The Whitney Team

Gary Goldstein is a founder and Group CEO of Whitney Partners, a leading executive search firm in the financial services industry. Considered to be an expert in his field, Mr. Goldstein has extensive experience in human resources recruitment within all areas of the financial services industry and has appeared in a number of articles and television programs ranging from The Wall Street Journal to CNN's Moneyline discussing trends in the financial services sector. He has also been qualified and has served as an expert witness in a number of arbitrations related to compensation and other matters of employment in the securities business. He was also a founder, chairman and CEO of a public human resource staffing and consulting company serving the financial services industry.

Prior to entering the executive search industry, Mr. Goldstein was on the audit and consulting staffs of Arthur Andersen & Co. in New York.  Mr. Goldstein has been the Chief Representative in the U.S. for Peking University’s investment vehicle, Founder Group.  His responsibility has been to introduce them to strategic capital and strategic operating partners.  He currently serves as a Senior Advisor to Sustainability Partners, an investment group specializing in infrastructure investments in the MUSH (Municipalities, Universities, School Systems, Hospitals) markets.

He is a member of AIPAC and a past member of Young President's Organization, Inc. (YPO).

Mr. Goldstein holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Canisius College and is a graduate of the OPM Program at the Harvard Business School.

Alicia Lazaro is a founder and President of Whitney Partners. Ms. Lazaro is an investment banking generalist and has led searches for executives in mergers & acquisitions, all major industry sectors in corporate finance, municipal finance, private equity and infrastructure.

Ms. Lazaro founded Whitney McRae, Inc., one of the first executive search firms to specialize in investment banking recruitment with a focus in corporate finance. The firm later merged with Whitney Group, the predecessor to Whitney Partners. Prior to her career in executive search, Ms. Lazaro held Human Resources supervisory positions at Goldman Sachs & Co. and Chase Manhattan Bank.

Ms. Lazaro has been an active supporter of Plan International USA for the last twenty five years and is a strong advocate for WaterAid.

Ms. Lazaro holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Binghamton University in Romance Languages. Ms. Lazaro speaks Spanish, Italian and French.

Michael D. Zinn is a Senior Managing Director in the investment banking and corporate practices. With more than thirty years of search experience, Mr. Zinn brings an extensive track record in the selection of talent. Mr. Zinn has completed searches for all levels and has successfully built teams in investment banking, senior management, restructuring, corporate & business development, technology, marketing & sales, finance, information technology, human resources, and operations including manufacturing, distribution, and logistics. Prior to joining Whitney, Mr. Zinn was head of his own firm, Michael D. Zinn & Associates, Inc for over twenty years. The firm was recognized in the book “Rites of Passage” by John Lucht in which it was awarded the designation of “Outstanding Executive Search Firm.” Previously, Mr. Zinn conducted executive-level searches in the investment banking, corporate, and technology sectors at Richards Consultants Ltd. and corporate and technology searches at Korn/Ferry International.

Mr. Zinn received a Master of Business Administration degree from St. John’s University and a bachelor’s degree from Ithaca College.

Reto Jauch focuses on advising Boards in Governance, Succession Planning and search for Board Members and CEOs. He supports clients in all industries, listed and privately owned organisations as well as not-for-profit organisations and foundations. He moderates the SZ&J Board Roundtable, a private and confidential discussion forum for decision makers in business, politics, administration and academia.

He advises several Boards in their continuous development and composition providing succession planning services including the search for Board Members over multi-year engagements.

Reto studied History of Economics at the University of Zurich and Université Montréal (Canada) and completed the PED program at IMD in Lausanne. Ho also completed IMD’s Board Director Diploma program.

Matthias Schulthess specialises in top-level appointments in Private Equity and Portfolio Companies, Financial Services, Investment Management, Digital and Technology, and Private Markets. He is recognized for the strategic partnership with the FT Global Banking Summit, connecting industry leaders globally.

He has led searches for CEOs, CFOs, CROs, COOs, CHROs, General Counsels, and CTO's focusing on digital transformation. Recently, he conducted a leadership assessment for a major banking association and was nominated as a Judge for the PWM Global Private Banking Awards.

Matthias earned an MBA from London Business School, is a CFA charterholder, and completed the Promoting Racial Equity program at Harvard Kennedy School. He is certified in Hogan Assessments.

Ben Jordan is a Managing Director on our team with a focus on banking and capital markets as well as wealth and alternative asset management, including private equity firms and hedge funds. He has an impressive track record of building businesses and making strategic placements for growing organizations. He has completed searches for C-suite executives and has successfully placed senior leaders in management, sales and distribution, investment professionals, information technology, compliance and risk, and financial planning and analysis.

