In our fifth Open Forum episode (recorded in June 2022), Alston & Bird’s Anna Nolan speaks with Jessica Liew, Senior Manager of Operations at Aurelius; she focuses on the transformation and operational improvement of businesses in Aurelius’s pan-European portfolio. They discuss the importance of impactful leaders and how they shape the professional careers of those they manage, as well as qualities that women can bring to the table, how to avoid being burnt out, and hobbies that take them out of their comfort zone.

In our forth Open Forum episode, Alston & Bird’s Anna Nolan talks with Manon Mendez, an inspirational woman who is a principal at Blackstone Credit focused on special situations. Here they discuss the role of a distressed investor in the current volatile market, and some incredibly important topics such as culture cultivation and talent selection, the importance of role models and mentors in the finance industry, work/life balance and having it all, and other topical issues.

In our third Open Forum episode, Alston & Bird’s Lydia Rachianioti talks with Dr. Christina Benetou about the importance of perspective. In a highly stressful career, Dr. Benetou must often prioritize her work based on matters of life and death, putting the other stressors of life into perspective. Listen for a doctor’s story of working through a pandemic, how science creates hope, and where she turns when a challenge feels impossible.In our third Open Forum episode, Alston & Bird’s Lydia Rachianioti talks with Dr. Christina Benetou about the importance of perspective. In a highly stressful career, Dr. Benetou must often prioritize her work based on matters of life and death, putting the other stressors of life into perspective. Listen for a doctor’s story of working through a pandemic, how science creates hope, and where she turns when a challenge feels impossible.