A Letter from Our CEO: Growing our team to serve you better

While we’re all still a bit anxious, Canadians have responded well to the pandemic and we seem to be making good progress in controlling it. At Gluskin Sheff, we’re still abiding by provincial recommendations and working remotely, and having done so now for several months, most of our operations are functioning as normal.

As well, our teams are meeting virtually on a regular basis and remain in constant contact with one another. Our greatest misgiving and loss since March is not seeing, in person, you – our clients. We all look forward to sharing a coffee, having face-to-face meetings and all the other daily activities we took for granted.

While many of the opportunities identified earlier in the year have already materialized as markets recovered from crisis lows, we continue to look for new opportunities we can safely leverage on your behalf.  The team is focused on avoiding assets and sectors whose recovery may have outpaced realistic expectation and finding opportunities where the financial market recovery has been more muted.

Supporting Gluskin Sheff’s continued growth

As CEO, I am excited my partners at Onex continue to support our growth in services and improvement of our platform. In addition to the recent investments we’ve made in our wealth, tax and estate planning capabilities, we have been actively recruiting talent in other key areas. I am excited to announce several new additions to our team.

Early this fall Matthew Lehmann will be joining Gluskin Sheff as Managing Director, Head of Asset Allocation. Matt will lead strategic asset allocation and investment strategy for our clients, in close partnership with our Chief Investment Officer, Peter Zaltz. Matt has more than 20 years of strategic asset allocation and portfolio management experience. Previously, Matt was Global Head of Multi-Asset Investment at Credit Suisse in Zurich. He will be instrumental in ensuring our clients’ asset allocation strategy aligns with their objectives in all environments.

Our credit team in New Jersey is also growing, enabling us to provide solutions which can earn attractive levels of income and enhanced returns in a low interest rate environment. Ronnie Jaber has joined the firm as Head of Structured Credit from the Carlyle Group where he had a leadership role in the USD $50 billion global credit division. Chad Valerio has joined the credit team from Oak Hill Financial to oversee investments in Opportunistic Credit, along with Tom Higbie from Solus Alternative Asset Management. Both Chad and Tom are industry veterans with substantial credit investing experience. Lastly, Clint Comeaux has joined as Portfolio Manager and Head of High Yield Credit, after building a successful track record during a decade with Muzinich & Co. We are excited to bring these distinguished and seasoned investors on board and look forward to deploying their expertise and guidance as we expand our yield offerings.

We are also pleased to welcome two Vice-Presidents to the Client Wealth Management team, Derrick Abraham  and Julia Chikina. Derrick joins us from Greybrook Realty Partners where he was an integral part of the Private Capital Market team’s business development and capital raising activities, including building long-term investor relationships with existing and prospective investors. Derrick is a Chartered Professional Accountant and brings more than 20 years of experience in financial services and private equity to this role. Julia joins the firm from RBC Dominion Securities where she was an integral part of a large advisory team managing several billion in assets. Julia worked closely with private clients creating customized wealth management solutions. Julia has her Certified Financial Planner and Chartered Investment Manager designations. Both Derrick and Julia will look forward to meeting with you virtually until we are able to gather in person at our next event, which we all hope will be sooner than later.

Finally, we are investing in how we interact and communicate with clients and are pleased to be welcoming Ashleigh Patterson to the firm as Vice President, Head of Marketing & Communications. With Ashleigh on board, we will be enhancing the frequency and content of communications from our Investment and Wealth Planning teams and delivering content on other topics we hope you will find interesting. Ashleigh joins us with substantial marketing and journalism experience in the finance industry, most recently at RBC Wealth Management as the Senior Director of Global Content and Digital Marketing.

Wealth Planning: Now is a great time to take advantage of our exclusive offering

The last few months have provided us an opportunity to reflect on our families, as well as, the ways in which we live and work. This period of reflection presents an opportunity to revisit long-term financial goals and objectives. I would highly recommend you take advantage of our team of wealth planning experts  who are available to meet with you virtually to discuss your goals and objectives, review your current planning and identify new risks and opportunities. An effective wealth plan is fluid and takes into consideration not only what your future would look like under ideal circumstances, but also how you would have to adapt when unforeseen circumstances impact your assumptions.

We encourage you to take this time to engage us in conversations regarding your estate, financial and tax planning strategies. We are extremely proud of the work we have done to date in making a significant difference in our client’s lives. Through will planning, financial planning and implementing tax-efficient strategies, we help our clients continue on the path to a successful retirement and legacy.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau provided the latest fiscal update on July 8, 2020, where he outlined the magnitude of the federal government’s projected deficit. This may be an especially prescient occasion to consider appropriate planning strategies that could be implemented to protect your wealth.

To take advantage of this exclusive service offering, we encourage you to reach out to your dedicated Wealth Advisor or the Head of our Wealth Planning team, Tiffany Harding, directly at tharding@gluskinsheff.com or (416) 681-6056.

From all of us at Gluskin Sheff, I hope you, your families and your loved ones remain safe and secure.

Sincerely yours,

Jeff Moody
President & Chief Executive Officer