PRIM STAFF

The Board delegates authority to the Executive Director (who is also the Chief Investment Officer), who serves at the discretion of the Trustees and is responsible for the implementation of the investment policy and managing all investment functions, as well as other areas including administration, human resources, and finance. The PRIM staff is responsible for uncovering innovative investment ideas, vetting and recommending investments, and successfully managing these investments.

Below are professional bios for the senior members of the PRIM team.

 

Michael G. Trotsky, CFA
Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer

Michael Trotsky is the Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer of the Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management (“PRIM”) Board, the entity responsible for investing the Massachusetts pension fund, which contains the assets of the Massachusetts Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement Systems as well as the assets of approximately 100 participating municipal and county retirement systems. Michael’s work at PRIM was preceded by a 25-year career in the private sector, most recently as senior vice president and portfolio manager at PAR Capital Management, a Boston-based absolute return strategy fund. Previously, he was a senior analyst at Greenberg-Summit Partners in Boston and also served as a principal and senior vice president at Independence Investment Associates (a John Hancock subsidiary), also in Boston. Michael began his professional career in 1985 as an engineer at Intel Corporation in California. Michael serves as Immediate Past Chair of the CFA Society Boston as well as previously served as a member of the CFA Institute Board of Directors and as Chair of the CFA Institute’s Asset Manager Code of Professional Conduct Advisory Committee. He currently serves as a Governing Trustee on the Board of Trustees at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. He is also a member of the Boston Economics Club. Michael received a BS in electrical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Anthony J. Falzone
Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer

Anthony Falzone serves as Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer with responsibility for and oversight of PRIM’s finance, operations, reporting, compliance, human resources, and technology functions. During his time at PRIM, he has held various senior management roles, including Chief Technology Officer and Director of Private Investment Accounting. Anthony has over 25 years of finance, technology, and investment operations experience, specializing in technology management, information delivery, and project management. Prior to joining PRIM in 2006, he held positions as an Assistant Vice President at Mellon Bank (BNY Mellon) and a senior associate at Investors Bank & Trust (State Street), servicing both private wealth and institutional clients. Anthony holds the Investment Foundations™ Certificate awarded by the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) Institute. He earned both his Business Administration degree and Computer Information Systems degree from Bentley University.

Deborah A. Coulter, CPA
Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administration Officer

Deborah Coulter serves as PRIM’s Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administration Officer. In this capacity, Deborah oversees non-investment finance, administration, cash management, financial reporting, and client services at PRIM. She has over 25 years of experience in the investment management industry. During her time at PRIM, Deborah has held various senior roles, including the Director of Finance and Administration and Director of Strategic Initiatives. Prior to joining PRIM, Ms. Coulter also served as the Chief Financial Officer of Essex Investment Management Company and the Assistant Controller at The Baupost Group. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Stonehill College, is a CPA (Certified Public Accountant) and holds the Investment Foundations™ Certificate awarded by the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) Institute.

Francesco Daniele
Director of Client Service

Francesco Daniele serves as PRIM’s Director of Client Services and is responsible for managing PRIM’s client relationships and communicating PRIM’s innovative offerings to its stakeholders. He also works closely with the PRIM Advisory Council and the SRBTF Board. Prior to joining PRIM in 2016, Francesco was a Director at the Debt Exchange, assisting global financial institutions in actively managing their core and non-core loan portfolios. He began his career as a Fixed Income and International Equities Analyst at Independence Investment Associates. Francesco has a bachelor’s degree in International Business and Finance from Northeastern University and an MBA from Suffolk University. He holds the Investment Foundations™ Certificate awarded by the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute.

Maria Garrahan
Director of Research

Maria Garrahan joined PRIM in 2018. As Director of Research, Ms. Garrahan is responsible for coordinating investment research across all asset classes to drive innovation at PRIM. Prior to joining PRIM, Maria worked at Columbia Threadneedle Investments as a research analyst focused on global asset allocation. She started her career at State Street Associates within the investor behavior research team, where she worked as a research assistant for Professor Ken Froot of the Harvard Business School. She holds a Master’s Degree in applied economics from Northeastern University and a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Eastern Connecticut State University.

Seth Gitell
Chief External Affairs Officer

Seth Gitell joined Mass PRIM in 2021 following more than 12 years in the Massachusetts House Speaker’s office, where he served as Director of Communications and, more recently, as Chief of Staff to former Speaker Robert A. DeLeo. Prior to his time on Beacon Hill, Seth worked as the top communications advisor to Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino. In that cabinet-level position, he led the City’s media relations and strategy across municipal government. A former journalist, his work has been published in The Atlantic Monthly, Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, and The Los Angeles Times, among other publications. He has the CFA Institute’s Investment Foundations™ Certificate. He is a graduate of Harvard College and has a J.D. from the New York University School of Law.

