Aug 4, 2022

By  Justin L. Mack August 04, 2022, 5:09 p.m. EDT 11 Min Read Provided by Michelle Tran REGISTER NOW Before you ask Michelle Tran what she's working on, make sure you've blocked out some time on your calendar to accommodate a lengthy answer. The senior vice president and head of enterprise sales for digital 401(k) recordkeeper Vestwell keeps a full plate and is always eager to push a few veggies to the side to make room for more. That tireless drive has propelled her through a more than 15-year career in financial services and inspired her to co-found a women-focused fintech organization that has grown from dozens in New York to thousands worldwide in just a handful of years. Michelle Tran But her sense of urgency is the product of self-awareness. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Tran is the daughter of immigrant parents who came to the United States from Southeast Asia by boat with a dream of greater opportunity. Tran keeps that voyage close to her heart and knows that no matter what she has already accomplished, there is more work to be done. "A lot of who I am is centered around how I can be successful for my family because of how much of what they've sacrificed. But as I've grown up and I've evolved, it's really driven me to want to do more beyond just my day job," Tran told Financial Planning. "It's causing me to ask, 'what's my impact? How can I make the fact that I'm out here in the world as meaningful as possible because so many people have sacrificed so much?' So that's who I am. "But I love doing it all. A lot of people ask, 'Do you ever sleep? Do you ever rest?' But doing all this gives me energy. Networking and meeting people and feeling like I'm progressing in the world and making an impact fully energizes me." Started from the bottom Tran — who made stops at BlockRock, Harness Wealth and Apex Clearing before joining Vestwell at the start of 2022 — said she has always wanted to own or run something. That passion began when she was a kid and took shape when she founded a babysitting club inspired by the book series when she was 10 years old. "I never babysat anybody, but I put together the flyers, and we put them in every mailbox," Tran said. "And then after that, I started an environmental club. So the starting motion and the building motion was always there for me." But as a first-generation Asian-American, Tran said there wasn't necessarily a lot of flexibility when it came to the childhood question of "what do you want to be when you grow up." The options were doctor, lawyer or another "fill-in-the-blank" stable profession. "When I went to college, I was pre-law and said I was going to be an attorney. But I was bored to death. And I definitely can't be a doctor because blood makes me squeamish, so that's not going to happen," Tran said with a laugh. "So I thought, econ. That's a very standard, very business-focused profession. And at the end of the day, I think I was really grateful for that change. Because I still did pre-law and politics, but I also majored in econ. And for me, that opened my eyes to something else that could be really interesting." Provided by Michelle Tran Breaking into the business  Her first foray into financial services came by way of an internship in the U.K. with Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, now BlackRock, working on their corporate finance team. That experience evolved into a nearly 10-year run with the company that began in San Francisco, transitioned her to Hong Kong and ended in New York City. The move back to the states also opened the door for her entry into fintech. "It was in 2015 and my husband … he wanted to move back to the U.S. And at that point I had spoken to a manager of BlackRock who told me about this great role in this new channel that no one really knows about. They told me, 'We think it's a big opportunity, and it's called robo-advisors,'" Tran said. "And I said, 'What are robo-advisors?' So that's really what got me into fintech." Tran looks back on her experience with BlackRock fondly, noting the opportunities she's had to work around the globe and collaborate with advisors of multiple specializations. However, entering the fintech space and working alongside innovators lit a new fire under her. "They move fast, they're doing something really interesting and they are democratizing access to financial services," she said. "I had always been on the intermediary side of the business —  working with financial advisors, working with home offices, working with private banks, but never working directly with consumers." After BlackRock, Tran became head of enterprise sales at Apex Clearing before leading business development for seed stage company Harness Wealth . The more time she spent working with wealthtech, the more she realized the power it held and how that power connected to the "why" that has always provided the battery for her career. "I think it goes back to my family. As a first-generation Asian-American, I didn't grow up with a ton. So these apps and these groups and these fintechs are building access for people like me and my family," Tran said. "Wealth management isn't only for those who have a million dollars or even a half million dollars to start with. I can start and have someone manage my portfolio for $5,000 or less. I can understand how to buy fractional shares, breaking down the barriers of being able to access what we thought previously was only available to those who had a certain amount of money. "  Tran said much like going from law to econ in college, moving into fintech as a professional was eye-opening. She learned how technology, when wielded properly, can help build generational wealth for people who thought such a thing was impossible. "A lot of financial advisors will only focus on people who have assets because they charge on assets. They're getting paid on assets," she said. "I want to figure out, what is an innovative way to help those who don't necessarily have the assets but have the potential to grow the assets?" True to her personal mission, Tran set out to make an impact. Provided by Michelle Tran 16 women walk in an NYC bar on a rainy night Today NYC Fintech Women , the organization Tran co-founded alongside Fin Capital Principal Sasha Pilch in 2017, boasts more than 8,000 members from all over the world. As the name suggests, New York City is home base. But the group is launching a San Francisco chapter, planning events in Chicago and has a membership presence in London. But it all started with Tran sending out a frustration-fueled social media invite after a difficult client meeting. "There was one meeting in particular where we were working with a multibillion-dollar wealth manager when I was with Apex … and I was the only female in the room. And there are probably 10 other people in the room," Tran said. "And I kept on experiencing the things you hear about — the mansplaining and the interrupting from both sides. You could tell it was subconsciously happening, and I'm sure if I spoke to any of them