Chip Castille, Managing Director, is head of BlackRock's US & Canada Defined Contribution Group. Chip’s current service with the firm dates back to 2007, including his years with Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009. At BGI, he was head of US defined contribution product development. Prior to joining BGI in 2007, he was a managing director at Wilshire Associates and Chief Investment Officer for Wilshire Funds Management. During an earlier stint with BGI, from 1993 to 1999, he assisted with development of the industry's first target date fund, the LifePath Portfolios, in 1993.

Chip’s investment management experience includes expertise in solving asset allocation, manager selection, and structure problems. He co-authored "Optimizing Manager Structure and Budgeting Manager Risk" (Journal of Portfolio Management) with John Pirone and Duane Whitney, which received the Bernstein Fabozzi/Jacobs Levy award for outstanding article in 2000.

He earned a BA degree in journalism from Louisiana State University in 1987 and an MBA degree from Loyola University in 1989.

Dodd Kittsley, CFA, Director, is the Global Head of ETP Research at BlackRock. BlackRock's ETP research team provides insights and perspectives on the global ETP marketplace delivered through the monthly ETP Landscape and other regular and customized research. Mr. Kittsley was previously Head of Due Diligence for iShares, a global provider of ETPs. Mr. Kittsley's service with the firm dates back to 2007, including his years at Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009. At BGI, he was responsible for providing customized portfolio solutions and product analytics to financial intermediaries. Dodd was a Director of Sales Strategy at BGI, leading a team that created and delivered ETP product and industry related insights. Prior to joining BlackRock, Mr. Kittsley held research and fund due diligence positions at State Street Global Advisors and Morgan Stanley. He has published extensively and is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and in the media.

Mr. Kittsley earned a B.A. degree from the Hamilton College and a Masters degree from University of Houston. He holds various U.S. securities licenses. He received the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) designation, is a member of CFA® Institute.

Russ Koesterich, CFA, is the Chief Investment Strategist for BlackRock and iShares Chief Global Investment Strategist.

He is a founding member of the Blackrock Investment Institute, delivering BlackRock’s insights on global investment issues. During his 20+ year career as an investment researcher and strategist, Russ has served as the Global Head of Investment Strategy for scientific active equities and as senior portfolio manager in the US Market Neutral Group at BlackRock.

Russ is a frequent contributor to financial news media and can regularly be seen on CNBC, Fox Business News and Bloomberg TV. He is the author of two books, including his most recent “The Ten Trillion Dollar Gamble,” which details how to position portfolios for the impact of the growing U.S. deficit. Russ is also regularly quoted in print media including the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, MSNBC.com, and MarketWatch.

Russ earned a BA in history from Brandeis University, a JD from Boston College and an MBA in capital markets from Columbia University.

Daniel Morillo, PhD, Managing Director, is the Global Head of Investment Research for iShares. Dr. Morillo's service with the firm dates back to 2003, including his years with Barclay's Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009. At BGI, he served in a variety of senior research and portfolio management roles including, Head of Global Equities within the Scientific Active Equity group.

Prior to joining BGI, Dr. Morillo served as a Senior Research Manager at PanAgora Asset Management for three years, where he developed US Equity risk and alpha models. Dr. Morillo earned a BS degree in economics from Universidad San Fran de Quito in 1995, a MS degree in statistics from the University of Illinois in 1998, and a PhD in econometrics from the University of Illinois in 2000.

Del Stafford, CFA, is a Managing Director and Global Head of iShares Product & Investment Consulting, a group that consults directly with investment advisors to provide in-depth market and product expertise for iShares offerings, as well as customized portfolio consulting support. In this role, his team conducts bespoke client portfolio analyses to assist with asset allocation, risk evaluation and portfolio structure decisions. Del joined iShares in 2008, then part of Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in December 2009. Del spent over 16 years at The Vanguard Group, where he recently worked with the firm's current and prospective defined benefit plan clients to structure custom investment solutions. He also worked as Senior Portfolio Manager within Vanguard's Fixed Income Group, with responsibility for managing institutional, separately managed and stable value portfolios.

Del holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation and is a member of the CFA Society of San Francisco. He earned an MBA from LaSalle University and a BS in finance from Bloomsburg University.

Jessie Szymanski is a Vice President at BlackRock. As a member of the iShares messaging and communications team, Jessie helps clients of all types understand the basics and more about iShares ETFs.

Prior to joining BlackRock, Jessie led marketing and communications at Sterling Stamos, a private investment firm with approximately $7 billion in assets under management. She began her career at NewSchools Venture Fund, a venture philanthropy firm working to transform public education for low-income children.

Jessie earned a B.A. in international relations and public policy from Princeton University, and is currently pursuing her M.B.A. degree from the Haas School of Business at the University of California Berkeley. She holds various U.S. securities licenses.

Sue Thompson, CIMA, Managing Director, is Head of the Registered Investment Advisor Group, overseeing the firm's iShares and 529 sales efforts with registered investment advisors, family offices and asset managers.

Prior to joining BGI in 2007, Ms. Thompson was a principal at Vanguard, heading the national sales team focused on national full service brokerage firms. She joined Vanguard in August 1999 as Senior Counsel, specializing in tax law and structured products. Prior to joining Vanguard, Ms. Thompson was an attorney at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, LLP in California, specializing in public finance.

Ms. Thompson received her B.A. in Accounting from the University of Washington and J.D. from the University of California, Davis. She is also a C.P.A. and holds her Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) designation through the Investment Management Consultants Association in conjunction with the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Matthew Tucker, CFA, Managing Director, is the Head of iShares Fixed Income Strategy team within BlackRock's Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team. He leads the product strategy effort for iShares exchange traded funds in North and Latin America. His team focuses on developing new fixed income iShares strategies, partnering with the iShares team on product delivery, and supporting clients in the use of iShares funds.

Mr. Tucker's service with the firm dates back to 1996, including his years with Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009. Matt has worked in the fixed income markets for over 15 years as a portfolio manager, trader and strategist. He was part of the team that developed and launched the world's first fixed income ETF in 2002, and spent a number of years as the portfolio manager for the funds. For the past decade he has been an active voice in the fixed income ETF market, helping further investors' understanding and usage of this new asset class. As part of this effort he has published a number of white papers on fixed income ETF markets and mechanics. Mr. Tucker began his career at Barra, where he supported clients in the use of Barra's fixed-income analytics.

Mr. Tucker earned a BS degree in business administration from the University of California at Berkeley in 1994 and is a CFA Charter Holder.