This year, the Investment Traders Association of Philadelphia (ITAP) is celebrating 100 years of promoting, encouraging, and inspiring high standards of ethics and principles of business among its members engaged and interested in the securities industry.
Initially, ITAP began as a traders’ association and has now evolved into an association for all investment professionals, according to Christina Kowalski, President of ITAP and the affiliate contact for the Philadelphia area on the Security Traders Association (STA) Women in Finance Committee.
“Our board felt this evolution would benefit all ITAP members by increasing networking opportunities and helping our members to understand the financial industry on a holistic level,” she said.
Kowalski has been a member of ITAP for over 20 years. She started in the investment world directly out of college with limited knowledge of trading, she recalled. “An opportunity arose and I found myself in a small cap equity trading seat early in my career. The ITAP community played a crucial role in shaping my knowledge and experience when I first started trading. I believe I would not be where I am today without having an organization like ITAP to help me along my career journey,” she revealed.
Kowalski is currently Partner and Head Trader for Conestoga Capital Advisors, a boutique, independent investment advisory firm specializing in the management of micro-, small-, SMID- and mid-cap growth equities. Conestoga is based in the Philadelphia suburb of Wayne, Pennsylvania, and manages over $7.3 billion in client assets as of June 30, 2023.
As Head Trader, Kowalski is responsible for a variety of essential tasks, including trade execution, model management, commission management, and TCA. In addition, she diligently manages broker relationships and stays up to date with the latest market structure trends.
Prior to Conestoga, she was an Equity Research Analyst/Trader and Operations Manager for The Swarthmore Group for nine years. From 2001 to 2010, she served a variety of roles at StoneRidge Investment Partners, most recently as Senior Equity Trader, where she was responsible for all aspects of the trading business.
Kowalski received a B.S. degree in Finance from Saint Joseph’s University, where she was also a pitcher for the softball team. She said that sports have always been a source of great enthusiasm for her, and she has actively engaged in them throughout her entire life.
Among the sports Kowalski has participated in, softball holds “a special place” as it has proven to be highly beneficial for both her trading and leadership skills.
“The focus and strategic thinking demanded as a softball pitcher have significantly influenced my decision-making capabilities in the trading realm,” she said. “Drawing from the lessons and skills acquired through sports, I have successfully applied them to enhance my professional career.”
Historically, the trading world has been known to be a male-dominated industry, Kowalski said.
“Throughout my more than 20 years in trading, I have noticed more women entering the industry and making significant contributions,” she said.
She revealed that while she has encountered challenges along the way, she would consider her experience as a woman in trading to be positive.
“Being an equity trader has given me opportunities to increase my investment knowledge, meet numerous investment professionals, network, discuss industry best practices, and visit some amazing cities,” she shared.
According to Kowalski, there are numerous initiatives, organizations, and networking groups dedicated to supporting and empowering women in the financial industry, including trading. These efforts aim to encourage diversity and inclusion in the field and create opportunities for talented women to thrive, she said.
At the national level, there is the STA Women in Finance (WIF) Committee, whose mission is to “assist in the unique career development needs of women in the securities industry,” Kowalski said. STA WIF leverages the established network, resources, and values of STA to foster and create a culture of inclusion for women, she added.
Kowalski is also a member of Women in Investing of Philadelphia (WIN of Philadelphia), which provides a forum for networking and professional development for those involved in all aspects of financial services and investing, including plan sponsors, investment managers, consultants, accountants, and attorneys.
“Thanks to these organizations, we’ve seen progress on gender equity – the aspiration is that women will continue to break glass ceilings,” she said. “We need to celebrate accomplishments, showcase talent, and inspire young women to pursue careers in the technology and financial industries,” she added.
“The financial industry benefits from diversity in ideas and perspectives, which is why we need to keep the conversation going for many years to come to foster a more balanced and successful trading environment,” she said.
Kowalski said that ITAP’s growth and sustainability depends on the representation and participation of many diverse groups of individuals. She believes that encouraging diversity, equity, and inclusion is crucial in upholding high standards of ethics, attracting and retaining top talent, and sustaining ITAP’s success over the course of the next century.
“ITAP, being committed to its vision of longevity and success, will continue to place a high importance on and remain vigilant about promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion,” she commented.
Kowalski and the ITAP board have worked hard in recent years to maintain strong membership numbers. She said that the Covid pandemic created uncertainty for the future of ITAP, adding that with the pandemic limiting in-person networking events, maintaining member engagement was a challenge.
“Our membership dropped dramatically, bottoming out at 25 members in 2022. At our first board meeting of 2023, we decided we were not giving up, especially in the year of our organization’s 100th anniversary,” she said.
ITAP began planning their major event, the 97th Annual Business Conference, for May. “We set a lofty goal of 100 members to celebrate this major milestone,” she said.
One adjustment they made this year was to change the structure of their sponsorship levels to include memberships, Kowalski said. “It was away to engage more individuals within our organization,” she said.
Kowalski began reaching out to individuals one at a time through emails, phone calls and word-of-mouth while attending conferences. Her focus was to educate and inform investment professionals of their historical significance throughout the Philadelphia area, she added.
“While promoting our Business Conference, we also promoted membership opportunities. On the day of our event, we officially hit the 100-member goal to celebrate our 100th anniversary,” she said.
It was an increase in membership of 300%, according to Kowalski.
“The uptick in membership increases our financial strength, allowing us to host more events to benefit the investment community of Philadelphia,” she commented.
“In addition, it allows us to support local nonprofit organizations with larger donations,” she said.
Kowalski stressed that all of this could not have been achieved without their dedicated members, past presidents, past governors, and current governors. “Their guidance, ideas, and hard work pushed us across the finish line,” she said.
According to Kowalski, ITAP’s 97th annual conference, which was held at Union Trust in Philadelphia, “was amazing.” ITAP typically sees 65-75 people attend their conferences, but this year there were over 100 people in attendance.
“We were fortunate to have Mark Davies, co-founder and CEO of S3, as a speaker on market structure and the recent SEC rule filings,” commented Kowalski.
“We are grateful for the support and participation of our sponsors and attendees in such a wonderful evening,” she said.
Other events ITAP has planned for this year include a golf outing held at North Hills Country Club (August 28), Top Golf (TBD), happy hours (TBD), and their election night during the holidays.
