Stephanie Lerdall

Head of Corporate Communications, Morningstar, Inc.

Stephanie Lerdall is head of corporate communications for Morningstar, Inc. She oversees the global investment research firm’s internal and external communications, leading a team of 15 communications professionals worldwide. Since first joining Morningstar in 2018, Stephanie led the employee communications strategy with record-high employee engagement throughout the pandemic, developed integrated communications playbooks for the firm’s many acquisitions, implemented programs that drive a daily average of 500 Morningstar mentions in the media, scaled a social listening program, and created new protocols for the company’s engagement on social issues. Prior to Morningstar, Stephanie led CEO communications and corporate public relations for Hyatt Hotels Corporation and held roles in media relations, issues management, and corporate responsibility for Allstate Insurance Company.

Morningstar is an investing insights firm with operations in more than 20 countries. Its mission to empower investor success is built on principles of transparency, independence, and a long-term view. Founded by Joe Mansueto in 1984, Morningstar democratized access to investment analysis of mutual funds that had been previously only available to wealthy or institutional investors. Morningstar has since grown at a rapid pace and expanded into new asset classes, in sync with changes to investors’ portfolios. Since going public in 2005, Morningstar has grown to $2 billion in revenue as it has expanded its data and research coverage beyond stocks and mutual funds into private markets (PitchBook), credit ratings (DBRS Morningstar), college-savings plans, model portfolios, and more. Amid rising interest in sustainability from investors of all kinds, Morningstar acquired environmental, social and governance (ESG) research and ratings firm Sustainalytics in 2020 and cemented its leadership position in the ESG investing landscape.

Stephanie holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Arizona State University—a school for which she used to give prospective students tours while walking backward. She lives in Chicago with her husband and three-year-old son.