Vanguard is launching a new wealth management and advice division headed by industry veteran Joanna Rotenberg. She will join Vanguard from Fidelity in January 2025 and lead the new division as a managing director and member of the firm's senior management team.
“For nearly five decades, Vanguard has been a positive force in the democratization of investing, helping to give tens of millions of investors the best chance for investment success,” Vanguard CEO Salim Ramji said in a statement. “With the addition of Joanna to our leadership team, our goal is to further democratize our advice and wealth management offerings to our clients through enhanced technologies and offerings – with the same customer diligence that Vanguard has long been known for. “
Rotenberg most recently served as president of personal investments at Fidelity, leading the company's retirement, brokerage and wealth management businesses. She also spent over a decade on the executive committee of BMO Financial Group and as a partner at McKinsey & Company, serving clients in wealth and asset management.
“I am humbled by the opportunity to lead the new advisory and wealth management group and expand Vanguard's offerings to help more people achieve investment success,” Rotenberg said in a statement.
In addition to creating the new division, Vanguard also announced a series of changes to improve its customer focus and expand its senior management team.
The changes include Matt Benchener, managing director and head of Vanguard's personal investor business, which currently includes the firm's wealth management unit, continuing in his role assisting Vanguard's direct individual investors with a focus on the digital client experience , brokerage, money and savings solutions, and education savings.
Additionally, John James, current managing director of the institutional investors group, has been named head of jobs and advisor solutions overseeing Vanguard's brokered businesses with a focus on deepening relationships with enterprise clients.
Lauren Valente, managing director and chief human resources officer, has been named head of the institutional investors group.
Most recently, Jon Couture will join Vanguard to succeed Valente as chief human resources officer.
“These changes will allow us to emphasize our customer focus, advance our digital capabilities to scale our impact and add to our strong leadership bench,” said Ramji.