Executive Team

Adele Kohler, CFA, joined CAIA Association in 2025 as its first Managing Director of the Americas. She leads the Association’s efforts across Canada, the United States, and Latin America, some of the largest and most dynamic capital markets in the world, advancing CAIA’s Vision 2035 and helping to redefine what it means to be an investment professional in a world where everything is now an alternative.

Nick Pollard is a seasoned leader with over 15 years of international finance experience in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. Currently, he is helping drive CAIA Association’s expansion in this key market, leveraging his expertise in business development and his passion for training the next generation of finance professionals. Nick's career includes a successful seven-year tenure as Managing Director for the CFA Institute in APAC, where he worked closely with institutional partners, employers, universities, and regulators.

Steve Novakovic is the Managing Director, Educational Programs at CAIA Association. In this role he leads the creation, development, implementation, and execution of the charter, certificate and other professional development programs offered by CAIA Association. Steve joined CAIA Association in 2022 and has been a Charterholder since 2011. Prior to CAIA Association, he was a faculty member at Ithaca College in Ithaca, NY, where he taught a variety of finance courses, including alternative investments.

As a member of the Leadership Team at CAIA Association, Aaron partners with asset managers, institutional investors, and wealth managers to distill advanced investment concepts into real-world frameworks. With his prior experience in high-net-worth investment strategy and portfolio management, he brings thought leadership, industry context, and practical implementation to a global community of investment professionals.

Laura Merlini, CAIA, CIFD is Managing Director EMEA for the CAIA Association, a position she has held since 2012. She is a senior alternative investment professional with extensive experience in strategic leadership, governance, stakeholder engagement and new market development across the financial industry. Her work is guided by a belief in the power of a plurality of voices in finance and a commitment to integrity, inclusion and ethics.

As Managing Director of Global Operations, Ruth oversees finance, legal, human resources and IT for the Association. Leading initiatives in these areas, she works to mitigate risk across the organization and ensure legal compliance on federal and state matters in the United States as well as abroad. Ruth is the liaison with CAIA’s overseas offices and works closely with the Association leadership to develop and implement international strategic priorities to support long-term plans for growth. She also works closely with the CAIA’s Board of Directors and the CAIA Foundation.