David Griswold
Director of Information Technology

David Griswold joined PRIM in 2018 as Director of Information Technology. He has over 20 years of experience in Information technology, having worked in several fields, including technology, energy, healthcare, and investment management. Prior to joining PRIM, David worked for Hancock Natural Resource Group and Forest Capital Partners, leading an international team of engineers covering various technology functions. David holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Bentley College.

David M. Gurtz, CPA, CFA
Deputy Chief Investment Officer

David Gurtz joined PRIM in 2008 and serves as Deputy Chief Investment Officer. During his time at PRIM, David has held various senior roles including Deputy Chief Investment Officer - Director of Public Markets and Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial Officer. Prior to those roles, David served as Deputy Chief Investment Officer – Director of Risk Management, and is largely responsible for building the risk management program here at PRIM. Prior to joining the PRIM Board, he was a Senior Manager at KPMG, auditing clients such as hedge funds, private equity and venture capital funds. David earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Bucknell University and is a Certified Public Accountant and a Chartered Financial Analyst.

E. Renee LeFevre, Esq.
Chief Legal Officer-General Counsel

Renee LeFevre joined PRIM in 2022 and serves as Chief Legal Officer-General Counsel. Renee provides advice and counsel to the PRIM Board, Executive Director, and staff regarding all legal matters affecting PRIM, including administrative law, open meeting law, public records access, procurement, conflicts of interest, contracts, governance, compliance, employment law, litigation, and managing outside counsel. She comes to PRIM following a 22-year career at the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA), where she served as General Counsel for over seven years. Prior to her experience at the BPDA, Ms. LeFevre served as Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Boston Assessing Department. Renee’s professional associations include serving as Vice President on the Board of Directors for the Boston Local Development Corporation (BLDC), member of the National Association of Public Pension Attorneys (NAPPA), member of The Abstract Club, CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women Network Boston), and the Boston Bar Association. Ms. LeFevre is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley and Boston College Law School.

Jay Leu, CFA
Director of Risk

Jay Leu joined PRIM in 2019 and currently serves as Director of Risk Management. Jay brings over 30 years of investment industry experience to PRIM, most recently as Director of Risk Management at Aesir Capital Management, a long/short credit hedge fund. Prior to this, Jay was the lead portfolio manager and business unit head of Structured U.S. Equity at Lee Munder Capital Group. He held the Chief Investment Officer position at Independence Investment Associates (which Lee Munder acquired) and at Pacific Capital Fixed Income Advisor. Jay began his career at State Street Global Advisors as both a Domestic and Global Fixed Income portfolio manager. Jay is also currently an adjunct professor of finance at Brandeis University’s International Business School. Jay holds a B.S. in chemical engineering from MIT and an M.S in management from the MIT Sloan School. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute and the Boston Security Analysts Society. Jay is also a certified Financial Risk Manager (FRM).

Bill C. Li, CFA, CAIA
Director of Portfolio Completion Strategies

Bill Li directs the investment activities for PRIM’s Portfolio Completion Strategies allocation. Bill joined PRIM in 2016. Previously, he held positions as a senior researcher at CoStar Group (formerly Property & Portfolio Research), providing credit advisory to financial institutions and regulators. He also worked at Allianz SE in Frankfurt, Germany. Bill has a Master’s Degree in Legal Studies from Cornell Law School, a Master’s Degree in Economics and Finance from Brandeis University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Dongbei University of Finance & Economics, China. Bill holds the CFA designation and the CAIA designation; he also serves on the Board of CFA Society Boston.

Matthew Liposky
Chief Investment Operating Officer

Matthew Liposky joined PRIM in 2013 and serves as PRIM’s Chief Investment Operating Officer. Matthew is responsible for managing the PRIT Fund’s financial activities, including: investment performance reporting; investment accounting; operational due diligence; and investment manager onboarding and implementation. Prior to his position as CIOO, Matthew served as Director of Investment Operations at PRIM. He has more than 13 years of experience in investment operations and worked at Liberty Mutual Investment Group and Bank of New York Mellon before joining PRIM. Mr. Liposky earned a B.S. in Finance from Quinnipiac University.

