Carnegie Corp. of New York has hired Mark Baumgartner — chief investment officer at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, N.J. — to lead the foundation’s expansive portfolio and rebuild a hollowed-out investment team, digital IAS records show.
Baumgartner takes over from former CIO Kim Lew, who kicked off a wave of departures this fall when she ascended to lead Columbia University’s famed investment office.
Over roughly six weeks, Carnegie Corp. lost four of its highest-ranking fund professionals to peer institutions and the private sector. Arguably, the fund became a victim of its own talent-development success.
Managing director Alisa Mall — often cited as Lew’s heir apparent — moved to a top job at Foresite Capital, a specialist in life sciences and health investing. Fellow managing directors Ken Lee and Brooke Jones became first-time CIOs at Children’s Health in Dallas, and Bryn Mawr College, respectively.
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Baumgartner has secured the task of rebuilding the top-performing investment operation while running its multi-billion dollar portfolio — substantially larger than the $800 million he oversaw at IAS.
He arrives with a deep background in managing money for Tristate-area institutions. Prior to IAS, Baumgartner led asset allocation and risk at the Ford Foundation, and held top jobs at Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s outsourced CIO group.
Baumgartner is also a rocket scientist. The Princeton University alum earned a doctorate in aerospace engineering before pivoting to the earthly pursuits of Wall Street.
With the CIO role freshly vacant, IAS is down to a tiny investment team led by director Jeff Gatto, Baumgartner’s trusted second-in-command for many years. He’s supported by analyst Adam Solan, who joined last year after a taxing search involving nearly 500 applicants and no professional recruiter.
Carnegie Corp. likewise opted to DIY its hunt for a new investment chief, whereas elite institutions typically retain one of a handful of specialty headhunters to assist. But the foundation picked and secured Baumgartner in just a few months, completing the highly competitive search in roughly half the time it normally takes.
Spokespeople for Carnegie and IAS did not respond with comments by time of publication.
