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For Modern Women of Style & Purpose
TAMPA
BAY - SARASOTA
EDITION of
| S 2016
For
Modern
Women
Style & Purpose
TAMPA BAY - SARASOTA EDITION | WINTER 2016
WOMEN IN
FINANCE
Women in
Fashion
The Modern
Woman’s
Guide to
Marriage
B
MissRespresentation
Our
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Dress courtesy The Met Fashion House
Aimee
Cogan
Managing Director - Wealth Management
Family Wealth Director, Wealth Advisor,
Morgan Stanley, Sarasota
Her signature smile and gracious manner make
Aimee Cogan a welcome face in a field that can, at
times, be intimidating. Since her first financial job, as
a commercial lender for SunTrust Bank, Aimee has
climbed the ranks, earning herself a sterling reputation
for her expert analytical skills and strong commitment
to her clients and their financial future.
52 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com
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| 53
Today, Aimee is a founding member of
The Bellwether Group at Morgan Stanley,
where she has attained the rank of Managing
Director. Emphasizing the human aspect
of the industry, Aimee uses her energetic
personality to connect with her clients
and to better understand their personal
circumstances and goals in order to develop
a wealth management strategy that gives
them increased comfort. She is highly rated
in the financial industry and is consistently
ranked among the top financial advisors in
the nation: most recently as a Barron’s Top
100 Women Financial Advisor in 2014*,
Barron’s Top 1,200 Financial Advisor in
2016**, and a Financial Times 400 Top
Advisor in 2016***.
seaports. We came down for him to run Port
Everglades. I was between Ft. Lauderdale
and Jacksonville for high school. I attended
the University of Florida for college, and after
graduating with honors with a B.S. degree
in Finance, I moved to Sarasota for my first
professional career position. Once I got to
Sarasota, I never wanted to leave.
Sadly, about that time, my grandfather
passed away, and I was helping my
grandmother with their finances. Working
with her during that difficult time, and
really helping educate her made me realize
how much I loved the personal wealth
management side of finance. I knew I had
found my niche.
What was it about Sarasota that you
feel in love with?
Away from the office, Aimee is a wife and
mother to her eight-year-old daughter, Bella.
She also is very involved in the community,
lending her time and expertise to numerous
local charities primarily focused on children
and education. Earlier this year she was
honored by Girls Inc. of Sarasota as the 2016
“She Knows Where She’s Going” award
recipient.
Originally, you went into banking.
How did that transpire with your
career?
Being well equipped to provide my clients
what they needed was important to me, so
I focused on pursuing as much education,
training and licensing to navigate the
financial industry. I also added a number
of professional designations, including
a Certified Financial Planner CFP®
designation, and a CIMA® Certified
Investment Analyst designation. In addition,
I recently earned the Family Wealth
Director designation from Morgan Stanley
Wealth Management, which centers on a
comprehensive approach to the complex
financial needs of affluent families. I’m a selfprofessed fan of continuing education.
In this GRAVITAS interview, Aimee
talks about her experience in the financial
industry, balancing her work and personal
life, as well as her fondness for Sarasota.
I understand you’re a Florida girl—
mostly.
I was born in Boston, but we moved to Ft.
Lauderdale when I was three. So, I’ve spent
most of my life in Florida. My father ran
I liked the community. It’s such a
philanthropic community—and the fact
that it was close-knit. I enjoyed the quality
of life, the family atmosphere and less traffic.
Although, it feels like we’re getting a little
more congested these days.
I always had an interest in math and finance.
When I was in school, I originally wanted to
be an investment banker. The dean of the
business school was a mentor and a great
help during my career development. He
said, “Aimee, if you want to do this, get an
MBA, but get work experience first.” Taking
his advice, I came to Sarasota to start as
a commercial lender for a bank. I started
with Sun Bank as a management associate,
focused on commercial lending and the
private bank. I quickly fell in love with the
Sarasota community, which made it very
difficult to leave to pursue an MBA.
Were you one of the few women in the
industry when you started out?
When I started at the bank, while there were
many women, the wealth management roles
were mostly male-based. Then, when I got
to Morgan Stanley, I saw a greater disparity.
There aren’t many women in the industry.
Around ten percent is the industry norm. We
need to work on that because this is a great
career for women.
Have you had any women mentors in
your career?
Thankfully, I have had some terrific women
mentors along the way, both at SunTrust and
Morgan Stanley and within the Sarasota
community, who were great advocates. They
also made sure to highlight the importance
of continuing that tradition. Through several
financial advisor councils I’ve sat on and
co-chaired at Morgan Stanley, I’ve been
able to spend time focusing on improving
our outreach to women across the country.
