President, Senior Managing Director, Austin region
Jennifer Gravenor toured the world as a professional flutist for a decade before switching from classical music to a career in finance.
Gravenor credits the dedication and commitment that it took to become a classical performer with helping prepare her for the role as president of the Austin region for the $5.9 billion-asset wealth manager Northern Trust Co.
“I’m a huge believer in the correlation between music and math,” Gravenor said.
Under Gravenor’s watch, revenue in the Austin region has doubled over the past three years. Her team also has doubled in size to 30 partners, staff and credentialed financial advisors.
Performing in front of a live audience and the preparation it requires are among the skills Gravenor taps into in her leadership role.
“The exposure I got in my performing career as a young person was truly unparalleled,” she said. “It’s really about the act of preparing. Being prepared in a fashion that allows you to know that when you're in a performance environment, you can rely on your preparation, your skills and your expertise.”
Gravenor spent five years at Northern Trust as a senior wealth strategist before becoming president of the Austin region and senior managing director in 2019. She previously worked in private banking for four years at JPMorgan Chase.
Unpacking what makes a team work well together can be difficult to explain, she said.
“It’s a work of art to find folks who can really mesh well and complement each other,” she added. “I think about my team as pieces of a puzzle, and I took my time to get a really strong understanding of what the market needed, and to get to know our strengths. I joke that you've got to know me for six months before you can join my team.”
For Gravenor, leadership means more than bringing energy, drive and persistence every day to the job. It also means working in the trenches alongside staff and commandeers resources to make their lives easier.
“Work relationships are important,” she said. “Folks tend to work for their boss or manager, and people tend to leave firms when their bosses leave.”
On a recent afternoon, Gravenor was heading out of the office to pick up the mail for a partner who was in the hospital after being out of work for two months. “Teams don’t know what’s possible until you show them,” she said.
