Willis Towers Watson has appointed Leslie Mao as its new head of Australian equities research.
The global consultancy announced Mao’s appointment today, noting that he has over 14 years’ investment industry experience, having moved to Sydney in 2015 after working in Willis Towers Watson’s Shanghai office for over nine years, leading the company’s investment business in mainland China.
The company’s announcement said Mao had also served as co-head of the team with Ben Griffiths, who is joining T-Corp.
It said Mao would be joined in the primary Australian equities team by three experienced consultants – Michael Slaven, Jessica Melville and Sheela Veerappan.
Confirming the appointment, head of investment for Willis Towers Watson in Australasia, Martin Goss said the growth of internal teams within institutional investing had been challenging for all Australian consultants.
“Our approach, which is to offer our team members interesting work with great clients and the ability to further their careers, means we have been able to consistently attract talented people and provide continuous coverage of the Australian equities universe,” he said. “Leslie has a wealth of experience, having also been a member of our Asia Portfolio Construction Group and Greater China equities manager research team. His team will continue to provide strong coverage for this asset class.”
