>> if i could have everybody answer the same question of what do you do when you come to work, the answer is we are responsible for the savings and pensions of real people like my mom and dad and your mom and dad, then we do a better job. francine: it's the world's largest listed hedge fund manager and after 240 years in existence, man group has a woman in charge for the very first time. robin grew was promoted from president to chief executive last september. the high point of a 15 year career. the former bursar entered the world of finance three decades ago and never left. >> the speed of change, the impact, the global nature, the challenge of it never stopped getting more and more infectious for me. francine: in this episode of leaders with laqua, i speak to robin about diversity, purpose and what the future holds in an ever-changing world.

thank you so much for joining us on leaders. the world is a bit strange. there are so many poly crises, it's just difficult to get a handle of what comes next. robin: yes, that would be the shortest answer i could ever give, yes, it is difficult. i think if this year has taught us anything, it's the prediction is not our strongest suit, perhaps. that isn't just in relation to markets, it's in relation to these big geopolitical events that we are still living with. francine: it's incredible to think we are in a better place. i feel like every six months there's the doom and gloom crews saying this is it, we need to evaluate what happens next. yet, the economy holds. >> i think when we talk about it and have this conversation about higher for longer, which i still say aloud, then cross my fingers in some way that maybe i'm going to be entirely wrong, but higher

for longer, i think we are the -- where the nuances in that message is what we are unlikely to see is 0%. we are probably unlikely to see 2%, we may see some 50 basis points adjustments, for sure. but i think what we have been signaled clearly from central banks is that they are not frightened of using policy to control inflation or to try to respond to inflation. and i think that's the messaging we should all get used to. the last 10 years, 0% free money . next 10 years, higher for longer without slight nuance in the way that i've described. francine: i imagine 2024 could be difficult because of the volatility. so it makes it harder to manage money. robin: i think it does. the denomination effect that we saw because of the hiccups in the system with the banking crisis with ldi, the put premium

back into liquidity. what is your liquidity risk, how do you manage through these different economic cycles, and are you prepared or are you ready for hedging, which -- let's remember what that means. at times he will do well and at times you are not going to do well with the entirety of your portfolio. that's ok. that actually managing your portfolio for these different changing economic cycles or they hate beers is what you are supposed to be doing. francine: does it change how you lead man group? >> it changes because of the way we position the organization. we are an organization that is diverse, our capabilities are diverse. we have different engines doing different things, be it on the con side or the fundamental discretionary side. we have products in the macro space, equity space, we are long earning and we are long short. what we are seeing is our

clients are interested in more customized solutions. in solutions that answer the problem they've got why the challenge they have rather then, here's a project -- product, by that or nothing else. change is in a way you deliver an organization, changes the fact that the value you are driving towards is not just about, here's a product, but it's a, here's a solution. francine: what is it mean on how you are focusing your energy? i guess hiring is also something that you need to think of carefully. >> we don't make widgets. what we have are highly talented individuals who are focused on being the very best they can be in the workplace and delivering what they do, that could be our engines or could be in our middle office department or in our legal department. it's about a war on talent. hiring the very best people. retaining, keeping those people,

giving them opportunity, giving them a space where they can be the best they can be is incredibly important. it's tech, its talent. its vision, it's about knowing that when people come to work every day, every single person at man group adds value and is valued. that's important. it's that moment -- if i could have everybody answer the same question, what do you come to work to do every day, the answer is because we are the custodians and responsible for the savings on the pensions of real people, like my mom and dad and your mom and dad, then we do a better job every day. francine: how do you higher? there's a war on talent, there's a battle to get the very best. what do they want? >> it depends. that's the one size does not fit all. who doesn't want to be around really smart people, number one. who doesn't want to be around a place that values your input. who doesn't want to be in a place that doesn't seek to be

better today than it was yesterday, better tomorrow than it is today. who doesn't want to be around the place which is actually interested in u.s. a person and interested in being capable of making you better, so where do we go? we go broad, we go wide, we look for difference, energy, excitement, that person who's able to get energized. francine: you don't always hear that from a big finance chief executive. is there perception for finance? >> i think finance hasn't done a good a job as we might in explaining the value we bring to society more generally. i don't cure cancer, that's not what i do. i wish i could, i wish i was that smart and capable to do that. but what we do is protect and enrich the savings on the pensions of people. people who have worked incredibly hard all of their lives and diligently put their money aside in their 401(k) or

wherever it may be, and we are entrusted with that and we can give them, if we do our job well, financial security. we can provide something that enables legacy investing, it enables access to health care, education, roof over your head to pay the bills, to all of those things. that's a pretty important thing to do. francine: you seem to be filled with a big sense of purpose, which you don't often get from hedge fund managers. >> i have a firm that runs a -- that has a big sense of purpose. i think that energy is something we should put to work. when i sit down with big allocators and we talk about what it is we are both trying to do, it's the same. i think we forget that. and the institutional size numbers that we talk about, we lose a bit of that sense of what

we are here to do properly. francine: robin grew on adapting to change in an uncertain future. >> i'm not good at predicting what the next year or next five years is going to be. what we need to do is be flexible, to understand and be dynamic, to think about the impacts of markets and changes. ♪

francine: from renewed geopolitical risks to climate change, a new era of interest rates, the world of finance is also adapting to change. i continue the conversation with man group's chief executive. do you worry about what the future economic footprint looks like for the world? >> our job is to say, how do we think about what could happen, how do you stress your portfolio, how do you think about what your outcomes are today?

