Redefining Fund Administration | Speaker | Podcast Host | Alternative Investments Innovator

I’ve spent over two decades in fund administration, helping managers across hedge funds, private equity, credit, real estate and digital assets navigate complexity, scale operations, and unlock efficiency.

Since 2015, I’ve worked on the front lines of digital asset fund services—supporting some of the industry's first crypto funds. My work has also included building Gen AI-powered workflows, launching investor portals, and designing fund ops infrastructure from the ground up.

Today, I serve as Managing Director, USA at The Ascent Group, a global fund administrator with $40B+ AUA and a clear vision: combine high-touch service with proprietary, tech-forward solutions that actually work for fund managers.

What excites me?
🔹 Helping GPs scale without sacrificing control
🔹 Supporting  traditional funds and tokenized and digital-native fund strategies
🔹 Collaborating with teams that want to push the space forward

Let’s connect if you're exploring new launches, rethinking your admin infrastructure, or just want to compare notes on where the industry’s headed.

Skyler Steinke

Bag It Packaging Solutions

This is a packaging business operating in Malawi which I run remotely from Mozambique. We make handmade, customized eco-friendly packaging using recycled or recyclable materials. 

Malawi govt has banned thin plastics due to severe pollution, but alternatives were and continue to remain scarce, worsening the issue. Bag It aims to solve this by providing locally manufactured eco-friendly packaging, with a primary focus on paper bags, however, our manual production process limits efficiency.

At this stage, we are seeking funding and technical expertise to:
- Automate manufacturing and operations
- Expand our product range
- Open a packaging factory within the next three years

This investment will help us scale, create jobs, tackle plastic pollution, and support youth and women in Malawi. We're also open to buiding relationships and collaborating with interested stakeholders with whom our mission is aligned with.  That said, feel free to DM if you're interested in collaborating, would like to learn more or share notes. 

Open to discussions with potential investors and partners

Managing Director

BURN

Spearheaded Burn's expansion into Zambia , Mozambique , Rwanda and Uganda with a focus on building and executing on commercial strategy, stakeholder relationship management, fundraising and partnership development and general operationalization of the Electric business in the aforementioned markets. 

Amongst various responsibilities, my primary focus in this role involves:
- building and driving commercial strategy 
- supporting with product development
- engaging in fundraising and partnership development
- building and managing teams
- designing pilot projects as we expand
- problem solving
- stakeholder engagement and (relationship) management

Regional Business Director - Electric 

Yellow

- Coordinating with the Marketing and Communications team to plan and implement social media and communication campaigns and strategies as we enter new markets (ie Rwanda, Zambia and Madagascar) to create visibility and brand awareness
- Successfully managing and handling internal and external communications for all countries that Yellow has a presence in ie Malawi, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia, Madagascar
- Management of the company’s social media platforms, specifically LinkedIn , Facebook as well as over 20+ Whatsapp groups across the Agent and PosFin (Point of Sale Financing) Channel teams
- Executing projects to improve overall satisfaction (as measured by NPS)  across all country operations

Regional Communications Manager : Yellow Group

I joined Yellow In 2018, 6 months into its operation that had only two employees (I was one of the two) and an agent network of six agents only. 

I put my best foot forward in setting up the right structures , capacity building, championing culture as well as playing an instrumental role in all our fundraising efforts such that we have had significant growth as follows :

- Spearheaded team recruitment to grow a highly productive and effective team of over 80 people in 3 years representing more than 100% growth target being achieved and a churn of < 2% per annum at group level
- Streamlined agent recruitment processes to achieve over 16750% growth rate in the agent network (from 6 agents to over 1000 agents in the same 3 year period
- Developed operational structures to ensure effectiveness of the operations team and the agent network which increased overall efficiency and productivity by more than 125% (year on year)
- Coordinated with the agent network and operations team to connect more than 325 000 households to clean energy as of November 2022
- Implemented the expansion of Yellow into East Africa , specifically in Uganda(2020) and Rwanda (2022)
- Liaised with various investors globally to facilitate due diligence activities during Series A & Series B fundraising activities which led to an overall raise of $23 million in series A (series B in progress)
- Currently also serving as a Community Manager for the 5 countries we operate in ie Malawi, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia and Madagascar

Being part of a startup has offered me the privilege of building multi-disciplinary skillsets & competencies in Business Development, HR, Process engineering (ongoing progress), Critical & commercial thinking, Emotional Intelligence , Collaboration , Curiosity and Continuous Learning amongst others.

Simply put, I'm a Jack of all trades, progressing towards being a master of many and people remain my passion.

Head of Malawi Operations

Facilitated Yellow's expansion into its second East African country , Rwanda, by engaging in strategic first operational steps as follows :

- Designed and completed a market analysis to understand the smartphone market & its trends in Rwanda
- Spearheaded recruitment , onboarding and ongoing support of merchants (smartphone resellers) to become active in the PosFin channel (which is Yellow's smartphone side of the business)
- Initiated the recruitment and onboarding of a pioneering team to manage operations on an ongoing basis
- Built competitors' and pricing analyses to support positioning of our products in the Rwandan market
- Refined our marketing strategy to create brand awareness through social media marketing and door to door selling

Note: Presently, I continue to play a key role in supporting recruitment and onboarding efforts of operations staff as well as culture activities to ensure alignment, create a sense of belonging and maintain high levels of job satisfaction as we continue to scale in Rwanda.