Prior to Whitney Partners, he completed C-suite and Managing Director level searches in wealth and asset management, investment banking, and risk and compliance for Sheffield Haworth, a global executive search firm with a focus on financial services, headquartered in London. Previously, he worked with Whitney Partners’ International CEO on various wealth and asset management searches at Global Sage.

Prior to getting into executive search and consulting, he was a Senior Vice President in Corporate Banking at Citibank for five and a half years. He began his career as a Management Associate in Citi’s rotational analyst program, where he completed rotations in Citi Community Capital Investment Banking, Risk Management, Relationship Management, and formalized credit training.

Ben holds a Bachelor of Arts in Government with a Citation in Spanish from Harvard University.

Jessica Malzman is the Chief Operating Officer of Whitney Partners. With nearly 20 years of experience in the financial services industry, Ms. Malzman has been instrumental in driving the firm's operations and growth since assuming the COO role in 2017.

Prior to taking on her current position with Whitney, Ms. Malzman spent 8 years as a Senior Executive Search Consultant within the firm's investment banking practice; specializing in Corporate Finance, Real Estate and Healthcare. Prior to joining Whitney Partners in 2009, Ms. Malzman was part of the Equity Research Sales team at Morgan Stanley where she honed her expertise in client relations and market analysis. Earlier in her career, she worked as a Sales Associate for the Southeast Regional Sales Team at Thomson Financial.

Ms. Malzman holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Development from Cornell University and is a proud graduate of Choate Rosemary Hall. Outside of her professional work, she serves as a board member of the Jewish Community Center of Syracuse and is a Centennial Committee member for the Landmark Theatre for Performing Arts, actively contributing to community initiatives.

Jana Byrne has 20 years of senior-level, financial services executive recruiting experience. Prior to joining Whitney Partners, Jana was a Consultant and Chief Knowledge Officer at David Barrett Partners, a leading buy-side executive search firm. Before that, she was Head of U.S. Research and Execution at a specialist wealth management search boutique where she executed searches for private banks and HNW and UHNW wealth management organizations.

Previously, Jana was a Director for five years with Global Sage, a financial markets executive search firm, in their New York and London offices. She helped establish the European buy-side practice which focused on hedge funds and sovereign wealth clients, and covered capital markets and investment banking assignments in both Europe and the U.S.

Jana began her search career at Armstrong International, a London-based executive search boutique specializing in investment banking and capital markets. Jana joined Armstrong in 1991, and during her ten years with the firm helped build the equities practice and supported the development of the fixed income and investment banking platforms.

Ms. Ng joined Whitney Partners to enhance the firm’s research and execution capabilities. She has completed investment banking searches for candidates at varying levels of seniority and across multiple industries, with her most extensive experience being in the healthcare and industrials verticals. She is a dedicated advocate for her clients and her candidates alike.

Before joining Whitney, Ms. Ng held management roles at both a tech start-up and a non-profit organization dedicated to helping low-income individuals and families connect to a diverse array of support systems.

Ms. Ng holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Northeastern University in Communication Studies and a certificate in Environmental Leadership from SUNY ESF. She is reasonably proficient with a camera phone and her credits include most of the background photos that appear on this website.

Ms. Rymond is a Director at Whitney Partners. She is responsible for strengthening the firm’s investment banking recruiting and research efforts across a range of sectors. She prioritizes developing and maintaining strong relationships with candidates and clients alike. Prior to joining Whitney Partners, Ms. Rymond was an Associate at Counseling in Schools (CIS), a NYC based non-profit organization that provides social-emotional support to students. In this role she assisted in recruitment and development efforts.

Kylah graduated from Kenyon College in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. In her free time, you can find her in wandering around Georgetown with her Havanese, Merlin.

Gabriela Fung is the Vice President of Research at Whitney Partners, where she plays a key role in supporting the firm’s research efforts. She also manages all marketing initiatives, driving the firm’s strategy and enhancing its presence through key digital channels. She initially focused on Asset Management and has since expanded her expertise to include both the Asset Management and Investment Banking sectors.

Before joining Whitney Partners, she gained extensive experience in project management, where she was responsible for overseeing complex projects from initiation to completion. In this role, she developed and implemented strategic plans, coordinated cross-functional teams, and ensured that projects were delivered on time and within budget. Her ability to streamline processes and manage competing priorities helped drive successful outcomes in a fast-paced environment.

She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Marketing and Management from Pace University.