Witad Awards 2024: EDM professional of the year—Neslihan Yegul, S&P Global Market Intelligence

What is your position within your firm?
Neslihan Yegul: I am vice president, head of EDM and thinkFolio at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

How long have you worked in the financial services industry?
Yegul: I’ve worked in the industry for over 20 years.

How did you get into the industry? Was it a conscious decision or did you “fall” into it?
Yegul: It was conscious. I studied business administration with a specialization in financial risk management. My career started in software as an intern for a junior business administration role. Except for a four-year excursion in management consultancy, I was always in the financial software industry.

What does your day-to-day role entail?
Yegul: My primary focus is to provide our customers with a best-in-class data management solution that solves for ever-evolving industry challenges. I work alongside our execution teams to set and drive forward our product strategy. For me, having a customer-first approach is imperative. I am in regular contact with our client base and continually nurture close relationships with consultants. Listening to clients and industry participants is the single most important input for our strategy.

What single project/piece of work are you most proud of during your career in the industry to date?
Yegul: I’ve developed and implemented a risk management platform from scratch in partnership with my university professors when I was fresh out of university. It was thrilling to see my day-to-day calculations and analysis resulting in tangible outcome. Seeing the results of how software can transform a financial institution’s operating model and help solve complex challenges defined my career.

Be curious. Curiosity has served me well. By fearlessly asking thought-provoking questions, actively listening, and gaining a deep understanding of our client’s challenges, aspirations, strategies, and technology choices, I can connect the dots and offer innovative solutions that add significant value

What are you currently working on and what makes it significant in the context of your position?
Yegul: I am currently working on expanding and accelerating our product strategy to meet the evolving needs of our clients, while providing expertise and guidance with strong best practices. Some of these topics are standardizing the platform according to market needs while retaining its flexibility, reducing the time to market drastically, and innovation for credit and private markets expansion.

To what extent were you helped during your career by a mentor/role model within the business?
Yegul: I strongly believe in the mentorship model. I have had several mentors over the last 10 years of my career. They have greatly helped structure my thoughts and define my strategic outlook, particularly in times of uncertainty and change. In addition to mentors, I have most benefited from senior sponsors who were familiar with my abilities and what I could achieve and aspire to. My sponsors are the voice in the rooms I am not present in. With their guidance, I have been able to expand my horizons and achieve personal and professional growth that has opened up new opportunities.

To what extent does your firm have a formalized framework that seeks to identify and promote talented women and ensure they have every opportunity to realize their ambitions and contribute to the business?
Yegul: S&P Global has a dedicated diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) team that works relentlessly to provide us with tools and opportunities empowering its people to create micro-communities to foster diversity and inclusion from the bottom up. Our powerful People Resources Groups (PRGs), internal coaching options, and external leadership and executive programmes are some of the tools I can name and that I have benefited from.

What was the greatest obstacle you had to overcome during your career in the industry to date?
Yegul: Starting my career in a country where I was not born. Being from Istanbul, Turkiye but having studied in Vienna, I wanted to gain some work experience in Europe before returning to my country. Being a woman in a very male-dominated industry and having a dependency on a company for a work permit does not foster an environment for equity.

What is the most valuable lesson you’ve learned so far during your career?
Yegul: Be curious. Curiosity has served me well. By fearlessly asking thought-provoking questions, actively listening, and gaining a deep understanding of our client’s challenges, aspirations, strategies, and technology choices, I can connect the dots and offer innovative solutions that add significant value. This approach sets us apart as a powerful software business, constantly pushing the boundaries of what is possible.

What would you advise women just entering the industry?
Yegul: Embrace curiosity, work hard, and try to be the best version of yourself. Furthermore, seek out sponsors within your organization who can champion your abilities and advocate for your growth. While your work may be exceptional, without visibility, progress can be slow or limited.

What does this award mean to you?
Yegul: We tremendously appreciate the recognition for the hard work and dedication our team consistently demonstrates. It serves as a source of great encouragement to me and motivates me to continue striving for excellence and innovation in data management but also to pay it back by mentoring other women and fostering a culture of inclusion and collaboration.