Her Story
About Elizabeth
Elizabeth Muirhead is Senior Portfolio Strategist at Vanguard, where she has built a 29-year career spanning nearly every corner of the investment management business. In her current role, she works closely with financial advisors across broker-dealers, RIAs, asset managers, and institutional platforms, helping them translate macroeconomic and market developments into practical strategies for portfolio construction and asset allocation. Prior to this position, she spent over a decade as Senior Investment Director overseeing manager selection and search across index and active fixed income, equity, and specialized products, while also leading a team of analysts. Her earlier years at the firm included roles in project management and fund accounting, giving her a broad and layered understanding of the business from operations through to client-facing advisory work.
A CFA charterholder since 2007, Muirhead also holds Series 6, 7, and 63 licenses and earned her undergraduate degree in Business Finance, with a minor in Music, from Millersville University of Pennsylvania. Among her most notable professional achievements, she spearheaded the creation of Vanguard's global oversight program, a project that earned recognition from the Irish regulator following her collaboration with boards and regulatory bodies across Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. She remains active in the investment community as a member of the CFA Institute, the CFA Society of Philadelphia, and women-focused professional networks including WIN and Women in ETFs.
Beyond her work at Vanguard, Muirhead is deeply engaged in her community. She serves as an elected board member of the Coatesville Area School District, where she chairs the Finance Committee and acts as lead negotiator in union discussions, and she also serves as a Ruling Elder. Guided by a personal commitment to integrity and doing the right thing even when unobserved, she brings the same values that define her professional life into her volunteer work, reflecting a career built on steady leadership, continuous growth, and genuine care for the people she works alongside.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Elizabeth
01What do you attribute your success to?
I credit my success to the leadership and culture at Vanguard, which have kept me engaged throughout my career. The firm is large enough that whenever I felt I had reached a ceiling, a new opportunity or path forward opened up for me. That growth has always been driven by strong leadership and the way it shapes the culture around it.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best advice I've received is that it's sometimes better to walk away than to insist on being right. I've learned that you can choose to fight to be proven correct, or you can step back and focus on getting things done. More often than not, it pays to prioritize the outcome you want to achieve over winning the moment.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I encourage young women not to be afraid to enter the room, even in a field that may feel male-dominated. There are more allies out there than you'd expect, so seek out mentors whose values and style align with your own. At the same time, don't get so caught up in taking care of everyone else that you lose sight of excelling in your own role.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Doing the right thing, even when no one is watching, is the value I hold most important in both my work and personal life. I also believe it's sometimes okay to let someone else be wrong — giving them the space to be wrong can build the trust and capital needed to work together toward the right outcome.
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