people drawing their pensions today versus drawing it 50 years from now. man group is 240 years old. we match the duration of our clients who aren't thinking about just returns for a year from now, but are trying to think about what they are planning for 30 years from now. we are not good at predicting, i'm not good at predicting what the next year or next five years is going to be. what we need to do is be flexible, to understand and be dynamic, to think about the impact of markets and changes. francine: are you worried about geopolitics or market function? >> i think the fact we change geopolitics to geoeconomics is something of an impact way. so, as we think about what happened when russia invaded ukraine and the impact on our fossil fuel pricing rethink about the worries and concerns around supply chain's post-covid, and the fact that these buffers, we think about corporate real estate in the

refinancing is inevitable, it's not a 30 year mortgage, these are things coming up for refinance within the next 3, 4, 5 years. that's a lot of money being put to work. we are in an environment where we look out onto the city, office buildings are in a different place and now have a different level of occupancy that we have seen before. i think these are things we have to take into consideration. francine: what do you worry about the most, you have ranking or almost one in the same? just a huge transformation of change? >> i think we will see credit markets playing a role. i don't think that's a short-term thing, i think it's a real term thing. if you see lending, tightening, you will see a stellar need for financing. it isn't that all things are created equal. i'm a big proponent of active management and a big proponent of credit. not every active manager, not every credit expert is going to

be able to deliver in these environment -- environments. how do i think about prioritization, i think about priorities in terms of capabilities. i think about being as skilled as we can be in data, in analytics, in tech, in credit, in multiple asset classes. then being able to pivot those. i think that's where i think about things. but do i think about, that's the number one thing i'm focusing on, i don't have the luxury. i think we have to think about all of these things. francine: you are looking at acquisitions to be in certain spaces? >> we have always said we will grow the firm organically and look for acquisitions to increase our capability on content for clients. i think what's interesting as we completed our acquisition for private credit u.s.. the multiples look more interesting. we've been talking about consolidation. we have been talking about

consolidation since the gfc. this is one of those points i'm going to laugh about in a few years time from now. but i actually think as we look at the barriers to entry into this space on the cost of running our businesses, if we think about the scale that we need to operate at, i think -- and the multiples that we are starting to see coming down, i think this could be an interesting time for consolidation. francine: why has it been a long time coming, is there regulation or little appetite? >> when cash is free, it softens that. i think the moment where people need to deploy and scale in liquid markets has been something to soften. if you look at the trends, trends have been in passive, it has been in private equity if you think about the number of asset that no longer sit in the public domain. that has been our theme over the last 10 years. i think when private equity doesn't have as much cash, when

lending is harder, these opportunities for niche spaces and expertise to come about, they want scale, they need to be able to have scale. having an organization that can deliver the amounts of scale we have put in play. that bit that is less sexy and exciting, that infrastructure, the ability to take essences and grow them, that's what we do. francine: what do you think of the city of london? there is a lot it can offer. where do see it in five years? >> you are looking at a u.k. market and u.k. listed ceo, i cannot be more interested in u.k. plc. i think we have held such an extraordinary position in financial markets. so, anything we can do to keep that shine is important. the competition is high and we shouldn't -- and the way that we should in our firms, sit on our

hands and think that all of our history is going to count for long if we don't keep running. so, i am a great believer that we drive and continue to drive u.k. plc. there is such a lot of innovation, creativity and growth. there such a lot of expertise that sits in the small shores. so anything we can do to keep that alive and keep it at its top game, i'm all for it. but we operate as a global organization and i'm going to go where there is strong capability to invest, where the markets are deeper, where the clients need us to be, and where we can find opportunity, and i'm going to continue to look for that. our -- i'm a u.k. listed ceo who can't help but want for this to be great. francine: up next, being a female leader in an industry to drift -- traditionally dominated by men. >> i am hopeful that we are going to see a better reflection of differences at the top of

every organization, be it financial services ordering that. ♪ francine: women make up less than a quarter of employees at thousands of hedge funds and other alternative investment funds globally. they're even more minorities in senior positions. when man group appointed an all-female leadership position last year, it marked a massive shift for the company and a milestone for the industry.

i continue the conversation with robin grew. 240 years old -- first female. -- first female chief executive at an institution out 204 years old. should have been earlier, are you optimistic about the future of females in finance? >> i am hopeful we are going to see a better reflection different at the top of every organization, be it financial services. as a been a long time coming, i cannot help but say, it would be terrific, it would be great to see more female ceos before me. i hope we will see a lot after me. the difference is important. i think anything that enables us to put the most talented people at the top of organizations, and to lead those organizations with enthusiasm and capability is what we are after.

