Independent Investment Committee

The Independent Investment Committee (IIC) manages investments based on the investment policy and asset allocation approved by the Board of Trustees. The IIC continuously monitors and evaluates performance, and makes determinations regarding the hiring and retention of fund managers.

The IIC was established under RSA 100-A:14-b, on January 1, 2009. The IIC, as originally constituted, consisted of three public members and up to two representatives of the Board of Trustees; legislation enacted in 2019 added an active NHRS member to the IIC as a non-voting committee member. Public members and the active NHRS member are nominated by the Governor and must be approved by the Executive Council. Trustee members are appointed by the chairperson of the Board of Trustees. By law, all IIC members must have “substantial experience in the field of institutional investment or finance.”

IIC Members

Maureen Kelliher, Chair Trustee Member | Appointed: June 2014

Kelliher has more than four decades of investment management experience. She has served as co-chief and chief investment officer for trust and investment management firms as well as money desk manager for several banks. She holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute. She lives in Dover.

Timothy Lesko Trustee Member | Appointed: January 2018

Lesko is a partner at Granite Investment Advisors in Concord. Prior to joining Granite Investment Advisors in 1999, he worked at NationsBanc Montgomery Securities and Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith. He is a frequent guest on CNBC’s “Closing Bell,” “Squawk Box Asia,” “Power Lunch” and “The Nightly Business Review,” where he discusses economics, markets, and securities. He is a trustee of The Beech Hill School, and a former Trustee of both the Concord Regional Visiting Nurse Association and The Capital Center for the Arts. He is also chair of the NHRS Board of Trustees. He lives in Concord.

Daniel LaPlante Public Member | Appointed: August 2018

LaPlante has over 30 years of experience in investment management for institutions and individuals. He has significant background in asset allocation, risk management, and manager evaluation. He also has experience in treasury and balance sheet risk management in the financial services industry. Dan is involved with several non-profit organizations and is a CFA charterholder. He is a member of the CFA Institute and the Boston CFA Society.

Christine Clinton-Catlin Public Member | Appointed: January 2018

Clinton has been working in the investment management industry for more than a decade after cofounding Bluestone Wealth Management LLC. Prior to Bluestone, she worked as a Corporate Controller for several high-tech start-ups in the communications, finance and biotech industries in the Boston area. Christine is a CPA as well as a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder. She is a member of the CFA Institute and Boston Securities Analysts Society.

Michael McMahon Active NHRS Member | Appointed: February 2020

McMahon has been a member of Hampton Fire rescue for over 25 years, rising to the rank of Chief. During this time, he has served in a variety of financial and investment roles. He has spent nearly two decades in credit union leadership and is currently a director at Service Credit Union. He is chairman of the Board of Trustees at Cocheco Academy of the Arts, a public charter school. Mike was a member of the 2017 Decennial Retirement Commission and serves in many other community leadership roles.

Scott Hammond Public Member | Appointed: November 2021

Scott Hammond is a seasoned financial executive with a Wall Street career spanning over twenty years. Most recently Mr. Hammond was Portfolio Manager and Senior Managing Director at Guggenheim Partners where he had responsibility for a variety of strategic initiatives aimed at growing the firm’s equities business. Additionally, Scott had day-to-day responsibilities for  Growth, Value, and Core fund families with total AUM exceeding $5.5 Billion. Mr. Hammond received a B.A. in Economics from the University of New Hampshire, and has an MBA from Purdue University’s Krannert Graduate School of Management. He lives in Canaan.