Buyside Equities Award
Deborah Sabo
Firm: Jackson Square Partners
Working in a male-dominated industry came naturally to Deborah Sabo. I am the exact middle child of five, so Ive always felt I had to carry my own weight, she said. My neighborhood was filled with boys. I grew up playing with boys, competing against boys and hanging out with them. I feel that Wall Street is a continuation of that, and I really havent had any issue dealing with men.
As a founding partner and the head of trading at Jackson Square Partners in San Francisco, Sabo manages all aspects of trading at the firm. In May 2014, her group spun off from Delaware Investments to become an independent company. Its been a super-exciting opportunity here to build a company from the ground up, Sabo said. We have a good amount of assets already, $29 billion as of two days ago. Its also exciting looking at a business from bottom to top and figure out where we want to be, and how we want to run it.
Sabo finds the combined demands of starting a new company and conducting day-to-day business rewarding. I love hard work, she said. I dont mind working long hours if I feel that Im adding value and growing. I love learning new things. Thats whats great about working with this team-theyre some of the smartest people Ive ever worked with. I want to help others succeed and I want to be part of that success.
Meet the winners of the 2015 Wall Street Women awards.
At Jackson Square, Sabo can see her teams success. At the trading desk, we are the eyes and ears on the Street for the portfolio managers. When theres market-moving news or new research, were responsible for keeping in close contact with them. Thats one of the most important things-communication. Our portfolio managers are all in close proximity; we only have to walk a few feet to say, Hey, this stock is moving.
Because shes thrived in this male-dominated field, Sabo offers sage advice to women just starting out: Dont expect something just because youre a woman. Get in there, be the hardest-working person, and you wont be ignored.
