“I am a strong believer in leading by example. My career progressions have been a result of rolling my sleeves up, being unashamedly curious, and drawing conclusions out of data that would have otherwise been unscaled. I want our team to be bold, as every leap is a learning opportunity.”

Every team benefits from a leader who is unafraid to field questions and keep an open mind, regardless of whether their specialty is risk management, credit or transactions. Not only does having such a leader reduce the risk of misalignment or incongruence on what team members are aware of, but it also inspires other team members to become leaders and take initiative in their own ways. The risk management team at Mitsubishi HC Capital America has just such a leader in Alexa Bagchi.

Bagchi’s leadership style was particularly instrumental in developing MHCA’s new credit adjudication model, in conjunction with a cutting-edge software solutions group. This model significantly sharpened and solidified the firm’s credit underwriting process, but complications arose from its complexity, external and internal collaboration, and widespread workflow implementations. Through Bagchi’s patience, dedication and transparency, the model is now broadly integrated into all credit adjudication processes.

Bagchi’s passion for leadership in specialty finance is inexorably interlinked with her affinity for data and statistical analyses. During her early years with MHCA, she regularly identified key opportunities in the firm’s data streams and implemented a standardized data governance structure to close blind spots and enhance analytics reporting.

Through her landmark achievements, such as the data usage parameters and the credit adjudication model, Bagchi routinely demonstrates the efficacy of her “lead by example” approach in leading the risk management team. Through her proactivity, approachability and keen eye for details, MHCA’s Risk Management will continue to benefit immensely from Bagchi’s leadership.