Kristen M. Dickey, Managing Director, is head of BlackRock's Financial Institutions Group within the Global Client Group. Ms. Dickey oversees the management of the client service and business development team. Specifically, she is responsible for delivery of BlackRock service to the firm's insurance and taxable clients. Ms. Dickey also works closely on developing new relationships and products within the insurance industry. In addition, Ms. Dickey is a member of BlackRock's Leadership Committee. Prior to joining BlackRock in 1996, Ms. Dickey spent one year as a municipal bond underwriting analyst with Merrill Lynch Capital Markets. Ms. Dickey's prior experience includes working in the Business Strategy and Development Group of Christie's Fine Art Auctioneers and as a private art dealer. Ms. Dickey sits on the Photography Committee for the Whitney Museum and isan active fundraiser for The High Line development in Lower Manhattan. She earned a BA degree in political science and art history from Pitzer College in 1991, and an MBA degree in finance from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1996.