Parametric nominates Senior Analyst as Unsung Hero

Whitlam Zhang

Whitlam Zhang joined Parametric in early 2015 and quickly became a highly-respected and valued member of the firm's Sydney team. In his own words, his job is to "keep the cogs well-oiled within the Parametric machine" and, according to his colleagues, he's nailing it! Couple that with the fact he's a "joy to work with" and its no surprise he's been nominated as one of the industry's Unsung Heroes.

"Whitlam just quietly gets on and does things, exceeding my expectations daily." Chris Briant - CEO Australasia (Sydney office)

What his colleagues have to say...

Quote Jared Gray - Director, Product Management (Seattle Investment Centre)
Whitlam started 16 months ago and was thrown straight into a major new client migration that had an incredible amount of moving parts, and required client management, technical, legal, and industry knowledge. He became indispensable immediately, quickly speaking the language of Parametric and the new client. He continues to work on other new clients and is a true joy to work with on a personal level.

Quote Shalamar Kanemoto - Managing Director, Operations (Seattle Investment Centre)
Whitlam was hired to support a vast array of key business areas across the firm in early 2015, and came with a great breadth of experience in operations, analysis and technology. He supports portfolio trading and settlement, portfolio optimization, compliance and reporting tasks, and several operational aspects of the firm. He's been vital in bringing our clients and our Seattle teams together.

Quote Chris Briant - CEO Australasia (Sydney office)
We needed someone amazing to perform what is a demanding role, one that's made all-the-more challenging because everything we do is customised. Up-front we had to fight an asset consultant who also wanted to hire him - and I'm thankful every day that we won that fight, though it probably gave us a slight headwind in winning over that firm! Whitlam just quietly gets on and does things, exceeding my expectations daily. I can't wait to see him grow as we bring onboard an Analyst to support him!

"You should take your work seriously but not take yourself seriously." Whitlam Zhang - Senior Analyst, Parametric

Q&A with Whitlam Zhang

Unsung Hero

What do you enjoy most about your role?
I like that every day is different. One day I might be providing input on an Investment matter, the next day I might be assisting on some product matters, and the following day I might be working with a client on something bespoke. It's also exciting to be a part of a firm that's relatively new to the market but growing, and to be in a role where I have front-row seats to the action.

What drew you to the organisation/industry?
I was drawn to the industry as a whole because of the sheer scale to which our decisions impact and can improve the rest of society. That its reach is not just local but global too. There aren't many other industries where basis points are agonised over.

I joined Parametric because I believed in their mission of implementation efficiency and that they had quite a differentiated product offering. It also helped that I had a great deal of respect for the members of the Parametric team having crossed paths with them in the past.

What was your very first job?
My first job was working in a computer store. My typical day was fixing computers and selling computer parts. Unfortunately having that skillset means I've become the local helpdesk in our Sydney office!

Who do you most admire and how have they influenced your life/work?
There are many people I admire but the person who has probably influenced my working career the most has to be my boss when I first started working in the industry, Dr. Michael Booth. I learnt many lessons from him but the two that stuck are:

  1. You don't have to accept the status quo; and
  2. The importance of team culture and investing in the development of the team.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
Steph (Stephen) Curry - an NBA player who recently destroyed numerous records, won various awards, and yet for most of his life was told he was not quick or strong enough to compete at a professional level.

What is the best advice you've been given?
You should take your work seriously but not take yourself seriously.

What possession do you most treasure?
Tough question - I think most recently, it was an old hacky sack that I found in a storage box. It brought back a lot of childhood memories.

Do you have a secret skill/hidden talent?
Let me show you my very unusual tennis serve...

Parametric Team

Whitlam pictured with CEO Australasia, Chris Briant and Director of Research and After-Tax Solutions, Raewyn Williams.