Susan E. Manske has been named Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of MacArthur.
In this position Manske will have responsibility for management of the Foundation's approximately $3.7 billion endowment and be a member of the senior management team that advises the President on strategic and policy matters. Manske joins the Foundation from the Boeing Company where she has been Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Trust Investments since joining Boeing in 2001.
In announcing the appointment, Jonathan Fanton, president of the Foundation said: "The capacity of a Foundation to carry out its mission is fundamentally linked to the performance of its endowment. Susan Manske brings to this important position a record of sound judgment and effective performance. We are delighted that she has joined us and confident that under her leadership the MacArthur Foundation will continue to be in a position to provide significant support for those working to solve some of most world's most pressing problems."
At Boeing, Manske was responsible for managing the firm's defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans totaling approximately $46 billion. Prior to joining the Boeing Company, Manske spent 13 years with the Ameritech Corporation in Chicago. She joined the firm in 1987 as Manager, Fixed Income and moved through successive positions in Ameritech's investment group including Director, Capital Markets and Director, Risk Management, ultimately serving for two years, 1998-2000 as Chief Investment Officer. Earlier in her career she worked as a Portfolio Manager for the Ford Motor Company.
The Investment Department of MacArthur is comprised of 12 staff members. Despite the overall trend downward in the financial markets in recent years, the Foundation's endowment has outperformed its benchmarks, allowing the Foundation to maintain its level of grantmaking, currently about $175 million per year.
Active in community affairs, Manske, who lives in Hinsdale, is a member of the Investment Board of United Way/Crusade of Mercy, and a Board Member of the Educational District 181 Foundation, which serves Hinsdale schools. She is a summa cum laude graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, with an MBA from Marquette University. Manske is also a chartered financial analyst.