Meet the Team
MARIA JELESCU, CO-FOUNDER & CEO
Maria founded Ardinall Investment Management in 2017. Prior to Ardinall, Maria spent 15 years at Goldman Sachs, where she most recently served as a Portfolio Manager and Managing Director in the Goldman Sachs Investment Partners (GSIP) Group. She currently serves as a director on the boards of Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE: XOM) and Cadiz Inc. (NASDAQ: CDZI). She served as an independent director on the boards of Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE: PXD) between 2021 and 2024, Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation (NYSE: MIC) between 2018 and 2022, Nabors Energy Transition Corp (NYSE: NETC) between 2021 and 2023, CDPQ (one of Canada’s largest pension plans) between 2019 and 2024, and on the advisory board of Eni Next (Eni SpA’s corporate venture arm) between 2017 and 2024. She also serves as a director on several private companies’ governing and advisory boards in the energy transition space. Additionally, she is the Vice-Chair of the advisory board of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University and serves as Co-Chair of its Women in Energy program. Maria is also a member of the MIT Corporation’s Development Committee and sits on the MIT Economics Department’s Visiting Committee. Her current and past non-profit board memberships include the Global Carbon Management Foundation, New America Alliance, Breakthrough New York, and Girls Inc. of NYC. Maria has held her CFA since 2004, and holds a dual degree in Economics and Management Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
BRIAN TSAI, CFO
Brian is the CFO of Ardinall Investment Management since March 2021. He has over 16 years of experience as CFO and COO of various investment firms, from a private equity fund to a multi-strategy public fund or a sector specialist fund. He is a graduate of Duke University (BS, BA), John Hopkins (MA), and Fordham (MS in Taxation).
KRISTINE CARROLL, CONTROLLER
Kristine is the Controller of Ardinall Investment Management since March 2021. She has over two decades of experience in investment management, with previous roles at Armor Capital Management, UBS prime brokerage, and Morgan Stanley prime brokerage. She graduated from Manhattan College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics.
BELINDA LI, RESEARCH ANALYST
Belinda Li is a Research Analyst at Ardinall Investment Management. Belinda’s coverage is generalist, with a focus on industrials, energy, and utilities. Prior to joining Ardinall in late 2024, she was a Debt Capital Markets analyst for two years at Goldman Sachs covering Industrials. She graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business from NYU Stern Undergraduate College.
MATT LEWIS, INVESTOR RELATIONS ANALYST
Matt oversees capital partnerships for Ardinall Investment Management, leading all investor relations and business development efforts. Prior to joining Ardinall in late 2024, he worked at UBS within the Global Wealth Management division. He graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, with a concentration in Financial Analysis.
KERRY MANG’ERA, EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT
Kerry supports Ardinall Investment Management across operations and executive coordination, working closely with the CEO on scheduling, communications, and strategic initiatives. Prior to joining Ardinall, she served as an Executive Partner with Athena, where she provided high-level operational support to senior executives. She graduated from Kenyatta University with a Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Chemistry with management.
Internal Advisors
SUSAN POTTO PUBLIC MARKETS ADVISOR
Prior to Ardinall, Susan was a MD at Iridian Asset Management 2008-2021. From 2005-2008, she worked as a senior analyst for Eagle Capital Partners. From 1996-2002, she was a global analyst for the Mutual Series Funds at Franklin Templeton and a Portfolio Manager for four of their mutual funds, with $5 billion in cumulative AUM. From 1987-1996, Susan worked for legendary investor Michael Price. Susan holds a certificate in both Sustainable Investing and Sustainable Business Strategy from Harvard Business School. Susan earned an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business and a BBA in Finance from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. Susan is based in New York.
ALBERTO ALONZO PRIVATE MARKETS ADVISOR
Prior to Ardinall, Alberto was head of the Mexico City office and member of the investment team at Goldman Sachs Investment Partners, where he focused on Mexico’s energy and infrastructure sectors. Before that, Alberto worked at Baseline Partners, a private equity firm focused on energy and infrastructure projects in emerging markets, and in the Investment Banking Division at Merrill Lynch, focused on energy and industrial clients. Alberto started his career at Alpek, a Mexico-based petrochemical conglomerate, as a business development and strategic planning manager. Alberto earned an industrial and systems engineering degree from ITESM and an MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Alberto is based in Mexico City.
CHRIS SWANBERG EHS ADVISOR
Chris has over 40 years of experience in EHS (environmental, health & safety) compliance, regulatory and business risk. He worked with and for several public and private companies, such as Atlantic Richfield Company (Arco), Lyondell, CVR Energy, Sage Environmental Consulting, Gopher Resources, and Pilko & Associates. Chris is a graduate of Western Kentucky University with an Environmental Engineering Technology degree, and University of Tulsa with an MBA. Chris is based in Houston.