Daruma Asset Management, Inc.

Rhonda Beaman — Portfolio Administrator

Born and raised in New York City, I wanted to work in an industry that was fast-paced and energetic. I received my BBA from Baruch College in 1992, and a few months later I accepted a job at Nomura Capital Management, where I worked with the equity and fixed-income portfolio managers. After a few years, I realized doing research didn’t grab me as much as the ongoing chaos in the trading and operations departments did.

Whenever there was a trade problem, there was the dreaded paperwork war between the traders, operations managers, brokers and custodians. I remember asking myself, “Why does it seem as if no one likes interacting with the operations department?” I soon learned that the operations department/back office is perhaps the most underappreciated area of the finance world. Operations workers are responsible for posting account transactions and maintaining client portfolios; in essence, they allow others to service clients. Yet most people perceive the job as tedious and unfulfilling, and so back-office workers are thought to be a miserable lot.

After six years of working at Nomura, I took a position in 1999 with Daruma Asset Management as the Portfolio Administrator. I’m the type of person who is always up for a challenge. I saw the job as an opportunity to prove that the relationship between the traders, operations staff, brokers and custodians doesn’t have to be a dysfunctional one. When I started at Daruma, I was determined to have people say positive things about our firm’s back office. Instead of burying trade problems (which most back offices like to do), I address them right away so they don’t go unresolved for days or even weeks. I know that if I’m efficient and ensure that everything is processed correctly, there is no need for the dreaded paperwork war. Now I think of trade problems as a way to catch up with colleagues.

I’m grateful that I was given the opportunity to create a different kind of back office at Daruma. To work in operations, you have to have a lot of patience, strong organizational skills and strong communications skills. I believe it’s not what you do but how you approach a job that makes it fun and exciting.

Our People

Mariko Gordon, CFA — Founder, CEO and CIO

Patty Clarkson — Partner, Client Service and Consultant Relations

Neal Tully — Partner and Senior Research Analyst

David Gerber —Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial Officer

Brad McGill — Senior Research Analyst

Mort Simpson — Senior Research Analyst

Mark Miller — Senior Research Analyst

Michael Bostler — Research Analyst

Steven Cohen — Trader

Kim Cataudella — Chief Compliance Officer

Naomi Lyum — Business Manager

Rhonda Beaman — Portfolio Administrator

Francesca McGowan —Director of Client Service

Tania Luna — Office Manager