Maryland SRPS appoints Dianne Sandoval as CIO to lead the fund

Dianne Sandoval has been appointed chief investment officer of the Maryland State Retirement and Pension System (SRPS), taking charge of the fund’s investment program in January 2026. The move places her at the helm of a public pension with roughly $73.5B in assets under management and fiduciary responsibility for about 400,000 beneficiaries.

In the CIO role, Sandoval will lead portfolio construction, asset-allocation decisions and risk policies while coordinating closely with the board and executive leadership. The SRPS Board Chair and State Treasurer, Dereck Davis, described the hire as a strategic step to strengthen long-term investment oversight and to refine portfolio frameworks as markets evolve.

Sandoval joins from Australia’s superannuation sector where she served as head of portfolio design at HESTA from October 2023. Her international track record also includes senior portfolio strategy roles at Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, where she led market and asset-class strategy, and a substantial tenure at California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), where she worked across investment analysis, private equity research and asset-allocation and risk functions for more than a decade.

Her early career included front‑office trading and sales at Morgan Stanley in high‑yield and special situations, and a senior risk-analyst role at GE Capital, giving her exposure to both market-facing execution and risk modelling. That combination of public pension governance, sovereign and private‑sector experience positions her to tackle allocation trade-offs between public markets, private alternatives and liability‑sensitive strategies.

Brooke Lierman, SRPS vice-chair and state comptroller, praised Sandoval’s appreciation for the unique responsibilities of a public‑fund CIO and signalled a collaborative agenda to preserve retirement security for state employees, judges, public safety personnel and educators. The leadership change comes as many large pensions reassess glidepaths, liquidity buffers and private-market commitments amid uncertain return expectations.

Analysts say Sandoval’s background in portfolio design and asset‑allocation at large institutional investors suggests SRPS may sharpen its risk analytics, revisit strategic asset targets and deepen governance around alternative investments. Stakeholders will be watching how she adapts ALM practices, stress testing and diversification to protect benefits while pursuing prudent growth.