The pandemic has served as a wake-up call on many fronts, but to Anne Ackerley (MBA 1988), managing director and head of the Retirement Group at BlackRock, it has focused a particular spotlight on the retirement crisis in the United States and in many other countries. She notes that roughly 40 percent of Americans have no retirement savings, and that by 2030, some 72 million American retirees will be living below the poverty line. “The pandemic has shown just how unstable things can be, how quickly it can happen, and how we need to add more financial security,” Ackerley says.

Under Ackerley’s leadership, BlackRock’s Retirement Group, which manages $1.3 trillion in retirement assets for some 35 million Americans, has taken steps to address these issues. In 2020 they held the BlackRock Savings Summit, a virtual retirement conference that brought together CEO Larry Fink and Ackerley, as well as leading thinkers and decision makers, to discuss ways to make the US savings system more secure and inclusive.

Ackerley’s group, in partnership with insurers, also announced an innovative investment solution, called LifePath Paycheck, to help US workers improve their financial security by offering guaranteed lifetime income through workplace retirement plans. As Ackerley explains, many American workers used to have defined benefit plans, or pensions, that ensured a steady stream of income in retirement. Some companies and professions still offer them, but most have converted to defined contribution asset plans, such as 401(k)s. In 2019, BlackRock created the Emergency Savings Initiative to help Americans cover unexpected emergency expenses, a reality exacerbated by the pandemic. Spearheaded by Deborah Winshel (MBA 1985), formerly of BlackRock and now a senior lecturer at HBS, the initiative helps organizations create short-term financial stability for vulnerable workers and communities.

Ackerley cites a Pew study indicating that 40 percent of Americans can’t afford a $400 emergency—a problem that is particularly acute for women and their ability to save for retirement. “In the United States, women’s pensions or retirement plans are typically 35 percent less than men’s even though we live longer and our money needs to last longer. In Japan, it’s 50 percent,” she explains. “Given that women make 82 cents on the dollar, this income gap affects not only earnings but also retirement savings, creating a gender pension gap. Some of that is because of the industries we go into, and also because we are caregivers for children or elderly parents.”

Women of color, women working in jobs that are low-paying or can’t be done from home, women who have lost their jobs, and those who have no access to retirement savings plans are especially affected. “When people have access to retirement plans, they’re 15 times more likely to save,” explains Ackerley. Companies alone can’t solve this problem, she says, adding that some public policy initiatives need to be implemented, along with paid childcare and more flexible workplaces.

Ackerley is passionate about closing the gender pension gap and furthering women’s success in business. She was named one of Barron’s 100 Most Influential Women in US Finance in 2020, 2021, and 2022 and cofounded BlackRock’s Women’s Initiative Network, which encourages the full potential of women at the firm.

“Many young people feel like they have to go into not-for-profits to do good, but you can also change the world in corporate America by having ethical leadership. For me, those thought processes started at HBS, which grounded me as a manager and as a leader,” Ackerley says. “How do I use my position to do good and help people find financial security? I think about that all the time.”

She also thinks about something her mother—who was widowed with four young children to support on a teacher’s pension—wrote to her when she learned that BlackRock managed a segment of the New York State Teachers’ Pension Fund. “It said, ‘Dear Anne, please take care of us old teachers. Love, Mom,’” recalls Ackerley. “That had a profound impact on me. This isn’t my money—this is my mother’s money, and her neighbor’s money. We’re managing people’s savings, and we need to do the best job we can because every penny matters.”

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