Leading With Heart: Jania Stout’s Journey to Empower Women in Financial Services

“A lot of organizations wanna hire women. They just aren't getting as many applicants for it. So I think that what we have to do then is pull them in in some cases, and I've done a lot of that over the years. One of my best hires, I reached out to the University of Maryland's head women's lacrosse coach and said, hey. Let me talk to your seniors. So I hired this girl who was a premed, no finance background, and she was a rock star.” – Jania Stout

Welcome to WomenShare, a celebration of women in financial services. In this episode, hosts Leah Alter and Joanna Ehresman sit down with Jania Stout, President of Prime Capital Retirement and Prime Capital Wellness, for a rich and candid conversation about following your intuition, championing women in finance, navigating career-defining transitions—and why taking the leap is sometimes the most powerful move you can make.

Jania Stout brings nearly three decades of expertise in the retirement plan space. This episode charts her career journey, beginning with thriving at Fidelity on the recordkeeping side, to taking bold, non-linear paths—including major pay cuts and the gut-wrenching decision to leave a billion-dollar book of business. As the show’s first retirement plan adviser guest, Jania shares unfiltered insights on what it means to build, leave, and lead with courage in a male-dominated industry.

You'll hear firsthand how Jania’s choices spring less from calculated risk and more from an unwavering belief in following your heart and intuition. With characteristic warmth, she reveals how personal values—not just business metrics—shaped her biggest decisions, including starting at Prime Capital and letting go of mentorship “crutches” so her team could fly solo.

Key Takeaways:

Navigating Change with Courage: Jania recounts navigating emotional and professional turmoil—from being the “mom” of her old team and fearing to let them down, to surviving a protracted legal battle after leaving her previous firm. Her story is a testament to resilience and to trusting that, when you act with integrity, the right opportunities will follow—even if they arrive as “hippie-ish” moments of serendipity.

The Power (and Necessity) of Proactive Female Recruitment: Quite simply, women aren't applying for finance roles at the rates organizations desire. Jania breaks down why leaders need to go beyond passive recruiting. Her proactive strategies—such as recruiting nontraditional candidates like a women's lacrosse player with no finance background—demonstrate the untapped potential in overlooked talent pools. She urges listeners, “Don’t sit on your laurels and wait—go out there and find them.”

Mentoring and Modeling Success: Jania’s passion for mentorship, especially for women returning from career breaks, sets her apart. Through personal anecdotes, she details how she “shoots confidence” into women, offering real roles of responsibility (not just administrative support) and encouraging them to do things before they feel ready. Her philosophy: “Do it scared.”

Embracing Your Strengths—Not Mimicking the Status Quo: Drawing from her own experience, Jania encourages women—and the men who champion them—not to suppress emotions or adopt exclusively “male” professional norms. Diversity in approach and perspective, she argues, results in healthier, more innovative teams and client solutions.

Industry Evolution & Advocacy: The episode spotlights positive changes: from NAPA events where women’s presence has grown from mere handfuls to 30%. Still, the path forward depends on deliberate action—outreach, tailored encouragement for young women (and those pivoting careers), and helping new generations realize the creative, relationship-driven rewards of financial advisory work.

Jania also shares the impact of her mother’s role...