Not just as advisors, but also, how we are
approaching and how we can better serve
female clients.
Receiving Barron’s Award
Key to the Cure
54 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com
I know that you’re involved in Girls
Inc.. Can you share a little what
brought you to that organization?
JFCS Gala with her husband, Chris
Do you think women have an
advantage in being naturally more
empathetic in dealing with other
women?
Yes, as a female financial advisor there is
a natural tendency towards relationship
management, understanding and
connection. There needs to be a great
comfort level and willingness to listen and
ask questions—there’s no question that’s
too small. There’s a great bond that happens
when you are genuinely concerned and
connect with a client.
So, you have a daughter. How old is
she?
I do, Bella. She’s eight-years-old, and she’s so
fun! She’s our little super girl. My husband
and I are so proud when we witness positive
social interactions with her peers, and her
great deal of empathy to those around her,
especially given that she’s an only child.
How did your work life shift after
having your daughter?
Early in my career I understood the merits of
working on a team. So after starting a family,
that was the natural next phase in my career
development. Soon after I transitioned to
Morgan Stanley, I reached out to two key
advisors who shared a similar high level of
experience and client-service mindset, and
we’ve been together for almost ten years. In
addition to being able to provide varying
specialties for our clients, being on a team
allowed me to have a successful work-life
balance after having our daughter.
About ten years ago I was exposed to
Girls Inc. on a site visit and was absolutely
blown away by the organization and what
they were doing. It’s inspiring how they’re
helping empower and support young
girls, as demonstrated in their mission of
creating strong, smart and bold young
women. So it was a great honor to receive the
Girls Inc., “She Knows Where She’s Going”
award at this year’s luncheon.
What kind of message would you like
to give back to girls today to help them
in finding their way?
I always say, “Find the yes.” When obstacles
come your way, they may be momentarily
distracting, but put your energy and hard
work into finding the solution. In addition,
you can do anything you put your mind to.
Often times this involves reaching out to
your network, and looking to mentors, who
are usually more than willing to guide you.
pretty fun and entertaining activity, because
we have to run to the pantry, get all our
ingredients and run out. She’ll take away my
knives and replace them with a spoon: “Now
you have to cut all your meat with a spoon!”
Does your husband cook?
My husband is a great cook. I got lucky that
there’s a balance. He’s a naturally creative
cook.
Do you have a bucket list?
Oh, yes. The bucket list is almost all travel
related, and I’m working my way through that
list. I love to travel.
What’s one place that you haven’t been
that you must go to?
I haven’t been to the Maldives. Maldives
are high up on the list. I’ve been throughout
Africa, and I love Africa, but I haven’t been to
Morocco, so that one is also high on my list.
The Middle East is as well. I’ve also wanted to
go to Dubai. Japan, too!
Do you get to take long trips? You can’t
just go to Africa for the weekend.
Balancing a marriage, a family and
a successful financial career can be
tough—what have been some of the
challenges for you?
It’s definitely all about finding a balance. I
find that I focus on work, family, and friends,
and at times self-care can get lost in the
shuffle. One of the great things, though,
about my team, is that we are strategic with
our time and clients’ needs—coordinating
time in and out of the office, and every now
and then time off to get a little recharge; we
work on being our best selves, available when
our clients need us.
What do you do to de-stress?
I love this workout called Mantra, which is
basically an intense Pilates class. It is a class
I love taking as often as I can, but I’m pretty
active in general. We go paddle boarding and
kayaking.
My daughter and I also both love cooking
together, and are big Food Network fans.
One of our favorite shows and now games
that we play, is “Cut-Throat Kitchen.” That’s a
Thankfully there have been moments on the
rare occasion to take extended time away.
However educating our daughter is very
important to us, so we utilize her summer
breaks to explore other cultures while giving
her an expanded view of the world and life.
What would be a perfect day for you?
My perfect day starts with a chance to pop
up early and work out. Then I return home
and am able to help get Bella ready and off to
school. Our morning drive to school is one
of my favorite parts of the day, when we talk
nonstop, and laugh a lot. From there I dash
to the office, where I relish the opportunity
to work with my team helping our clients.
When I finally tear myself away from the
office, hopefully soon I’ll be going home to
the new home we’re building, where Bella
and I would start our version of “Cut-Throat
Kitchen.” We’d run into our fabulous new
pantry, get our ingredients, and make a fun
dinner together with Chris. That would be
my perfect day.
