How Motherhood Made me a Better Banker

“I am a better banker since I became a mother. I have learned patience and how to weigh things up. And how to deal with emergencies without losing my cool: a master’s degree in crisis management!” Simona Maellare has spent her entire career in the world of investment banking. When she growing up in Soverato, Calabria, she always knew that education was the key to escaping her too small hometown, the only possible social elevator. She tells us: “I was born in November, so I was always the youngest in my class, and maybe that was why I was so hardworking. After high school I wanted to pursue an international career, so I chose Bocconi, where I also did my Master’s degree.” In record time... it goes without saying. By the age of 22, her résumé read: Bachelor and Master in Economics from Bocconi University.

Her first job was at JP Morgan. “What I remember about those years is working hard until late at night, and the group of colleagues I had; we were friends too because we spent so much time together. We may have been clueless about this all-consuming work– even finance is more human now – but I remember the huge satisfaction and adrenaline rush of those times.”

Working in private equity and M&As (at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, DLJ, and now UBS), for Maellare the best moment is always when the client decides to give you the mandate. “To this day, that is the greatest satisfaction for me, partly because I am competitive and partly because I enjoy taking on new challenges. This includes the opportunity to work with top people, from colleagues to clients. It is an incentive to always prepare to be the best.”  

One of the 100 most influential women in the City of London, Maellare also chairs the Investment Bank Diversity & Inclusion Council. On the issue of gender in finance, she is clear: “The cultural problem exists, but a lot is changing. If women once had to masculinize themselves to get into the industry, that is no longer the case. On the contrary, although I am often the only woman in the room, I underscore my diversity. I dress in bright colors, shocking pink, feminine.” In a testosterone-driven world, thinking differently has its advantages.

“In some cases, I’ve leveraged my greater ability to dialogue, compared to some of my colleagues, who use language that is too direct or aggressive with clients. To the point of risking compromising relationships. I told them: ‘Look what happens when there aren’t any women sitting at the table, making decisions.’”

Motherhood was a revelation. “I had two children during my career. It wasn’t easy, but I think they taught me a lot: I learned how to manage my priorities and my time. Today I am also more ‘maternal’ with my colleagues, I communicate better.” But Maellare is quick to point out that her relationship with her own mother was enormously helpful. She says: “She encouraged me to work even when the children were little. My mother was born in 1931 and had a university degree, an exception in the 1950s. But she was never able to work when she was raising me, my two sisters and my brother. 
I like to think of myself as her payback, in a way.”