Country Launch Manager : Rwanda

Successfully facilitated Yellow's expansion into its first East African country , Uganda, by engaging in strategic first operational steps as follows :

- Designed and completed a market analysis to understand the PayGo solar market & its trends in Uganda
- Spearheaded recruitment , onboarding and ongoing support of agents in order to build a highly effective and sustainable distribution channel
- Initiated the recruitment and onboarding of a pioneering team to manage operations 
- Built competitors' and pricing analyses to support positioning of our products in the Ugandan market
- Refined our marketing strategy to create brand awareness through social media marketing and door to door selling

Note : Served as Acting Head of Operations in Uganda from March to June 2020 just as the country went on lock - down due to the covid pandemic. During this time, my team and I:

- Achieved a 500% growth of our agent network from four to twenty agents
- Attained a 20% increase in overall sales
- Secured a new market in the eastern region of Uganda and built a highly efficient agent network of over 60 (additional) agents
- Executed online agent trainings and onboarding as we scaled
- Curated and maintained operational structures for seamless planning, execution and reporting of operational procedures
- Put together standard operational procedures to safely and sustainably continue operations during the pandemic

Country Launch Manager : Uganda

Systematically curated, streamlined and implemented operational processes to drive business growth within Yellow Malawi from Zero to One in its scaling efforts as follows :

- Researched new market opportunities and recommended viable options to senior management at C Suite level
- Developed operational structures to ensure effectiveness of the operations team and the agent network which increased overall efficiency and productivity by more than 125% (year on year)
- Undertook an instrumental role in formulating the marketing strategy to increase sales and gain market share
- Developed a core customer service team and standard operating procedures in order to achieve single digit collections rate (Par0)

Rural Development & Customer Relations Manager

FDH Financial Holdings Limited

I was responsible for managing and optimizing operational processes within the bank. My role involved ensuring the efficient execution of banking transactions, maintaining compliance with regulatory standards, and streamlining workflows to enhance service delivery. I worked closely with various departments to improve internal systems, support financial product delivery, and ensure the smooth operation of day-to-day banking services. Additionally, I contributed to the bank's operational efficiency by implementing best practices in transaction processing, risk management, and customer service operations.

Banker

Heifer International

Supported the implementation of the £3 million DFID-funded Central Dairy Scaleup Project (CDSP) in Malawi's central region districts of Dowa, Lilongwe, and Mchinji, focusing on:

- Field monitoring and evaluation of project activities
- Procurement and administrative support
- Workforce capacity building and coordination with implementing partners

Programme Management Intern

Various Companies 

Engaged in in conducting monitoring, evaluation and learning research studies for NASFAM, Farmers Union of Malawi and Heifer International specifically for their endline evaluations for the government funded Fertilizer Input Subsidy Program (FISP) and Central Dairy Scale-Up project under Heifer International respectively.

Independent Consultant

University of the Western Cape

Achieved a 99% pass rate for the first year students I tutored in Information Systems. I achieved this through regular peer-to-peer learning which helped these first year students to become more independent learners, persist in college, and reach their goals. Through this role, I was able to :

- Facilitate the administering of formative and summative feedback assessment 
- Complete upward reporting to our resident faculty tutor coordinator during weekly feedback sessions 
- Support roughly 99% (approximately 148 students) to successfully complete their Information Systems course thereby earning enough credit to move onto the second year of their studies

Tutor

In my previous roles: 
I have led the expansion of BURN manufacturing's electric division into 4 new markets of Zambia, Mozambique , Uganda & Rwanda.

My team & I at Yellow connected over +330 000 households to electricity in Malawi & Uganda. We leveraged digital technology in our operations to ensure highly efficient last mile distribution of solar home systems & other life changing products to thousands of people living in rural Africa. 

My role entailed driving business performance through systems, people &culture. I led a team of +80 operations staff & an agent network of +1000 rural agents. 

In 2020 & 2022, I was entrusted with launching the Uganda & Rwanda operations which have since grown to a team of 9 operations staff,+200 agents 

WORK EXPERIENCE
With over a decade of experience in program and project management across diverse industries such as fintech, renewable energy, non-profit, and banking, I've navigated roles from small startups to large corporations. Working in both local and international settings, my passion lies in building and scaling businesses sustainably.

While my passion for rural development remains unwavering, I'm eager to explore industries like renewable energy, venture capital, private equity, real estate, and marketing, among others. Additionally, fields such as tourism, education, technology, mining, and consulting also pique my interest. With a highly adaptable nature, I find the prospect of venturing into any of these sectors thrilling.

My life goals in no particular order:
- To bring tangible & sustainable social impact for this & future generation(s)
- To build an admirable career as a world-renown impact leader & professional
- Be directly & indirectly responsible for opportunity / employment creation of 1 million people by age 40
- Travel as extensively as possible for both work & leisure
- Set up successful & sustainable business ventures with at least 70% of all employees being women & 80% of senior positions being filled by women
- Be a influential member of various boards of companies where I can contribute towards strategy

Moreover, I find fulfillment in inspiring individuals to believe in their potential for personal and professional growth. Confident, open-minded, and disciplined, I excel as a communicator and team player and fully embrace leadership roles and continuous learning opportunities. 

When I'm not busy trying to build a career, I thoroughly enjoy travel, reading & learning languages. I always wanted to be a pilot as a child so hopefully I can get that PPL one day!

taplio

The Battle

Skyler Steinke

Cynthia Nokhelha Makunganya Ferrão

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?