PSP Investments Appoints Deborah K. Orida as President and CEO
PSP Investments put out a press release yesterday stating it has appointed Deborah K. Orida as President and Chief Executive Officer:
Montréal, Canada, July 21, 2022 - The Board of Directors of the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) is pleased to announce that, after a thorough and rigorous global search, it appointed Deborah K. Orida as President and Chief Executive Officer effective September 1, 2022.
Ms. Orida has 25 years of experience in the investment and finance industry and was most recently Senior Managing Director, Global Head of Real Assets & Chief Sustainability Officer, at the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) where she led the global Real Assets department that encompasses Infrastructure, Sustainable Energies, Real Estate, Sustainable Investing and Portfolio Value Creation. She will succeed Mr. Neil Cunningham, who, effective September 1, 2022, becomes Vice Chair and Special Advisor to the President and CEO, and will support the transition process until his retirement, effective March 31, 2023.
“PSP Investments’ strong financial performance demonstrates the organization is well positioned for an effective leadership transition,” said Martin J. Glynn, Chair of the Board at PSP Investments. “In making this decision, the Board unanimously agrees that Ms. Orida is ideally qualified to lead PSP Investments forward into its next phase of growth and strategic evolution. On behalf of my colleagues on the Board of Directors and all PSP Investments employees, I would also like to thank Neil Cunningham for his immense contribution and for ensuring a smooth and nimble transition process.”
“I am deeply honoured by this appointment,” said Deborah K. Orida, incoming President and Chief Executive Officer at PSP Investments. “PSP Investments is a global organization with a proven performance track-record and a strong talent base. It is a tremendous privilege to be given the opportunity to lead one of Canada’s largest and fastest growing pension investment managers at a pivotal moment. I look forward to working with PSP Investments’ exceptional management team to continue to respond to market opportunities and generate solid returns for contributors and beneficiaries over the long-term horizon. On a personal note, my family and I are excited to be moving to Montréal shortly and immerse ourselves in the city’s culture and community.”
PSP Investments posted a 10.9% return in fiscal year 2022 as assets under management grew by 12.7% to $230.5 billion. Earlier this year, the pension investment manager also launched its inaugural climate strategy with targets to guide climate action and emissions reductions.
About PSP Investments
The Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) is one of Canada’s largest pension investment managers with $230.5 billion of net assets under management as of March 31, 2022. It manages a diversified global portfolio composed of investments in capital markets, private equity, real estate, infrastructure, natural resources and credit investments. Established in 1999, PSP Investments manages and invests amounts transferred to it by the Government of Canada for the pension plans of the federal Public Service, the Canadian Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Reserve Force. Headquartered in Ottawa, PSP Investments has its principal business office in Montréal and offices in New York, London and Hong Kong. For more information, visit investpsp.com or follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.
It's Friday and what better way to end the week than by going over this huge appointment at PSP Investments.
Let me first begin by congratulating Deborah (Deb) Orida for being appointed PSP Investments' next President & CEO.
Deb is an exceptional leader in every regard and PSP's Board of Directors made the right unanimous choice appointing her to lead the organization into its next growth phase.
I also think Egon Zehnder deserves credit for this executive search process as they did a great job bringing high-quality candidates to be reviewed by PSP's Board.
Admittedly, I was stunned yesterday evening when I saw PSP's post on Linkedin. I was tired, was working on my last comment going over UPP's inaugural Annual Report and Climate Action Plan, and when I saw the announcement, it was huge news that caught me a bit off-guard and I posted this on Linkedin:
"WOW! WOW! WOW! That I didn't see coming but congratulations to Deb Orida, an exceptional choice to head up PSP Investments after Neil Cunningham retires at the end of this fiscal year."
I had to edit that comment in the morning because she will be starting her new role at PSP on September 1st working with Neil who will become Vice Chair and Special Advisor, helping her transition into this new role until he retires at the end of the fiscal year:
Now, why was I stunned? Not because Deborah Orida isn't the best person for this job -- there's no doubt whatsoever she is and has all the qualifications and experience to be an outstanding CEO -- but because I was certain they were grooming her to be the next President & CEO at CPP Investments and it never crossed my mind she might leave that incredible organization.
But when I woke up this morning, had my coffee and thought things through, I realized she made a great move, a logical one as she was more than ready to assume the top job at one of Canada's largest and best pension funds.
Keep in mind, John Graham, CPP Investments' President and CEO, is still relatively young (early 50s), so while I'm sure he wasn't pleased to learn Deb is leaving, he understands her time has come and wished her the best as she assumes the helm at PSP Investments.
It also made sense for PSP's Board to appoint her "unanimously" given she literally is the number 2 at CPP Investments, was heading up Infrastructure, Sustainable Energies, Real Estate, Sustainable Investing and Portfolio Value Creation and she was appointed the organization’s first Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) in late October last year.
