Marta Bezoari, Executive Vice President and Co-Head of Global Human Resources for PIMCO, won Excellence in Human Resources at Markets Media Group’s 2024 Women in Finance Awards.

What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve ever received? What motivates you to keep learning and growing in your field?

One of the most memorable – and important – pieces of advice I ever received was this: it’s about the journey and not the destination.  My path at PIMCO, and in the industry more broadly, hasn’t been linear. From the start, it has been about the experiences and skills I’ve developed over time as a way of opening doors to new opportunities. Having stepped into different roles over time around the world, it has been incredibly rewarding to see yourself progress when something was originally scary or new. The more I experience change the more I embrace it as critical to growth and learning.

How has your role in the AI Governance group influenced your approach to strategy and decision-making?

All members bring a unique perspective to our cross-functional AI Governance group, which includes senior leaders from data science, technology, portfolio management, human resources, legal, operations, and executive office teams. As co-head for Global Human Resources, my lens on harnessing the value of AI is around the people strategy. AI is not the first disruptive technology to be introduced and history tells us that adoption is key to growing with new technologies. Workforces are continuously growing and developing new skills and experiences every day.

Over our career lifetimes, we don’t typically stay in the same exact job doing the exact same finite set of tasks – rather, we grow, evolve, take on new responsibilities, work with others, and change with the businesses we work with as we become more experienced and skilled. How organizations support their people through the larger shifts typically comes down to robust change management strategies. This is why we talk about bringing our people on the AI journey – for them to be part of the development, the use case prioritization, the oversight, the iterations and more. A people-centric approach will ensure we are building something that will deliver value to our people and as a result, to our clients. Our HR team is partnering closely with our AI and business teams to that effect.

What’s one thing about your role that people outside the industry might find surprising?

As a Math and Physics double-major, I often get asked how I experience working in Human Resources.  The question potentially assumes stereotypes on both sides.  However, what may surprise most people who don’t work in Human Resources is the amount of complex problem solving that the function drives.  Whether it’s advising on a corporate acquisition, opening new offices, launching a new business line, developing leaders or supporting employees through their talent lifecycle and employee experience, the HR team is constantly developing people solutions and working to align people strategy to deliver on business goals.

What inspired you to pursue a career in this field?

In my last few roles at PIMCO, I have had the opportunity to help others and solve complex problems.  I am drawn to roles in which I can do both as they are rewarding in different ways.  As a math and physics student, I enjoyed solving complex problems as part of my studies, and in the workplace, this continues to be a very fulfilling contribution to our business.  At the same time, I enjoy being able to apply my skills and experiences in helping others.   As a board member and longtime volunteer for Mercado Global, I have the opportunity to help Indigenous women leaders and their communities in Latin America through the organization’s work.  In my roles in client-facing, business management and leadership, where collaboration is essential, I am fortunate to have many opportunities to partner with and help colleagues across teams and locations.

How has your career been enhanced by exposure to diverse people, places, or experiences?

Born and raised in a few different countries, I have never had a strong sense of “home” in the location sense, and spent most of my life feeling as if I did not fit in or was different to those around me.  Those experiences gave me a keen taste for world travel, languages, cultures and food, but also taught me to be curious, to connect with others who are different to me, and to be open to learning new experiences.  For example, the first risk I took in my career was leaving my investment banking job in London to go to graduate school in the US for my MBA.  I was fearful at the time of giving up my income and ability to support myself for the luxury of going back to student life, as well as moving across the world away from close friends and family.  In 2018 I moved my life across the world again from New York to Hong Kong for a new role within PIMCO.  In addition, I switched from a client-facing role, which I had known for 10 years, to a business management role.  Since then, I have held roles across various departments, worked with different colleagues, and spent time in different office locations.  These personal and professional experiences taught me early on to be curious, to connect with others who are different to me, and to be open to learning new perspectives.  Working at a global firm, with a diversity of colleagues, is the most engaging environment because in many ways it mirrors the experiences I grew up with and came to value most.