic and diversity issues and has acted as a mentor to many executives. She has also regularly featured in the prestigious Financial News top 100 women in European finance.
Harriet Steel, newly appointed Global Head of Institutional at Nuveen, added: “The breadth, depth and scale of Nuveen’s $1.3 trillion investment platform across both public and private asset classes continues to attract some of the world’s largest institutional investors.
“Nuveen’s inherent client alignment, heritage in product innovation and shared purpose with its parent company TIAA of investing for future generations to thrive, make for a truly compelling offering. It is an extremely exciting time to join Nuveen, and I look forward to leading our institutional client group and business through the next stage of its impressive global growth story.”