Laura MacFarland, MBA

Commander
DISC Type : D

Head of Practice Management Marketing, Financial Advisor Services at Vanguard

Malvern, Pennsylvania, United States

Overview

Laura MacFarland is a marketing leader in financial services, currently serving as the Head of Practice Management Marketing at Vanguard. Her expertise spans content strategy and product marketing, honed during her time as a Vice President at BlackRock. She holds an MBA from the University of Pittsburghs Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business.

Based on her professional endorsements and shares, Laura shows a strong appreciation for authentic leadership, corporate purpose, and the advancement of women in asset management. She has also publicly supported corporate sustainability initiatives.

She led the design and execution of a new digital insights hub and a new sales enablement platform during her tenure at BlackRock.

Personality Overview

Strong-Willed

Very Quick

Impact-Driven

They prefer to be the ones controlling the conversation or defining the terms.  They are not always relationship oriented. More than the product, they care about the impact of the product.

Topics They Care About

Practice Management
As the current Head of Practice Management Marketing at Vanguard, this is her primary professional focus.
Financial Advisor Marketing
Her entire recent career at both Vanguard and BlackRock has been focused on providing marketing and content for financial advisors.
Digital Content Strategy
She previously served as Head of Content Strategy for BlackRock's Advisor Center, revolutionizing their digital client engagement.

Media Appearances

Laura has no verified media appearances

Work History

1-2026
Head of Practice Management Marketing, Financial Advisor Services at Vanguard
4-2024 - 12-2025
Marketing Strategist, Financial Advisor Services at Vanguard
3-2022 - 5-2024
Vice President, Head of Content Strategy for Advisor Center at BlackRock
1-2020 - 3-2022
Vice President, US Wealth Advisory Product Marketing at BlackRock
4-2018 - 1-2020
Associate, US Wealth Advisory Product Marketing at BlackRock

Education

2014 - 2017
Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) from University of Pittsburgh Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business
2009 - 2013
Bachelor's degree from University of Pittsburgh

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 15 Location : Malvern, Pennsylvania, United States Job Level : Mid-senior Designation : Head of Practice Management Marketing, Financial Advisor Services at Vanguard
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Insights For Selling To Laura

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Refer to testimonials from well-known industry leaders
  • Get to the point quickly instead of spending time doing small talk
  • Make sure that you circle back fast on any action items, it wins their trust

DONT's

  • Don’t be in a rush to invite them for a social meet and greet
  • Do not back off when challenged, respond with a confident, objective answer instead
  • Avoid being a storyteller and don’t try to oversell

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Laura is

  • Confidence in impact is paramount to them, followed by a sense of achievement and ROI.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Laura

  • If they decide not to go ahead, they will say no without hesitation.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Laura move?

  • They can reach decisions fairly quickly if they are convinced.
  • Can Laura take some risk or not?

  • They don’t mind risks but can be quite binary about them.

You And Laura

Personality Compatibility


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