“Creating Pioneering Solutions”

Jennifer Nahas, CMO and partner, Golden State, started in the financial services industry in 1999 when women leaders made up approximately 10% of the industry’s leadership roles. Today, women make up around 22%, and in 2030, projections show 30% of leadership roles will be women. Many times, Jennifer was the only woman in the room or the only woman that had a seat at the table. While this was somewhat disappointing, she looked at these times as opportunities for her growth and, as a leader, these times reminded her to empower and help others grow in their career. For Jennifer, running marketing at Golden State is more than just putting standard marketing strategies in place. “I work with individual financial advisors to build their own brands and mission statements. This role has given me the platform to make a difference in how I help our financial advisors, men and women, build their businesses through marketing efforts. I’m continually rewarded by helping them grow through marketing and watching them thrive. It’s a sense of giving back.”

An area of focus for Jennifer is inclusivity and equitable representation of gender at the company. In a male-dominated industry, the female voice can be lost. “When you attend an industry conference, the female speakers represent the same as the statistic states – about 20%. Currently, our female to male advisor ratio already beats the industry average,” explains Jennifer. “I’m focused on the inclusivity and representation of gender at the company. We have strong female advisors, and I am proud to work among them.”

Jennifer has been inspiring and empowering women professionals across industries into becoming great leaders of tomorrow. She has always lived by the notion when an opportunity presents itself, take it. “You never know when that opportunity will ever come back. There are a lot of opportunities out there for women, and for those who want to strive in their careers, they need to stay focused and continue to move their path forward.” Her mother has been a true inspiration for Jennifer and guided her towards productivity. “At a young age, she told me to never rely on another person to pay your bills. This set my determination to keep plugging my way forward, and I’ve never stopped.”

However, Jennifer made some sacrifices to culminate into the leader she is today. Being a mother and missing important moments in her son’s life have been significant difficulties. “What I can say, however, is whether you are a stay-at-home parent or a working parent, the time, dedication, and commitment that your children see you put into your daily life shapes the path for their future. Its learned behavior that doesn’t go unnoticed and hopefully will pay off one day.” She says, advising the other women leaders, “Be true to yourself and others. Don’t drink the kool-aid for short-term gain. It’s just not worth it in the end. Be you and be kind!” Armed with this unique mindset, Jennifer has led the company to new heights.

“The marketing at Golden State had great potential. The brand and the look and feel were great, but very little attention was given to this area of the company. It just wasn’t a focus before I came on board. Call it a pain point or an opportunity—I was able to walk in and take it by the reigns. I had and still have so many avenues to walk down. The work is endless and always exciting.”

Golden State focuses on the future of wealth advice, which can be applied in many areas of the industry. Their latest achievement? The digital advice platform that they are launching this year. It’s the way of the future. Today’s minds want to manage and feel in control of their own money, and they want it to be customized, digital and fast. “We’ve figured it out. Stay tuned for this extraordinary system that will be launched this year,” she adds. “Our podcast series, A Golden State of Mind. I’m producing this series that is hosted by our founder and focuses on our changing global economy due to the younger breed of investors. We examine the industry with a microscope to find opportunities and learn best practices to share with our fellow financial professionals. And, yes, I will be featured at times to share my own insights and experiences.” IEWL