Christina A. Marcarelli, CAIA
Senior Investment Officer – Real Estate and Timberland, Director of Real Estate Debt

Christina Marcarelli is a Senior Investment Officer at the Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management Board. Her responsibilities include portfolio oversight, manager selection and research for MassPRIM’s direct real estate, REIT, real estate debt, and timberland investments. Prior to joining MassPRIM in 2016, Christina was a Senior Asset Manager at Colony Capital, a global real estate and investment management firm, where she managed a 3 million SF portfolio of office and industrial assets. Her responsibilities at Colony also included acquisitions, dispositions and portfolio operations. Prior to joining Colony, Christina was a Senior Portfolio Manager at CWCapital LLC where she was responsible for a portfolio of highly structured commercial real estate loan transactions ranging from multifamily, office, retail, industrial and hospitality properties across the country. Christina began her career in real estate at LaSalle Bank in Detroit, Michigan where she worked as a commercial loan officer responsible for originating and underwriting commercial loans for key real estate projects aimed at the city’s revitalization efforts. Christina earned a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Central Michigan University. She also holds the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designation.

Michael P. McElroy, CFA
Director of Public Markets

Michael McElroy joined PRIM in 2021 and directs investment activities for equity and fixed income allocations in the public markets. His responsibilities include monitoring existing managers, sourcing new investment strategies, and serving as primary liaison between public markets asset managers and PRIM staff. Before joining PRIM, Michael held several senior asset management roles. Most recently, he was a Managing Director for both systematic and fundamental equity investment teams at Wellington Management. Before Wellington, he was Head of Global Equity at Batterymarch Financial Management and the lead portfolio manager for systematic global equity portfolios. Prior to that, he was Head of Global Equities for Citigroup Asset Management in London, where he was responsible for all developed market portfolio management. Michael earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and a Master of Science degree in Transportation Planning, both from MIT, and a Master of Science in Management from the Sloan School of Management at MIT.

Michael McGirr, CFA
Director of Private Equity - Senior Investment Officer

Michael McGirr serves as Director of Private Equity at Mass PRIM. With over 15 years of investment management experience, he is responsible for portfolio construction, manager selection, and leading PRIM’s cutting-edge private equity research. Michael joined PRIM in 2014 from Bain Capital, where he was an investment manager. Prior to Bain, he worked at the Minnesota State Board of Investment, where he was a portfolio manager for an alternative investment portfolio with $9 billion in assets. Michael has a BS in Finance from the University of Richmond and an MBA from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. Michael is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), a member of the Boston Securities Analyst Society, and a member of the Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) Content Committee. In 2018, Treasurer Deborah Goldberg awarded Michael the Commonwealth Citation for Outstanding Performance. Michael lives with his wife and three daughters in Winchester.

Veena Ramani
Director of Stewardship

Veena Ramani joined PRIM in 2023 as Director of Stewardship. She is responsible for coordinating and leading MassPRIM’s stewardship and ESG activities, including supporting the Board ESG Committee, proxy voting efforts and other initiatives. Veena came to PRIM from FCLTGlobal, a nonprofit whose mission is to focus on the long term to support a sustainable and prosperous economy. As Research Director, Veena worked with asset owners, asset managers, and corporations to develop actionable research to drive long-term value creation for investors. Prior to FCLTGlobal, Veena spent 15 years at Ceres, a leading sustainability nonprofit. Her accomplishments included running programs to engage financial regulators on the systemic risk of climate change, developing an online training curriculum for corporate board members on ESG in partnership with the Berkeley School of Law and engaging with large corporations on their sustainability and climate change strategies and disclosures. Veena has authored several research reports on climate change, ESG and governance. She holds a BA LL.B with honors degree from the National Law School of India University and a Masters of Law (LL.M) degree from Washington University School of Law.

Timothy V. Schlitzer, CRE, CFA
Director of Real Estate and Timberland - Senior Investment Officer

Tim Schlitzer directs the investment activities for PRIM’s allocation to real estate and timberland. Tim’s responsibilities include portfolio oversight and manager selection for PRIM’s direct real estate, REIT and timberland investments. He also oversees 13 current manager relationships in both the private and public real estate and timber markets. Tim joined PRIM in 2005 and was previously employed by Grubb & Ellis, a publicly traded commercial real estate services company. He has an MBA from Northeastern University and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, MA. He is a Counselor of Real Estate, holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation, is a member of the CFA Institute, and the Boston Security Analysts Society.

Michelle Witkes
Director of Human Resources

Michelle Witkes joined PRIM in 2020. As an accomplished human resources leader, Michelle has over 25 years of experience developing and implementing HR programs, processes, and infrastructure. She has been commended for her leadership ability, development of staff, as well as being a trusted advisor and confidante to all levels of an organization. Michelle is passionate about the role human resources plays as a critical component of an organization’s success and in attracting, retaining, and developing talent. Prior to PRIM, Michelle was an independent HR consultant, developing an HR infrastructure for a healthcare start-up and has many years of experience in the financial, healthcare, and management consulting sectors. Michelle holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.