Michele Equale

Michele is the Head of Strategic Initiatives & Administration within MassMutual’s Investment Management division.  Michele works with leadership to design and execute best in class capabilities and cultivate superior talent practices. She believes a people-centric lean operation delivers the highest return in policyholder value and creates the best experience for MassMutual employees. Committed to increasing the value delivered to customers and reduce the waste within operational processes, Michele coaches leaders at all levels of the firm on transformation management, change leadership and lean management principles. Completing her 12thyear with MassMutual, Michele has functioned in roles influencing executive recruiting, business strategy development & planning and continuous improvement. She is a UMASS Isenberg School of Management 2018 Driven Leader Award Nominee, a two-time recipient of MassMutual’s Enterprise Improvement Award, a recipient of MassMutual’s President Cost Challenge Award and a recipient of the MassMutual Diversity & Inclusion Champion Award. Passionate about closing the gap in women in leadership positions, Michele founded and leads the Women’s Leadership Business Resource Group’s Lean in to Learn program, focused on supporting women at all levels of MassMutual and cultivating their financial and investment acumen and confidence.  Early in her career, she sold software solutions and consulting services to fortune 100 corporations in multiple industries and regions of the country. Michele is a proud mother of two children, Joseph, 16, and 7-year-old AnnaRose, and enjoys life’s delights such as fine art galleries and studios, riding horses and floating on Saratoga Lake with her kids, parents and husband, Chris. Michele obtained her MBA at Isenberg School of Management in 2013 and a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from Colorado State University in 1995.