so, i'm hopeful that i'm knocking down doors, barriers. francine: the first time someone meets you, it's like the infectious energy that people notice. is that how you lead? >> yes. i have been accused of being many things over my time, but that slight duracell bunny, ever ready, just keep them going. i'm a bit that. i have an enthusiasm for what we do and a passion for what we do. it is sometimes like i'm a big boom in the room. but it's something that i think is incredibly important. you don't do this job 98%, you do this job -- this is why my mathematicians hate me when i say anything larger than 100%, but it's a hundred percent. francine: we always like that or is it something that you've learned? >> yes, it's natural and it is

something that has forged my career, that willingness and excitement to learn and to be part of fixing things, doing things better has been somewhat of a hallmark. i have a ridiculous enjoyment for learning and doing things. i walk into any organization or far offices, in the short journey in london that you have from this euro to the fifth floor. if there is somebody in the elevator with me, i will ask them a thousand questions, they cannot wait to get out of the door by the end of it. but it's interesting what's going on in what's happening and it's interesting people. fundamentally and driven by being interested in the people i work with, and the people who we are here to work for. francine philando castile started as a criminal barrister. what made you switch? >> i love being an advocate and perhaps think i am still an advocate. i was in the criminal and civil

bar and i thought, i will do this commerce thing, and i will go back and become a commercial barrister. and, it sucked me in. i never went back. the speed of change, the impact, the global nature, the challenge of it just never stopped getting more and more infectious for me. so, that legal training, has it been useful, yes. has the advocacy theme been more useful, probably, but it has just been the best journey. francine: do you have bad days, who do you call? >> ghostbusters. if i have a bad day, i have been a half full kind of person. every belief i have is that you make the best out of those tough days. of course there are tough days, of course there are days when you put a challenge in front of you where performance is in grade or where i feel like we

could have done a better job. those are moments where you've got to move forward. you have to take the next step forward. and that's what i do. i think it's resilience, i think it is part and parcel of perhaps my makeup is to be resilient. who do i turn to, i turn to friends and family and i take a break. i take a breather. normally, not very longer breather because i get too excited by other things, but i fill my life, i fill my life with things that are positive around me. i have a great family around me. i have an extraordinary wife and son, parents, friends. i am enriched by that. so, that enables me to take the next step. francine: do you think there's a difference being a leader in 2024 to what it was like in 2010? does leadership or chief executive jobs need to come with more of a sense of purpose and morally lead?

>> that annoyed different way of doing it than the way i do it. that's with a sense of purpose, for sure. when you speak and you are in charge of an organization, i think it is incumbent upon leaders to be enthused and to be passionate, and to be engaged. i think when times are tough, when things are tricky in the world, i think it's important that you know that and that you acknowledge that in your organizations. and we have had some tough times in the world, beyond markets, in the world for people to live there live. we run global organizations with people who come from places that are now in war zones, or that are too close to borders where there are war zones. where the challenges have been very real post-covid, or where the issues are being felt

materially in politics. and not to acknowledge that i think feels inauthentic. francine: when you are in charge of a bigger organization, it's tough being close to your employees, how do you do that? >> it's about communication, it's about being available and transparent. it's about setting your stall out. who are we, what are we, what are we here to do and how do we do that, how do we do that the best weekend? my view is you do it by creating extraordinary and exceptional teams that have a focused and that understand the humanity of that, and that that's important. to do that, you need different people. different people come with different backgrounds and different flavors of their experience of life. it is in an easy thing to do, it's just a thing we should do. it's tough. francine: i guess employing people that will say no to you.

how much do you think of that and being surrounded by saying this is not a great idea? >> if i will have people around me, their excellence needs to be something i hear. it's less likely -- my executive team might get cross with me with saying this, really not the most likely pull of people from which the next billion idea is going to sprout and germinate. it's going to be levels of other people within the firm. we need to hear that and it's important that i am seen as capable of listening and changing my position. there are times when i am going to be less willing to change my position, but having somebody who will come from any part of the organization to say, hey, i feel this way about this issue, and i don't think i'm being heard is important. francine: where are you in five years?

>> still duracell bunion. on the best answer to any battery life, but perhaps on a renewable, chargeable basis. where am i, i hope still leading man group. i hope looking back on the last five years and thinking how i could do it even better. i hope driving things with the same passion and enthusiasm, and i hope with the same brilliance set of people around me. francine: thank you so much. >> you are very welcome. thank you for having me. ♪ her uncle's unhappy. i'm sensing an underlying issue. it's t-mobile. it started when we tried to get him under a new plan. but they they unexpectedly unraveled their “price lock” guarantee. which has made him, a bit... unruly. you called yourself the “un-carrier”. you sing about “price lock” on those commercials. “the price lock, the price lock...” so, if you could change the price, change the name! it's not a lock, i know a lock.

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>> there have been inquiries about how china and the united states can achieve a close relationship. my answer is exchange. exchange, cooperation and eventually accommodation. then we will become closely intertwined. david: chinese president xi jingping speaking during his meeting wednesday with a group of ceos talking about -- taking the late flight wednesday, where the forum is taking place. live pictures of the forum, we are looking i