Lives of Consequence
Susan Bondy '70
An accomplished leader, Susan Bondy '70 has worked to spread her knowledge and understanding of the financial world. Through her popular and long-running column "Bondy on Money" she has shared down-to-earth financial advice and humor to a readership exceeding 20 million people. She gained her knowledge by working as an investment analyst for some of the world's most prominent firms.
Bondy began her Wall Street career in 1970 at Manufacturers Hanover Trust, where she headed the Quantitative Investment Technology Group. In 1972, she joined Jas. H. Oliphant and became director of the Analytical Sciences Division, then in 1973 she moved to A.G. Becker to become a pension consultant to major corporations. By 1980, her client base consisted of 37 corporations whose combined retirement assets exceeded $43 billion. That year, she decided to strike out on her own and founded Bondy Financial Services Corp., a firm devoted to helping individuals gain control of their finances.
Not content to reach a limited group of clients, she began a writing career. In October 1982, she was featured on the cover of Money magazine's 10th anniversary issue, in an article titled "How To Get Your Finances Together - At Last." In the same year her book, "How To Make Money Using Other People's Money," on cost-saving and money-making strategies, received rave reviews and made The New York Times best-seller list.
Bondy wrote her nationally syndicated column "Bondy on Money" from 1981 to 2004. It appeared in more than 600 newspapers. She then took her commentaries on the investment world and turned them into lectures, seminars and keynote addresses, which she gave throughout the country at the invitation of banks, corporations, professional organizations and special interest groups.
She has given financial advice and commentary on more than 200 television shows, including numerous appearances on the "Good Morning America" and the "Today Show." She has been a guest of more than 300 radio shows, and for a time gave a weekly commentary on NPR's "All Things Considered."
In 1996, Bondy received the prestigious Athena Award for excellence in her professional field and commitment to the advancement of women. She has also received an honorary degree from Tiffin University.
Bondy graduated from William Smith with a B.A. in mathematics, participated in Little Theatre and the swim team. She was named to the Dean's List, and graduated in the top 5 percent of her class. In her junior year, she studied at the Einstein Institute of Higher Mathematics at the University of Jerusalem in Israel. After graduation, she attended New York University's Graduate Business School. In 1995, she received a William Smith Alumnae Citation for her work helping to give women financial empowerment.