Continued on page 56
GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com
| 55
VISIT US | LOEWSHOTELS.COM | 800.23.LOEWS
THE MIND
Bookmarks
Smarter Better Faster: The Secrets of Being
Productive in Life and Business
-Charles Duhigg
This new book from Charles Duhigg, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Power of
Habit, explores the science of productivity and why managing how you think—rather than
what you think—can transform your life. Drawing on the latest findings in neuroscience,
psychology, and behavioral economics—as well as experiences from educational reformers,
FBI agents and CEOs—this scrupulously researched book reveals that productive people
don’t simply act differently but view the world in a profoundly different way.
A Girl’s Guide to Moving On
-Debbie Macomber
A moving tale about friendship, reinvention and hope, A
Girl’s Guide to Moving On follows a woman and her mother
while they help each other through the pain and heartache
after divorce. When Nichole discovers that her husband had
an affair, her picture-perfect life is thrown off-course. Inspired
by Nichole’s strength, her mother-in-law follows the same course with her husband,
who has been unfaithful for years. Macomber offers us a moving and inspirational
story about two women supporting each other and affirms the ability of every
woman to forge a new path.
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World
That Can’t Stop Talking -Susan Cain
At least one-third of the people we know are introverts—those
who prefer listening to speaking. In Quiet, Susan Cain argues
that it is to introverts, such as Rosa Parks and Steve Wozniak,
that we owe many of the great contributions to society. Cain
asserts that we drastically undervalue introverts, and she shows
the negative ramifications it has on us. Cain tracks the rise of the “Extrovert Ideal”
throughout the 20th century and examines how this notion pervades our culture
today. Cain’s research is enhanced by stories of real people who have found success as
introverts. Passionately argued and meticulously researched, Quiet has the potential to
permanently alter how we view introverts and how they see themselves.
56 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com
Continued from page 55
Aimee Cogan is a Private Wealth Advisor with Morgan
Stanley Wealth Management in Sarasota. The information
contained in this article is not a solicitation to purchase or
sell investments. Any information presented is general in
nature and not intended to provide individually tailored
investment advice. Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, LLC,
member SIPC.
*Source: Barron’s “Top 100 Women Financial Advisors,”
June 8, 2015. Barron’s is a registered trademark of Dow
Jones & Company, L.P. All rights reserved. Barron’s “Top
100 Women Financial Advisors” bases its ratings on
qualitative criteria: professionals with a minimum of 7
years financial services experience, acceptable compliance
records, client retention reports, customer satisfaction, and
more.
EVERYONE NEEDS
some down time.
Financial Advisors are quantitatively rated based on
varying types of revenues and assets advised by the
financial professional, with weightings associated for each.
Because individual client portfolio performance varies
and is typically unaudited, this rating focuses on customer
satisfaction and quality of advice. The rating may not be
representative of any one client’s experience because it
reflects a sample of all of the experiences of the Financial
Advisor’s clients. The rating is not indicative of the
Financial Advisor’s future performance. Neither Morgan
Stanley Smith Barney LLC nor any of its Financial
Advisors pay a fee to Barron’s in exchange for the rating
**Source: Barron’s “Top 1,200 Advisors,” March 7, 2016,
as identified by Barron’s magazine, using quantitative
and qualitative criteria and selected from a pool of over
4,000 nominations. Advisors in the Top 1,200 Financial
Advisors have a minimum of seven years of financial
services experience. Qualitative factors include, but are
not limited to, compliance record and philanthropic work.
Investment performance is not a criterion. The rating
may not be representative of any one client’s experience
and is not indicative of the financial advisor’s future
performance. Neither Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC
nor its Financial Advisors or Private Wealth Advisors pays
a fee to Barron’s in exchange for the rating. Barron’s is a
registered trademark of Dow Jones & Company, L.P. All
rights reserved
***Source: The Financial Times Top 400 Financial
Advisors is an independent listing produced by the
Financial Times (March, 2016). The FT 400 is based in
large part on data gathered from and verified by brokerdealer home offices, and, as identified by the FT, reflected
each advisor’s performance in six primary areas, including
assets under management, asset growth, compliance
record, experience, credentials and accessibility. The
rating may not be representative of any one client’s
experience and is not indicative of the Financial Advisor’s
future performance. Neither Morgan Stanley Smith
Barney LLC nor its Financial Advisors or Private Wealth
Advisors pays a fee to The Financial Times in exchange for
the rating.
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