In this episode, fintech executive Valisha Graves shares with us her work legacy path to combine her interests and experience in business and technology with “giving back” to provide opportunities as a mentor and educator to minorities and women, who are underrepresented. Leveraging the resources of her corporate employer and her alma mater, she leads by identifying what she cares about, always trying to do more with her time, continually learning and adding value in the right spaces.
Valisha initially thought she wanted to be a prosecutor, but instead she decided not to go to law school and switched her interests to the financial services arena. Being a woman, a black woman in financial services is a rarity. And aside from a fairly brief detour to a start-up, she has worked in the corporate world, which she discovered suits her personality and desire for structure. The start-up “adventure” was a change of pace to building e-commerce in the retail industry.
All of Valisha’s endeavors, both in her career and outside activities align with her core values of giving back: being accessible as a mentor and providing access opportunities. At Morgan Stanley, she has stayed connected to both the technology and DEI spaces. One example is leadership in a joint venture between Cornell and Morgan Stanley. This gives her a platform for impact through the opportunity to scale.
Takeaways:
Quotes:
“Always be a “value-added” while developing a core competency”
“Think: What do I care about? What that’s especially meaningful to you can you do with your time?”
“Think: “What resources do I have? (contacts, talent, through your employer) What more could I be doing? What extra step?”
How to reach Valisha:
Https://.www.linkedin.com/in/valishagraves
Twitter: @valishagraves
Bio:Valisha Graves is an Executive Director in Wealth Management at Morgan Stanley. When we hear of Morgan Stanley, we usually think of financial services and advisors. But Valisha’s role is different. She leads the Account Onboarding Fraud Control and Product Strategy team in Field Strategic Services. She joined Morgan Stanley’s ModelWare team in 2005 as a Product Manager responsible for a portfolio of Fintech applications - specifically stock valuation, supply chain, profitability maps, leverage buyout and cross-asset analytics. Previously she was a Business Technology Officer for Investment Banking and Global Capital Markets at Morgan Stanley. Her career includes a brief stint at an e-commerce start-up, experience in Financial Planning & Analysis at Lehman Brothers, and Management Consulting at Ernst & Young.
And her interests go way beyond Fintech. Valisha has been very active in the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) space for many years at work and in volunteer activities at her alma mater, Cornell University. She helped launch EDIT (Enhancing Diversity in Technology) at Morgan Stanley, the first Wall Street forum aimed at Black and Latino technologists. She is a member of Cornell University Council, and Black Alumni Association (CBAA) and chairs the Development Committee of Cornell Mosaic. Most recently she was selected for a term as Chair of the President’s Council of Cornell Women (PCCW).
Eight years after her AB in Government/International Relations from Cornell, Valisha added to her credentials with an MBA from Columbia University. In recent years, she has taught Communication Skills for Technology Professionals at Baruch College (CUNY) and lectured on Fintech Strategy at three other university business schools. Among her awards, she was selected in 2019 as a 92nd Street Y Women in Power Fellow, and she is a Trustee at her high school, Suffield Academy, where she was A Better Chance Scholar.