FT Adviser’s 51 for 51 series interviews one woman a week for 51 weeks of the year, in the lead-up to week 52 – International Women’s Day in March 2026.
The series aims to understand the pathways women have had into the financial services industry and enables FT Adviser to highlight the fantastic opportunities it provides for those considering a career in the profession.
This week, FT Adviser speaks with Tara Gillespie.
She is head of global assets at Redington, a Gallagher company.
Responsible for ensuring the firm’s clients are well supported across wealth managers, charities and insurance, she spent a significant proportion of her career advising large institutional investors on asset allocation, responsible investment and fund selection.
FT Adviser: What was your route into financial services?
Tara Gillespie: I studied Biochemistry at Imperial College – nothing at all finance-related.
I’ve raced sailing boats for as long as I can remember and was fortunate enough to meet people from all walks of life on various racing teams, including (fortunately for me) senior figures in financial services.
It was chatting with them about their work that first sparked my interest in the industry.
Building my network at a young age served me well, as one of those contacts helped me navigate a path to my first internship, which was at JP Morgan Asset Management (thank you Campbell Fleming).
It was through working on boats in my university summer holiday that I also met Redington’s co-founder, Rob Gardner.
He encouraged me to consider investment consulting as a great first step into finance and I was delighted to be offered a graduate role at Redington in 2013.
FTA: What is your current role and what does it entail?
TG: I lead Redington’s global assets advisory team.
We work with a wide range of large investors, but much of our time is spent helping wealth managers make better informed investment decisions.
If I could start over, I’d be more respectful of the learning curve I was on
This could be through supporting in-house teams with portfolio construction, independent fund research or sustainable investment advice.
As wealth firms continue to scale up through mergers and acquisitions, and look to institutionalise their investment propositions, my role is to drive our offering in a way that supports this transition and ultimately helps more end savers achieve their objectives without exposing them to unnecessary risk or cost.
FTA: What aspect of your personality do you believe adds a USP to what you do?
TG: I’m an over-thinker in every aspect of life.
This brings its challenges but, from a work perspective, makes me a natural problem solver when clients come to us with a unique challenge or if we’re grappling with a particular issue as a team.
People often tell me I’m high-energy too, and I like to think I bring this to my work and team in a positive way.
FTA: What words best describe your approach to your career?
TG: I would say authentic, because I just couldn’t imagine being a different person at work to who I am at home.
It’s good to have role models, but trying to be someone else will always come back to bite you.
I also like to think creatively and dream big but I’m a little impatient.
My team will probably tell you I have a tendency to underestimate how long it takes for these things to become a reality. I’m working on it.
FTA: What advice would you give your younger self starting out in your career?
TG: There’s no substitute for time in the saddle. Looking back, there were definitely times I was overconfident in my capabilities without having the experience.
If I could start over, I’d be more respectful of the learning curve I was on and enjoy the process of learning the things I didn’t know, rather than being impatient to constantly get one step ahead.
Earlier on in my career my work-life balance definitely took a hit because I was in such a hurry to get places.
FTA: What career advice would you give to young women who want to do what you do now?
TG: Attitude trumps aptitude every day of the week. Say yes to the opportunities you’re offered, show interest and be curious.
Also, don’t lose sight of the bigger picture. Try not to get hung up on things like small differences in pay or slightly longer promotion timelines that you’d ideally like.
Careers compound like your savings.
If you find your work interesting and you work for a good company, then just knuckle down, work hard and bring the right attitude then occasionally step back and consider how far you’ve come over longer periods, you’ll be amazed.
It’s also important to remember that the network and reputation you build will last your whole career.
So, be open and friendly to those you interact with because you never know who you might need to lean on later in your career.
FTA: What’s the one thing you would like to see changed/enhanced to encourage more women into your particular specialism?
TG: Investment consulting is actually more gender balanced than other areas of the finance industry.
But it’s often the case that consulting careers — such as management and strategy consulting — attract more women.
These are generalisations and stereotypes (so please take with a large helping of salt) but while investment banking and trading have historically been framed as competitive and aggressive, consulting is generally marketed as working with people to solve problems and make better decisions.
Behaviourally, I think this is perhaps what can make it more appealing to women.
As for the question of how we can entice more women in, at Redington we make a conscious effort to ensure everyone from our senior team and graduate cohorts have strong female representation.
This has made a big difference to us as an organisation.
FTA: What’s your perception of women’s attitude to finance?
TG: When you look at the data, women are very good at financial decision-making. They stay focused and don’t get pulled off course by market movements or emerging trends.
But there is certainly a lot more nervousness from women when it comes to taking the leap into investing from saving in cash — the statistics on the gender investment gap say it all.
Although, let’s face it, it’s tough for anyone who doesn’t know what they’re doing on the investment side to get started.
As an industry, we still haven’t got a great answer for educating people – women and men — on investing.
My hope is that the FCA’s Advice Guidance Boundary Review will go some way to helping solving this issue.
FTA: As we approach the great wealth transfer, with women’s wealth set to grow, what is needed to improve women’s financial resilience?
TG: An important thing to note upfront is that, yes women are going to benefit from some of the $5.5trn wealth transfer over the next 25 years.
But these women are already going to be more financially resilient than people who aren’t receiving anything. So, in many ways, I’m less worried about them.
When it comes to women’s financial resilience more broadly, there’s a lot to unpack in terms of behavioural biases and biology.
With this in mind, it would be amazing to see the industry to develop educational support and services that attract women who really need help, not just the ones set to inherit large sums.
For sure, there’s also a role for women who’ve succeeded both in their career and becoming a confident investor to pay it forward and support the next generation coming up behind them.
FTA: Are there any women in financial services who’ve supported / inspired you you’d like to give a shout out to?
TG: I have been fortunate enough to work with lots of amazing and talented women, but a special shout out goes to Redington’s deputy chief executive, Zoe Taylor, who’s been a brilliant mentor, manager and friend to me over different stages of my career.
Tara Gillespie is head of global assets for Redington, A Gallagher Company
