One of the world’s largest and most influential hedge funds has been overhauling a crucial unit within its recruitment army.
Citadel, the $67 billion firm run by Ken Griffin, has developed into a magnet for some of the industry’s premier talent during its three decades in business. But, amid a war for elite investment pros at top hedge funds, the recruitment machine behind Griffin’s multistrategy giant has undergone a makeover, with a slew of significant departures over the past two years.
The latest move came last week, when chief people officer Sjoerd Gehring, a former Apple and Accenture executive, departed after less than two years on the job. Eleanor Sharkey, head of business development for the International Equities business, also left earlier this year. Their departures were preceded by a string of exits last year in business development — the professionals who recruit and vet investment talent, freeing up time for Citadel’s business unit leaders to focus on strategy and making money.
Citadel has taken a different approach to some peers in retooling its BD ranks. Whereas competitors have been poaching BD execs from rivals, driving up compensation packages into the millions, Citadel has been promoting from within and hiring younger sales professionals — often bankers who interact with hedge funds on a daily basis — with less direct business development experience.
“Our People Team remains focused on their important work attracting top talent and developing colleagues to build unparalleled careers at Citadel faster than they could anywhere else,” reads a statement the Miami-based firm provided to Business Insider. The manager, according to a person close to the firm, has more than 100 people across human resources roles, including the BD teams.
Citadel’s recent hires and promotions include:
As Business Insider previously reported, Sharkey’s deputy, Freya Maynard, has taken the helm of International Equities BD. The firm promoted Mackenzie Snyder to recruit for Surveyor, another stockpicking group, and Olivia Cascio to head recruiting for its Fixed Income and Macro group.
Sapna Vir, a managing director in BD at $14 billion Verition for the last three years, is joining Citadel in December as head of BD for credit and convertibles.
One unit that remains shorthanded is Global Equities, which is run by Justin Lubell. Sarah Wexler, who joined in 2019, recently left, according to people familiar with the matter. Laura Sterner, a long-time Point72 investor relations leader, joined the group as head of BD last September but left after only two months on the job.
Global Equities has gone through at least four BD heads in the last three years. Tom DeAngelis, now president at Walleye Capital, left in 2023. Jennifer Corwin left the team in early 2024 but stayed on at Citadel in a new role, and Alex Topkins left last year and recently resurfaced at Soros Fund Management.
An individual close to Citadel notes that business leaders such as Lubell are a critical part of the recruiting process, and GE has been able to attract strong talent in recent years.
Noteworthy departures in Citadel’s recruiting team over the last two years include:
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