CutterResearch Member Meeting

John Clark is the CEO of Cutter Associates and has more than 30 years of experience in the investment management industry. Formerly the head of Cutter’s Consulting division, John still actively participates in consulting projects, as a trusted client advisor for high-level planning and strategy, including setting priorities and managing capital investments. John also provides expert oversight and guidance on more complex strategy engagements. John’s experience covers all aspects of investment management. John is well known in the industry and is sought out to speak at industry conferences and events. He has also been quoted in many industry periodicals. Prior to joining Cutter Associates, John held senior roles as President and COO for several software companies, including DST Belvedere, Longview Group, and SunGard. John holds a B.A. from Tufts University.

Kathy McDermott has more than 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. She joined Cutter Associates in 2011 and has authored a number of Cutter Research reports on a wide range of topics. She spent ten years as a consultant for a variety of asset management firms, with a focus on business analysis for front and middle office projects. Kathy was previously the senior business analyst, equity trading systems, at Wellington Management, specializing in the firm’s proprietary electronic and basket trading applications. Earlier in her career, Kathy worked for Thomson Financial Services (now Thomson Reuters), supporting FirstCall and PORTIA clients in Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, and Thailand, and later went on to manage PORTIA implementations. She also worked at LongView (now Linedata) as an account manager and then product manager of electronic trading. Kathy earned her bachelor of arts in mathematics from Hamilton College.

Recent research assignments and publications include the following:

• Alternative Data and the Expanding Universe of Investment Information
• Behavioral Analysis in Investment Management
• Client Reporting Systems and Practices
• Data Access for Business Users
• Managed Data Services
• Market Data Administration
• Mastering Client, Account, and Product Data
• Order Management Systems
• Outsourced Trading: Has the Time Come?
• Reference Data Management Solutions

Cindy Sealey has over 30 years of experience in the investment management industry. She leads Cutter Associates’ Client-Facing and Wealth practices, advising asset and wealth management firms on their sales and distribution, marketing, product development, consultant relations, client service, and client reporting. Cindy has conducted system searches for CRM, marketing automation, portals, pitchbooks/client presentation, content management, client reporting, client onboarding, and RFP systems. Prior to joining Cutter, Cindy served as Vice President and Head of Operations for a division of Guggenheim Investments, where she led mutual fund accounting and administration; institutional accounting, billing, and client reporting; SMA operations, performance reporting (GIPS); and fixed income performance, attribution, and risk reporting. As Vice President and Head of Equities, Cindy led the firm’s investment team and supervised equity trading activities.

Cindy also spent 10 years as a Senior Portfolio Manager and Research Analyst, managing over USD 500 million in AUM for mutual funds and VITs using social awareness (ESG), large cap growth, and mid-cap growth investment strategies. She developed the investment process, directed research analysts’ day-to-day efforts, and created the firm’s social criteria and proxy voting guidelines. Cindy, a Chartered Financial Analyst, holds a bachelor’s of business administration from Washburn University. 

Mary Storrs has more than 30 years of experience in the investment management industry. She has been with Cutter Associates for more than 20 years, first as a consultant focusing on front office projects, and then with CutterResearch since its inception. Mary has authored CutterResearch reports on many topics, including trading, portfolio management, transaction cost analysis, investment research management, and market data systems. She led the Research division, and the Benchmarking team for eight years, overseeing all content development and helping members understand their capabilities compared to industry peers and best practices. She assumed leadership of Strategy in 2019 and is responsible for spearheading firm-wide management programs. Mary holds a B.S. from Boston College and an M.B.A. from Babson College.

Judy Blackwell has more than 30 years of information technology experience in the investment management industry. She joined Cutter Associates in 2006 and has worked as part of Cutter Research since 2007. Prior to Cutter, Judy worked for a number of investment management firms as a consultant and in project management roles. Her experience includes IT strategy, technology outsourcing, and business process outsourcing programs. She has worked in institutional asset management, retail, and private client business, and has managed large-scale projects, developing and implementing front and back office systems.

Recent research assignments and publications include the following:

• Alternative Data and the Expanding Universe of Investment Information
• Automating Business Processes
• Collateral Management
• Data Science and Analytics in the Front Office
• ESG Investing
• Integrating Investment Systems
• Managed Data Services

Jon Chandler brings more than ten years of experience in the financial services industry to his Director's role at Cutter Associates. Prior to joining Cutter, Jon was a senior business analyst for State Street Global Advisors (SSGA), where he was involved in a number of projects for the front and middle office, including UAT design and execution for an order management system (Fidessa IMS), the implementation of a web-based due diligence platform (FundInsight), and an enterprise solution to support blended benchmarks. Prior to his project roles, Jon was a principal in fixed income trade operations at SSGA. He has extensive experience with post-trade operations and applications, such as OASYS/CTM, PORTIA, MBSExpert, and Failstation. Jon earned a bachelor of arts in history from the University of Florida and an MBA from Northeastern University.

Recent research assignments and publications include the following:

• Alternative Investment Systems
• Collateral Management
• Investment Accounting Solutions
• Order Management Systems
• Performance Measurement and Attribution Systems
• Reconciliation Solutions
• Risk Management Systems