Christopher Ailman

Christopher Ailman has over four decades of institutional asset owner experience. He served as a public pension Chief Investment Officer from 1986 to 2024. The last 23 years with the $340 billion California State Teachers’ Pension Plan, “CalSTRS”. He managed billion-dollar portfolios through numerous bear markets and the global financial crisis of 2008. As the CIO, he has lead investment teams from three to 245 professionals. In 2024, he founded his own firm Ailman Advisers to provide mentoring, public speaking, and serve on Boards and Investment Committees. He is passionate about the need for investors to think and act long-term to achieve sustainable results. Ailman serves an Independent Director on the Blackrock Multi-Asset Board, a ’40 Act Mutual Fund complex covering 160 Mutual Funds worth over $800 billion in assets. He is also a Senior Consultant with Mosaic Governance, helping institutional investors improve their oversight and management. Ailman is the chair of The 300 Club comprised of global CIO’s: Chair Emeritus of the Milken Global Capital Markets Committee. He has served on corporate and advisory boards in the United States and the United Kingdom. He is a Lifetime Member of the Pacific Pension Institute. Recognized as one of the top CIOs globally, he has received numerous awards and recognitions, including as CIO of the year in 2001, 2011, 2013, 2017, and 2018, he was honored with the Richard Stoddard Award for service in the investment of public pensions in 2003. He has received three lifetime achievement awards and is in the CIO Hall of Fame.