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Episode 56: Thriving in Business
\nGuest: Martine Lellis

Happy May! I have been enjoying the outdoors recently since the\nweather has been so gorgeous and I hope you\u2019ve had the opportunity\nto do the same.

My guest this week is Martine Lellis has a passion for learning.\nShe grew up in a small town in South Carolina and was fortunate to\ngain admissions into Duke University, where she earned a bachelor\u2019s\ndegree in mathematics. Upon graduation, Martine began working\nwithin the IT industry building systems for banks and insurance\ncompanies. While this was her first exposure to the financial\nindustry, her real awakening came when she realized a gap in\nknowledge within general concepts around money that occur in\nprimary as well as post-secondary schooling. When she looked at the\ngap in her knowledge and paired it with what drove her, she found a\nmatch in financial planning.

For the past 14 years, Martine has been Sullivan Bruyette Speros\n& Blayney (SBSB) where she has worked her way up to Chief\nOperating Officer. Considering herself a life-long student, Martine\nhas not only her MBA from Georgetown University, but she also has\nbecome a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified\nFinancial Planning (CFP). Her passion for learning and knowledge\nseeking has led her to her career today. Her learning today comes\nfrom taking different projects, gaining knowledge through\napplication and experience.

As someone who is the COO of a company that manages nearly $3\nbillion in client assets, Martine was initially surprised when she\nwas asked if she wanted the position. Knowing her limits and skill\nsets, believing in herself and her ability to think critically\nabout any situation, Martine had the self-confidence to take it on\nand be successful. She partnered with others in the company so that\nshe could ask for assistance when she needed it. She feels that\nthis is key to succeeding in any position. Martine surrounds\nherself with team members, mentors, and advisors who have different\nskills sets than her. They are not only there to help her solve\nproblems but to also jolt her out of your current opinion, or\ntunnel vision, to see the potential in a situation.

Recently, Martine and several of her partners decided to\npurchase back the Sullivan Bruyette Speros & Blayney from their\nbank parent and start a new endeavor as a private company once\nagain. Through her relationships over the years, Martine has been\nable to bring together external resources to ensure a successful\ntransition.

Martine in thriving in her role and has some great advice for\nanyone who may be feeling stagnant in their role. She recommends\nnever saying no to various situations and to be open-minded about\nopportunities because everything is an open door to learning. If\nyou are stuck in a position, look around and ask yourself how you\ncan continue to learn and to grow. If you\u2019re not happy with the way\nthings are going, talk to others and gain some different\ninsight.

If you\u2019d like to reach out to Martine, you can do so through her\ncompany website. Thanks for\nlistening to this week\u2019s episode of the Women Rocking Wall Street\nshow! If you liked what you heard, be sure to hit subscribe, share\nit with others and write us a quick review on iTunes.