Andrew McDonald – The marketplace is ready for people of colour

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“I learned that when you go into a room, you can occupy your mind with how people see you, or you can say, ‘How do I present myself as the best in the room? ‘It helps to transform your mind from a place of insecurity to strength.”

He is up earlier than most, checking the European markets when they open at 3:00 am. Then he reads the paper to catch up on the day’s finances, and goes back to sleep. Then he is up again at 5:30 am to get in his daily exercise.

Canadians, who identify as visible minorities, usually do not have the same access to investments and other sources of wealth as non-racialized people. Andrew McDonald has broadened the lens to look at wealth, rather than just looking at income. He has paid his dues by working hard to come up in an industry that minorities are not frequently seen in.

Andrew McDonald is lead portfolio manager and head of The McDonald Group at CIBC Wood Gundy. He joined the firm in 1996 as a sales assistant at Midland Walwyn, a predecessor firm. Andrew will tell you that Joyce Eisen, a Vice President and Senior Advisor groomed his work ethic and perseverance. Joyce took Andrew under her tutelage to provide great career and personal mentorship.

Andrew specializes in creating personalized and holistic wealth strategies for private and institutional clients. Andrew is committed to building positive and impactful relationships, and advocates for a team approach to ensure every client’s need is addressed.

Andrew has an Honours BA from the University of Toronto, the Chartered Investment Manager (CIM) designation, and derivatives and estate planning accreditations. He is passionate about sharing his career journey with students and members of the African-Caribbean community.

Andrew has spoken to students at the TDSB virtual school, and to MBA students at the Schulich School of Business and Rotman School of Management about the challenges and opportunities of wealth management. Andrew is especially proud of his efforts for the CIBC Miracle Day fundraiser for children, as well as the work that he is doing with Brothers Who Care. Through this platform, Andrew’s contribution and support has resulted in a meaningful impact on African-Caribbean youth, amplifying their voices, and rallying around causes that are most important to our community.

I have had the pleasure of working with Andrew in the last few months, so I was interested in hearing more about his extraordinary success.

“I was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and I moved in with my grandmother at two years old. I had an interesting start in life; many people don’t know that I lived on a farm in St. Ann’s Jamaica”

When I came to Canada I was only eight years old. No one explained how cold it was to me,” Andrew shares chuckling. “It was such a distant land for me, and like that my life changed. My mom was married at the time, and I had a little brother, then my sister came. I eventually adapted.

“I remember in grade 4, I had a terrible rash. The doctor told me the rash was stress related. I learned something cool that day at the office, and from then, I thought I wanted to be a dermatologist. That meant that I had to do some science courses and advanced math. 

The later part of my teens was tumultuous. I met this one lady at church who rented a room to me in my last two years of high school. When I got to University, I got into politics and was on the student council. After a few initial courses, it became clear that I was not getting into medical school. I had a passion for human physiology, but not anything else related to medical school. While on the school council, I was in charge of the finances, and I have to say that this was the catalyst to my love of finances.

I ended up switching my degree to Finance, and when I finished my degree, I got my introduction to the financial world when six months later, I landed a job at Midland Walwyn on Bay St, and I have been there ever since. When I came to Bay St, I think that people were surprised to see a person of colour. It was a different experience. One of the things that you have to understand about Bay St is that there is a lot of classism, more so than racism. It was the first time I had experienced classism.

 I worked my way up to Senior Wealth Advisor. It was very helpful to have a mentor, and was gifted with one by the name of Joyce Eisen. When I got the job, it was an entry-level job, and I was a floater, going from team to team helping out. Scotiabank eventually recruited me, and when I went to resign my floater position, my manager at the time gave me a better contact, which was Joyce Eisen.

I was obsessed with researching, and Joyce allowed me to build portfolios. She nurtured me, and would correct me when necessary. I would sleep at the office sometimes just to get work done. She saw my work ethic, so she invested in me. She gave me the opportunity to become an associate with her. In 2005, I became a junior partner, and in 2010 she retired, and I took over her clients.

You don’t get where you are by yourself. It is wrong to omit even the small things that people do for you. To this day, she calls me to check on me. It continues to show me the importance of building relationships.

I am grateful to be in Canada; the opportunities that it offers are like no other. I am very grateful for my professors at university, and now when I get an opportunity, I give back. I have an internship program where I do my best to bring in people of colour into the financial industry. The marketplace is ready for people of colour. It is ready to accept you, as long as you are ready to put people first, and come ready to serve.”