I had a chance to speak with Deb in December when we discussed her new role and was thoroughly impressed. You can read that comment here.
A little reminder on her background and why she landed the role of Chief Sustainability Officer:
Deb told me she is born and raised in Toronto, studied law at Queen's University and then left to do her MBA at The Wharton School. She then joined Goldman Sachs where she worked for almost a decade as a vice president.
As you can tell, she has the pedigree, she's very accomplished, very bright and truthfully, very nice and down to earth.
Anyway, prior to becoming CPPIB’s head of real assets, she was senior managing director and global head of active equities, and before that was CPPIB’s manager director, head of private equity Asia. During her tenure at CPPIB, she has also been managing director, head of relationship investments international, and senior portfolio manager, relationship investments.
All this experience is important and it explains why she was named CPP Investment's first chief sustainability officer.
Importantly, she understands all the moving parts at CPP Investments and has a holistic view of the organization.
Deb told me: "It's a great testament to the organization's commitment to sustainable investing. With this new position, CPP Investments made a strategic decision to put sustainability at its core."
She is now working closely with Ed Cass, the CIO, and has three important teams reporting to her:
- Infrastructure headed up by Scott Lawrence (roughly $45 billion)
- Real Estate headed up by Peter Ballon (roughly $46 billion)
- Sustainable Energies Group headed up by Bruce Hogg (roughly $21 billion)
Also, as the new Chief Sustainability Officer, Deborah Orida will lead the further refinement and execution of a roadmap for CPP Investments to prudently navigate the Fund as the world economy transitions to address climate change, ensuring they maintain a global, cross-enterprise approach to sustainability as they pursue their mandate on behalf of 20 million Canadians.
Again, I don't know how the Board at PSP Investments could have chosen a more qualified person to lead the organization at this time. She literally has it all and she now becomes the first woman to lead one of Canada's Maple 8.
Martin J. Glynn, Chair of the Board at PSP Investments sums it up in the statement: “In making this decision, the Board unanimously agrees that Ms. Orida is ideally qualified to lead PSP Investments forward into its next phase of growth and strategic evolution. On behalf of my colleagues on the Board of Directors and all PSP Investments employees, I would also like to thank Neil Cunningham for his immense contribution and for ensuring a smooth and nimble transition process.”
At PSP, she will be working alongside an exceptional management team and she will get to know all the portfolios and structure of the entire organization intimately.
No doubt, she's been reading some of my recent blog posts on PSP and I really think she will transition nicely into this new role and Neil will help her settle in during this time.
I'm also thinking of PSP's employees because whenever a new CEO comes in from the outside, it's a bit nerve-racking but I'm sure they will quickly learn to appreciate Deb's leadership style and her presence will reassure them that the organization will continue to thrive for many more years.
I also really like what Marcia Moffatt, Country Head of Canada at BlackRock posted in a comment on Linkedin:
This is someone who knows Deb well and everything she writes is spot on, she can go on and on!
Let me end by congratulating Deb Orida once again for being appointed the next President and CEO at PSP Investments and leave the last word to her from the press release:
“I am deeply honoured by this appointment,” said Deborah K. Orida, incoming President and Chief Executive Officer at PSP Investments. “PSP Investments is a global organization with a proven performance track-record and a strong talent base. It is a tremendous privilege to be given the opportunity to lead one of Canada’s largest and fastest growing pension investment managers at a pivotal moment. I look forward to working with PSP Investments’ exceptional management team to continue to respond to market opportunities and generate solid returns for contributors and beneficiaries over the long-term horizon. On a personal note, my family and I are excited to be moving to Montréal shortly and immerse ourselves in the city’s culture and community.”
I love that last line, I'm sure Deb and her family will really enjoy living in Montréal and immerse themselves in the city’s culture and community.
Lastly, while Deb's departure leaves a big hole at CPP Investments, the organization has an immense talent pool and I trust its Board and John Graham are already working hard to appoint the right people to fill the roles and responsibilities she assumed.
It shows you how competitive Canada's pension fund industry has become and how there's a huge talent war going on where the best people are highly coveted for top jobs.
Deb Orida's time has come to lead a major Canadian pension fund and let's all wish her the best of luck and long-term success as she takes over the helm at PSP Investments.
Again, she is the first woman to lead one of Canada's Maple 8! Let that sink in for a minute and you will realize this is a historic moment and one we should all be celebrating.
I look forward to meeting her one day here in Montreal and know she will be an outstanding CEO who will lead PSP Investments on the right path during this next critical phase.
Below, a BNN Bloomberg interview with Deborah Orida, the soon-to-be former senior managing director, global head of real assets, and chief sustainability officer at CPP Investments, where she discussed the organization's plan to promote the clean-energy economy by investing in high-emission businesses (December 2021).
Wish everyone a nice weekend, I'll be back next week to cover BCI's results.
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