today, they would say they didn't mean to do that. And I totally get it. They probably didn't. But it happens because you're the only female in the room in a male dominated industry. And we need to change that because there's so much opportunity for women." Tran said the incident stung even more because she was the one responsible for the meeting coming together in the first place and should have been leading the discussion instead of being subconsciously shoved to the fringe. She responded by going home, logging into Meetup.com and starting what would become NYC Fintech Women. "I paid my $80, I set a date and I said on Tuesdays from now on we're going to meet at this bar, and whoever shows up shows up," Tran said. "I threw it out there on LinkedIn, and it was a rainy Tuesday in New York. And we met up at a bar in Flatiron that doesn't exist anymore. They were super kind and gave us a space, and we had 16 women show up on a rainy Tuesday. "  Tran said Pilch attended and asked how she could help her build the organization. "And I said, 'build what? I don't know what we're doing,'" Tran said. "She said it was amazing and that she has been looking for a gathering and a community where we can help each other. "  Provided by Michelle Tran Pilch, who was with fintech startup Quovo at the time, told Financial Planning that she and Tran shared both a desire to increase gender diversity in fintech and an aversion to sitting idly by. "We thought rather than just being a bunch of women complaining, why don't we try to do something about it?" Pilch said. "It has been amazing. We've had over a hundred women get new jobs as a result of an NYC Fintech Woman as a touchpoint, and we have testimonials from people saying 'I met someone at one of your events, and now my life has gotten better because of that connection.' It's my passion project." Tran and Pilch say they keep it very clear in terms of the organization's mission: NYC Fintech Women exists to empower, connect and promote women in fintech. Tran believes that women should champion other women doing big things in space and "shout their names from the rooftops. "  Doing so normalizes the presence of those who may not be considered "the norm" and lets other women who feel isolated in their careers know that they're not alone. Pilch said one way they do that is via a standing feature on their website called Fintech Female Fridays , which highlights the accomplishments of women in the industry. Recent profiles include founders and CEOs , senior vice presidents and executive directors from across financial services. The organization also connects women with fintech firms on the hunt for talent via its #HireHer jobs board and celebrates women who are making a difference during their annual Inspiring Fintech Females awards. April 28, 2022 11:47 AM Tran said NYC Fintech Woman pushes for inclusivity by keeping membership free, opening the door to all people and running it as a completely volunteer organization where no one is drawing a paycheck. "I don't want barriers to access. I want to make sure that it's available to everybody … fintech, beyond fintech, fintech-curious. Whatever it is, whoever wants to be a part of this community could be and should be," Tran said. "Female, male, non-binary ‚ whatever gender spectrum they are." This month, NYC Fintech Women is preparing to celebrate its fifth anniversary and closing in on 100 events. Pilch said a career of seeing her male counterparts being paid more or promoted quicker despite the quality of her work outpacing theirs keeps the goal in focus after all these years. Motivation also comes in the form of data that shows diverse teams produce better outcomes because of their ability to represent a wider customer base. But more than anything, Pilch credits Tran for her guidance and leadership, saying her positive energy will have a profound impact on women in the industry today, and the next-generation. "She's a superwoman. She has four kids and leads a business development at Vestwell … I don't know how she does it all," Pilch said of her co-founder. "I love that she's so selfless and kind. From the moment I met her, it was like, 'How can I help you? Who can I introduce you to? I'm going to connect you with this person.' And I've realized I've taken her on as a role model and have done that myself. "It has really changed my life. So I'm very grateful that I have her in my life and that she has taught me so much. I feel like other women now in our network are starting to follow suit as well." Michelle Tran with her husband and four children. Provided by Michelle Tran Can't sit still Tran's shark-like need to keep moving extends outside of her life as a financial services professional. When asked her favorite thing to do when she actually has some free time on her hands, she offered up three things instead of just one. That three was narrowed down from a list of 20,000, Tran jokes. The first thing that comes to mind is spending one-on-one time with each of her four children. She is a mother to 7-year-old and 5-year-old boys; and 2-year-old and 9-month-old girls. Next is solo time in a coffee shop, armed with a laptop and additional projects that she is passionate about. Among them are an AAPI project she has been chipping away at for the past four months with the aim of supporting Asian founders. "Like I said before, what are the opportunities I have from a career perspective? When I was little, I didn't think I had many because most Asian families don't let you think you have many, so how can we de-risk the whole founder experience for Asians?" Tran asked. And after that? "Sleep," Tran said. "I think on average I sleep about five or five and a half hours a night. So if I have an extra half hour, that's great. I'm really good at naps. I can get into a deep sleep and pop out of it in 15 minutes. It's another special magic trick that I have." But rest can wait. Tran sees the work ahead of her and knows that impact won't make itself. She sees the conversation around access and equality changing, but not everyone is speaking the same language just yet. "Where I see financial services breaking down a little bit is that they have intent. But as far as action toward making sure that it happens, I don't think it's always there," Tran said. "You have to be so super-intentional about how to change that conversation … there needs to be a lot of focus and someone who owns it because we have multiple groups saying they want to change. And it's been, I think, a little bit performative. To say, 'I have this DEI officer and we do XYZ and we're going to celebrate Juneteenth,' but what are you really doing to change the number of diverse people you actually have on staff? You need to have senior leaders that have bought into it and that are actively pushing it internally because it's easy for us to lean back and say the candidates are not diverse and that's just who we have. You can't do that. You've got to proactively ensure that you get diverse candidates and not make excuses about the pipeline."