Embracing Equity, the Importance of Sponsorship, and the Value in Having a Sense of Humor

Ahead of International Women’s Day, Miranda Zhao sat down with Tammy Sheffer, Chief Operating Officer of Solomon Partners.

Tammy joined Solomon Partners in 2020 as Chief People Officer and has more than 20 years’ experience across financial services and technology startups. She holds an MA in Criminal Justice from John Jay College and a BA in English Literature and World History from Hebrew University. Tammy also served as a Sergeant in the Israel Defense Forces.

Miranda Zhao (MZ): Great to have you here today, Tammy. The theme for International Women’s Day this year is #EmbraceEquity. As someone who has built a wealth of experience in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion through their career, what does “Embracing Equity” mean to you? And what does it mean to embrace equity in the workplace?

Tammy Sheffer (TS): Thanks, Miranda.  It’s a pleasure to speak with you.

For me, embracing equity means having equal opportunity across the board. A level playing field so that everyone has an equal opportunity to be successful in their job.

Specifically, in the context of Investment Banking, it’s about having access to career development, skill building programs and senior leaders who will coach you. The opportunity to work on a diverse set of deals will also help to build a well-rounded skill set.  

MZ: Taking a step back to look at the bigger DE&I picture, what influenced your thinking around DE&I through your career, and what motivated you to be an advocate for change?

TS: My foundational belief is sponsorship moves people’s careers. I think this gets lost in conversation sometimes. Women often seek out mentorship, and there is nothing wrong with that, we should all have mentorship. But mentorship and sponsorship are two fundamentally different things.

Mentorship is about building your skills, having access to different people to see how they do things and learn from them. Sponsorship is about building trust over time, where someone sees your work and the value you add. As a result, they are willing to put their political capital on the line to provide you with exposure and opportunities that ultimately elevate your career. They help you navigate the organization and facilitate opportunities for you to learn and grow. 

In 2019, there was a Harvard Business Review Study explaining, “A Lack of Sponsorship is Keeping Women from Advancing into Leadership.”   

It noted that, “This disparity in access to critical roles may be compounded, or perhaps caused, by differences in women’s and men’s relationships with executives who can provide access to those jobs. Here, human nature creates an uneven playing field: People’s tendency to gravitate to those who are like them on salient dimensions such as gender increases the likelihood that powerful men will sponsor and advocate for other men when leadership opportunities arise.

The similarity principle – which affects all workplace relationships — is even stronger when it comes to sponsorship, because the stakes are higher. Sponsorship is a kind of helping relationship in which senior, powerful people use their personal clout to talk up, advocate for and place a more junior person in a key role. While a mentor is someone who has knowledge and will share it with you, a sponsor is a person who has power and will use it for you.”

The advocacy to help make this change is to reshape women's thinking when they ask, “what's going to make a difference in my career?” What’s meaningful is when women find someone who's willing to put their political capital on the line and advocate for them. Sponsorship is an informal contract, so to develop this you have to show up, be competent, be committed and lean in.

MZ: I agree, sponsorship is very, very important. As you say, sponsorship is critically different from mentorship, but both are important to have. As a woman in a leadership role, how would you advise women, or anyone in fact, to proactively find that sponsorship around you?

TS: That's the tough one. Unlike mentorship, sponsorship cannot be assigned. Sponsorship is somebody putting their own influence and clout on the line for you. So, you have to ask yourself, “why would they do that?”

Throughout my career I’ve had two important sponsors. Both were CEOs of firms, both men. The CEO of OppenheimerFunds and Marc Cooper at Solomon Partners.

I believe the way to make it happen is to make yourself invaluable. Your sponsor must see the value proposition in you. Meaning, you show up, you stay on top of things, and you don’t drop the ball.  That’s not to say you won’t make mistakes - you will, we all do. But you must be committed, and you must bring value. Make your mark by being a positive force who is intellectually curious, does the hard work and jumps in.

MZ: Exactly. I think it’s important to remember too that it’s a journey. You don’t find a sponsor on day one of joining a company. You have to take time to proactively identify the people who could take on this role for you. It could be more than one person. People with different characters, someone you admire and with a skill set that also fits you. Of course, there also has to be a mutual chemistry.

TS: That’s right, you have to have a good connection and the communication has to work. To your point, it takes years to establish this. Sponsorship is built over time. I do think we all need to have perspective on this, and that’s true for men and women alike.

Today we have gravitated more toward a culture of immediate gratification. But we are still human beings, and as the saying goes, “trust takes years to build and unfortunately, only seconds to break”.

As an example, at my prior firm, I was the HR person for the Head of Investments for 7 years. When he was promoted to CEO, he made it a condition that I become his Chief of Staff. That really elevated my career to the next level, but it took 7 years. Likewise, I was hired as Chief People Officer at Solomon three years ago and today I am the COO.

Moves like this require sponsorship.

A sponsor could be an internal client or colleague who you’ve delivered for and who knows they can count on you. Oftentimes it is your boss - again, because they know they can count on you.

MZ: We also need to create an environment where it’s encouraged to develop sponsorship.

TS: Absolutely. I would also say that women need to be more strategic about how they think about sponsorship.

For men, it’s a little bit more fluid – at least in our business (M&A) – in part, because there are simply more men. The numbers are in their favor. From the HBR article I mentioned earlier, we know about the “similarity principle”.  Women need to strategize when seeking a sponsor and manage the process in a thoughtful way.

We have learned from years of research that women are often judged on performance not potential, so we need to seize opportunities and deliver. Show up, do the work, connect with potential sponsors, and perform.

MZ: Can you share with us some examples of a DE&I initiatives as Solomon Partners?

TS:  Two years ago, we launched our D&I council. The council has really worked to shape our initiatives, events and define what success looks like in this space.

