Introducing: CNBC Changemakers and Power Players

Summary

Podcast Summary: Squawk Pod – Introducing: CNBC Changemakers and Power Players

Date: November 4, 2025
Host: Julia Boorstin (for Changemakers and Power Players segment)
Guest: Courtney Gibson, CEO of Retirement Solutions at TIAA
Podcast: Squawk Pod (CNBC)

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Episode Overview

This special episode of Squawk Pod serves as an introduction to CNBC’s new podcast, “Changemakers and Power Players,” hosted by Julia Boorstin. The series spotlights trailblazing women transforming industries and leadership. In this preview segment, Julia sits down with Courtney Gibson—former Loop Capital leader and newly appointed CEO at TIAA Retirement Solutions—to discuss her professional journey, the mission of TIAA, and the challenge of fostering innovation in legacy financial institutions.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introducing “Changemakers and Power Players”

• Julia Boorstin shares her excitement for the new series, noting its focus on in-depth conversations with inspiring female leaders from various industries.
• Notable guests mentioned include Arianna Huffington, Bobby CEO Laura Modi, and Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego.
  • Julia Boorstin: “These are candid in depth conversations with some of the most inspiring women in business…” (01:11)

2. Courtney Gibson’s Mission at TIAA

• TIAA’s Legacy and Mission:
  • TIAA was founded over a century ago to create retirement security for Americans.
  • Courtney emphasizes that “helping Americans have comfortable retirements” remains at the core of their work.
  • Courtney Gibson: “We actually were founded to create retirement security for more Americans. And here we are, 107 years later, still living out that mission every single day… That’s our North Star.” (02:34-03:03)

3. Path to Leadership: From Startup Roots to Institutional Finance

• Unplanned Career Arc:
  • Courtney didn’t intend to go into finance; she aspired to be a bilingual pediatrician.
  • An internship at Loop Capital, founded by her cousin, changed her trajectory.
  • Courtney Gibson: “I didn’t choose finance. I’d say finance chose me.” (03:20)
  • She fell in love with the world of finance—especially understanding and demystifying how money moves, and building relationships across the industry.
• Startup Experience:
  • Courtney’s early years at Loop Capital shaped her into a leader who appreciates the growth journey.
  • “Growth really happens on the journey. It’s not when you get to the destination.” (04:54)

4. Core Leadership Lessons & Organizational Trust

• Importance of Trust:
  • Across industries, “people do business with who they know, like and trust.”
  • Building and sustaining trust is fundamental, regardless of a company’s size or sector.
• Building Substance:
  • Authentic relationships and organizational core values are key ingredients to success.

5. Bringing Innovation to a Century-Old Institution

• Navigating Bureaucracy:
  • Courtney describes the challenges of driving entrepreneurship within a large, established organization like TIAA.
  • She humorously recounts “15 layers of this and that” and excessive meetings and sign-offs, highlighting the difference versus startup culture.
  • Courtney Gibson: “You’ve got 15 layers of this and that and you’ve got sign offs and check ins and 15 PowerPoints for a 12-minute meeting.” (05:59)
• Empowering Teams:
  • She focuses on empowering her team to move faster, address barriers, and continually ask, “What’s getting in the way?”
  • The urgency is real: “45% of Americans aren’t saving enough for retirement… two thirds of Gen Z just not knowing what to do. That’s not talking about just black and brown… it’s all.” (06:16)
  • She reframes retirement security as a non-partisan issue affecting all Americans.

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Memorable Quotes & Notable Moments

• On Mission:

  • “Here we are, 107 years later, still living out that mission every single day… That’s our North Star.” — Courtney Gibson (02:54)

• On Career Path:

  • “I didn’t choose finance. I’d say finance chose me.” — Courtney Gibson (03:20)
  • “I was gonna be a bilingual pediatrician, right?” — Courtney Gibson (03:20)

• On Leading and Building Trust:

  • “People still do business with who they know, like and trust. And those fundamentals have to stay within the fabric of an organization... When people stop trusting you, there’s a problem.” — Courtney Gibson (04:54-05:24)

• On Bureaucracy in Big Firms:

  • “You’ve got 15 layers of this and that and you’ve got sign offs and check ins and 15 PowerPoints for a 12-minute meeting.” — Courtney Gibson (05:59)

• On the Urgency of Retirement Security:

  • “45% of Americans aren’t saving enough for retirement. That’s a big number. And when you think about 2/3 of gen Z just not knowing what to do... it’s talking about all.” — Courtney Gibson (06:16)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:01] – Julia Boorstin introduces the “Changemakers and Power Players” podcast.
• [02:08] – Start of Courtney Gibson interview; discussing her role and TIAA’s longstanding mission.
• [03:20] – Courtney recounts her unexpected transition into finance and the formative years at Loop Capital.
• [04:32] – Discussing startup lessons and applying them to leadership in larger organizations.
• [05:59] – Chipping away at institutional bureaucracy to foster a culture of innovation.
• [06:16] – The challenge and urgency of increasing retirement security for Americans.

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Tone and Style

The conversation is candid and friendly, filled with personal anecdotes, genuine admiration between interviewer and guest, and both gravity (regarding the current retirement crisis) and humor (about career detours and corporate realities). Courtney Gibson’s responses are direct, honest, and frequently peppered with warm, conversational humor.

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Summary Takeaway

This episode preview offers a vivid glimpse into the new “Changemakers and Power Players” podcast—anchored by both inspirational stories and sharp, actionable wisdom. Courtney Gibson’s leadership journey from a would-be pediatrician to the helm of TIAA Retirement Solutions underscores the often-unplanned, people-focused nature of leadership. With financial security as both mission and challenge, Courtney brings lessons of trust, innovation, and urgency to a legacy institution, reminding listeners: change is both necessary and possible, for individuals and for society at large.

