Leading with Empathy and Purpose

Growing up, Greg Wilson ’95 VSB learned the importance of being part of a community, giving back, and serving others. As a child, Wilson’s parents were always involved: his father serving on the school board, his mom as PTO President, and both active members in their church.

Wilson remembers “watching [his] dad come home from a long day of work, shoveling down dinner and then heading back out for a three-hour school board meeting.” This devotion to his job, family, and community left a lasting impression and showed the importance of sacrificing oneself for the greater good.

As Wilson entered Villanova, he felt that same sense of purpose, caritas, on campus. Faculty and students alike genuinely cared about one another, formed strong relationships, and demonstrated a willingness to give their time to make the community a better place. He knew he wanted to do the same.

In 1995, Wilson was the first of two recruits hired by Goldman Sachs & Co. from Villanova. Since that time, he’s worked to ensure he wasn’t the last. “I felt a responsibility to not only represent VSB well,” Wilson notes, “but in doing so, ensure I was a part of the recruiting process going forward, so that other Nova grads were afforded the same opportunities.”

Having worked at Goldman Sachs for almost 28 years, today, Wilson is a Partner, where he leads the Workplace Advisory Solutions team at GS Ayco Personal Financial Management, the industry pioneer and preeminent leader of company-sponsored financial planning benefits.

Through it all, Wilson applies the lessons he learned from his parents – and reinforced at Villanova – in his leadership: leading with empathy and purpose. He is known to take the time to get to know his colleagues, regardless of their seniority and position, learning who they are, what makes them tick, and understanding their “purpose.”

“Getting to know your team individually makes it easier to communicate with them, motivate them in different, more personalized ways, strengthen your bonds, and maximize the most out of their abilities,” Wilson says.

Yet, his impact does not stop at the doors to GS. Instead, following in the footsteps of his parents, giving back continues to be at the forefront for Wilson, whether it be for the University or local community. Today, he serves as Vice-Chair of the VSB Dean’s Advisory Council, an Advisory Director for the Harlem Boys & Girls Club, and as a former board member for a local foundation supporting its public schools.

“There is nothing more gratifying than helping someone reach their full potential and creating a community and environment from which to make that possible – that’s what Villanova did for me!”