We have also launched a Women’s Network, and we have since held a number of networking and customized skill building sessions.  Our Women’s Network members shared what is important to them and the skills they want to develop, and we customize our programs to meet those needs. In addition, we worked with an organization called The Dagoba Group to co-design and implement firmwide inclusive leadership training.

We are hiring more diverse talent into the organization, and we work closely with our employees to ensure we “open the aperture” when considering candidates who do not have a business or finance background.

Miranda, as you know it’s very challenging to hire senior women in M&A. Our approach is to ensure we have a robust pipeline of women coming into the organization who want to grow their careers at Solomon over the long term. 

This is a multi-year effort that we started in 2021, and I am pleased to say that in 2023, 46% of our incoming summer internship class are considered diverse. The way we classify that is women and people of color.

We host a program called the Sophomore Summit. The program enables us to access diverse sophomores earlier in the recruiting process and to teach them about investment banking. Earlier introductions to these students allow us to then interview them on an accelerated timeline.   

MZ: Which leads to a snowball effect. People see the organization is really diverse, inclusive and has a focus on equity, so you attract more talent, which in turn develops your organization. Which leads to my next question:

What would you say is the most difficult part of implementing a DE&I program?

TS: I would say that we have no shortage of ideas! In fact, from the beginning a large number of our employees raised their hand to be a part of the program. I think everyone understands the importance. The challenge for us is to ensure that we continue to evolve our programs and initiatives as we grow.

We spend time with our Solomon colleagues, who work with us on the Sophomore Summits and Super Day recruiting events, to regularly refine – or even re-define, what we are looking for in junior candidates. We look for aptitude and drive, ability to learn, and to some extent, grit. If candidates have these characteristics, we can train the business/finance skills, and we’re happy to do so.

This new way of thinking has been one of the main drivers in helping us become more diverse. By opening the recruiting aperture and re-defining what is important in junior candidates, we have been successful in hiring a diverse 2023 summer class with the best and the brightest.

MZ: How do you get everyone on board with the initiatives?

TS:  We've had significant support across the firm. Every time we do networking events, our people show up. Our CEO always attends these events unless he’s travelling and physically can’t be there. 

As I mentioned earlier, we’ve also worked hand-in-glove with a third party to tailor an Inclusive leadership Training for Solomon Partners, and that was very well received.  At Solomon, there is tremendous support for our D&I initiatives.

MZ: What are the long-term consequences if we ignore DE&I?

TS: That is not an option.

At Solomon Partners, we believe “the more diverse the team, the better equipped we are to meet and exceed colleagues’, clients’ and candidates’ expectations.”  It’s part of our D&I mission statement.

MZ: What advice do you have for those who want to be DE&I advocates but aren’t sure how to get involved?

TS: Get involved with different affiliate groups in your organization or start new ones. It's about doing your research. Come prepared, know what you want to achieve and how you view success.

MZ: What advice would you give to the young women coming to the M&A industry today?

TS: Seek a diverse set of experiences. Whatever deal team you're on, play different roles. Don’t be afraid to ask. I think part of the challenge is having a willingness to ask for what you want. That’s important, because when you have a diverse skill set, you're much more valuable. Ask to play different roles and then lean in, learn, and deliver.

MZ: You’ve held a variety of roles over your career. Looking back, what advice would you give to your younger self when you had to face challenges? 

TS: When you change industries or jobs, it's hard. Everything takes a moment. When you’re in it, you feel like you need to show results immediately, but that’s just not reality. Don’t worry if you don’t feel like you are being successful. Give yourself the benefit of time. If you’re smart, committed and willing, things will naturally click. We're so hard on ourselves. Give yourself a beat and it will come together. But know it does take time.

Also, discomfort can be good. Discomfort oftentimes means growth. It’s a sign that you have pushed yourself outside your comfort zone. Seize the opportunity to learn.

Take calculated risks with your career. Take on roles you know are stretch roles so you can evolve as a professional, learn and grow.

I would also highlight the importance of finding the right culture that works for you. Do the research and know where you're going. I really love my team. We get the work done and we have fun. Likewise, find a boss you like and admire. These things make all the difference in your level of enjoyment and connection to the role and the firm.

MZ: Earlier you mentioned giving yourself time. On that topic, as a successful career woman with a family, how do you balance everything?

TS: Keep a sense of humor! There's no perfect solution. What you need is a good support system at home and at work. It’s not possible to do everything everywhere, that doesn’t work. You need to have some balance in your home life as well as in your work life.

When I’m with my kids, I try to make sure that time is dedicated to them. Show up in the important moments, that is what makes a big difference.

MZ: There are a lot of discussions around unconscious bias, particularly following last year’s IWD campaign which focused on “break the bias”. For example, women are sometimes considered less strong or less demanding. How do you overcome this?

TS: You have to feel comfortable in your own skin. I really believe that if you are confident in your area, you do the work, and you own the room, it’s hard not to respect someone who is competent, man or woman.  Ultimately, you have to believe you belong where you are.

MZ: On that note, looking back over your career journey, how would you characterize your leadership style?

TS: It's all an evolution. Different experiences shape how you show up at work. Earlier in my career, one manager I admired very much was always in the trenches with us/the team. He never let us struggle alone. He would give his perspective, but he would also give the team space to figure out the best approach to get the work done. That really shaped how I think about leadership.

I believe in being “in it” with the team. Setting the direction and acting as a sounding board when needed. Being as hands on or hands off as the team wants and needs.  As I mentioned earlier, I really enjoy working with my team, and I am vested in their careers and in sponsoring them as they continue their journeys.

MZ: Thank you, Tammy. A lot of great insights – it’s been wonderful talking to you.

TS: Thanks, Miranda. It’s been my pleasure!