Transcript

[Narrator/Advertiser]

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[Julia Boorstin]

Ugh.

[Ella Langley]

After eight hours of this, I have earned my wine.

[Courtney Gibson]

You know what I'm saying?

[Podcast Host]

My family is a lot.

[Narrator/Advertiser]

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[Janice Henderson]

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[Julia Boorstin]

Hey everyone, I'm Julia Boorstin and I'm so excited to tell you about my new podcast, CNBC Changemakers and Power Players. Each week I sit down with trailblazing women who are redefining leadership, breaking barriers and transforming industries from tech and health to sports and media. They share their hardest moments and tell me how they pushed through. These are candid in depth conversations with some of the most inspiring women in business, including Arianna Huffington, Bobby CEO Laura Modi, Phoenix Mayer, Kate Gallego, and more. And we're dropping new episodes every Tuesday. Plus stay right here to listen to a special preview of my conversation with Courtney Gibson, who helped build one of the most successful black owned investment firms in America, Loop Capital. Now she's CEO of Retirement Solutions at tiaa, which manages nearly a trillion dollars in assets to help Americans have comfortable retirements. Follow and listen to CNBC Changemakers and Power Players wherever you get your podcasts.

[Podcast Host]

Courtney, thank you so much for joining me here for this Changemakers and Power Players podcast. I see you all the time on cnbc, so I feel like we see each other a lot more than on TV than in person.

[Courtney Gibson]

I agree we gotta do better. We're gonna do better.

[Podcast Host]

But I appreciate you making the time. I know you've been traveling around and you have this hu as CEO of TIAA Retirement Solutions, what is your mission and your role?

[Courtney Gibson]

Well, first of all, it's so wonderful to be here with you. I've always thought about you and all the work that you've done and the light that you bring to this world. So first of all, thank you for that. So when I think about TIAA and our mission as an enterprise, I mean, I think you might know we actually were founded to create retirement security for more Americans. And here we are, 107 years later, still living out that mission every single day in a across our 15,000 associates. That. That's our North Star.

[Podcast Host]

I mean, that's such a long legacy and such an important mission. But I want to go back to the beginning. How did you end up here? Because for many years, you were at Loop Capital, which is very innovative fund. But was this always your vision to end up in this world of finance and now retirement solutions?

[Courtney Gibson]

Absolutely not. You know, I always joke with my team. I was like, you do know I was gonna be a bilingual pediatrician, right? So, you know, it's. It's a really kind of cool thing. I didn't choose finance. I'd say finance chose me. And I was put in an incredible position where I had an opportunity. My cousin actually founded Loop capital back in 97, and he gave me a tremendous opportunity to intern. He didn't tell me that this life was going to kind of suck me in. And started out corporate investment banking, moved through capital markets, sales, and trading, and helping to lead one of the largest privately held investment services firms that's here in the US and it kind of snuck up on me, if you will. But I fell in love with it. To understand how money moves, something that generally people think is so complex, making it simple, making it a reality, and being able to build relationships and grow a business is a tremendous opportunity to have. And then when I got the opportunity to join TIAA and Thasonda Brown, Duckett said, hey, we gotta make sure that this company's here for the next hundred years. I was like, hey, sign me up.

[Podcast Host]

What's so interesting is you were in this world of big finance, but it was also a startup.

[Julia Boorstin]

Yes.

[Podcast Host]

And you started from the very bottom as an intern. How has your perspective been shaped as a leader? From having been at a real startup for so many years of your career?

[Courtney Gibson]

You know, it's funny you should say that. I think it's created a lot of appreciation for the process.

[Podcast Host]

What do you mean by that? What process?

[Courtney Gibson]

So, you know, when I think about growth, right? Growth really happens on the journey. It's not when you get to the destination. And so having the privilege of 2020 hindsight, and I look at all of the things that I've gotten a chance to experience over my career, all of the people I've had the chance to meet, to work with to help, you know, you get an appreciation for how it works. Realistically, how do you build a business from the ground up? How do you build relationships how does real business get done? You've got to have the substance. But I don't care if you are in a big tech company or if you are running a hospital system, people still do business with who they know, like and trust. And those fundamentals have to stay within the fabric of an organization, within a business in order for it to be successful. When people stop trusting you, there's a problem.

[Podcast Host]

So you were hired in part because you had this background at an innovative startup. How did you bring a spirit and a culture of innovation to this century old institution? How do you start to change that culture now?

[Courtney Gibson]

That bureaucracy that comes with big firms, that's a whole different ball game. And you got to kind of chip away at it, right? Because even people who want to be more entrepreneurial, who want to kind of infuse that entrepreneurial nature into the fabric of it, it's not easy. I mean you got 15 layers of this and that and you've got sign offs and check ins and 15 PowerPoints for a 12 minute meeting. So trying to just again, where I can personally see it, address it, but then again empowering my team to say, how do we move faster, how do we do it better? What's getting in the way of us doing this? Because again, clock is ticking, right? 45% of Americans aren't saving enough for retirement. That's a big number. And when you think about 2/3 of gen Z just not knowing what to do, that's not talking about just black and brown, it's not just talking about women, it's talking about all. And so when you think about that, it takes away what sometimes can be divisive. Like, oh, why are you focusing on? Well, I'm focusing on it because candidly there's a huge inequity here. But we can all rally around the ability for people to live the retirement that they want to live. And that's something that I think is incredibly important. I mean we're sitting here in D.C. right now. This is a partisan issue.

[Narrator/Advertiser]

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