Nella Domenici has recently been named the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Dataminr. Domenici is a senior financial and strategic executive with substantial experience leading and managing premier global, technology-based financial services companies. She brings to Dataminr her extensive background in advising public and privately held companies on major financial and strategic decisions; in particular, transitioning founder-owned entities to enduring and leading organizations.
Nella’s career reflects a demonstrated track record of driving successful enterprise-wide strategic and operational initiatives; managing budgeting, accounting, planning and risk in complex, technology-driven business environments; and originating and executing M&A transactions in domestic and global markets. She also brings deep corporate governance experience through her work with boards and senior management, including serving on the Management/Operating and Finance Committees for two leading global asset managers, as well as several nonprofit Boards in education, healthcare and the arts.
Nella is a qualified financial expert that can serve on audit and finance committees, as well as compensation, governance, strategy and risk committees. She is currently a Board Member of Alliance Bernstein LP where she is on the Audit and Risk Committee. Nella served as Chief Financial Officer and member of the Operating Committee at Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund with $160 billion in assets under management and ranked #5 in Fortune’s list of Most Important Private Companies (2016). She was responsible for overseeing the finance function with a wide-ranging set of critical responsibilities such as budgeting, planning, cash management and capital structure. Nella managed the Chief Accounting Officer and internal accounting team and was ultimately responsible for all accounting, GAAP and audit issues; she led regular accounting-related presentations to the Finance committee and Board of Directors. At Bridgewater, Nella also led and/or supported a broad range of successful strategic initiatives, including: a comprehensive redesign of firm-wide compensation; restructuring of the finance department focusing on centralization, technology utilization and human capital optimization; strategic international expansion to China; build-out of the firm’s governance and Board; and major office relocation. During her tenure, she supported the firm to achieve continually improved margins, major changes in its capital structure, upgrades to accounting and audit procedures, and advancement of the CFO to become a trusted thought partner to the Chairman and CEOs. Since leaving her role as CFO at Bridgewater, Nella has served as a Senior Advisor and interim CFO at Better Mortgage, the fastest growing fin-tech mortgage company. Nella was a key Member of the Management Committee and Chief of Staff at Citadel Group, another premier technology-based hedge fund with $30 billion in assets under management, where she was responsible for planning, strategy, business development and communications. She led several critical business-wide initiatives to address emerging operational and strategic challenges, including strategic growth “buy or build” efforts, international expansion to China, competitor benchmarking, and performance and productivity analyses. She started her career in investment banking at Drexel Burnham Lambert in commercial real estate finance and continued for 12 years to become Head of Middle Market M&A at Credit Suisse. She provided M&A and corporate and real estate advice to public and private companies globally in a diverse set of industries, including consumer, healthcare, industrials and real estate.
Nella is passionate about helping to improve education, healthcare and economic independence for others. She serves on the Board of Regis High School, a leading, full-scholarship Jesuit HS focused on economically disadvantaged youth and is a founder of Excellent Schools New Mexico, a nonprofit that supports charter schools in underserved communities. She is a task force co-chair for the Bi-Partisan Policy Center in Washington DC where she champions initiatives focused on mental illness. Until recently, she was on the Board of One World Surgery, which provides access to quality surgical care globally. She is also active as an Advisor to, and as a former Board Member of, the International Folk Art Market, which focuses on economic opportunities for folk artists worldwide, the majority of whom are women from developing countries.
Nella has been a guest speaker for McKinsey and Harvard, receiving a Lifetime Inspiration Award from Harvard Undergraduate Women in Business. She graduated from Harvard Business School with High Distinction and as a George F. Baker Scholar. She has a JD from Georgetown Law Center, where she attended the night law program and also earned an undergraduate degree from Georgetown University.