April 22, 2025 | 29 MIN

Driving Distribution with Discipline – Daniel Noonan, Cohen & Steers

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In this episode of the Rainmaker Podcast, host Gui Costin sits down with Daniel Noonan, Executive Vice President and Head of Wealth Management Consulting at Cohen & Steers, to explore what it takes to lead and scale a top-tier distribution team in today’s evolving investment landscape. With more than two decades of experience at firms like Nuveen, PIMCO, and State Street Global Advisors, Daniel brings a thoughtful, measured approach to sales strategy, team leadership, and client engagement.

Daniel offers an inside look at how Cohen & Steers is expanding beyond its core REIT franchise into private real estate, retirement solutions, and most recently, active ETFs. With a  50-person U.S. wealth distribution team, the firm is structured to stay agile while maintaining deep relationships across channels including RIAs, wirehouses, independent broker-dealers, and private banks.

A central theme in the conversation is intentional sales process. Daniel emphasizes the importance of identifying the right advisor profile—those who embrace active management, endowment-style portfolio construction, and value in real assets. The firm leverages CRM technology, specifically Salesforce, as a “force multiplier,” empowering the sales team with data, segmentation, and efficiency to spend more time with high-potential clients. He stresses that success comes from combining the “art” of client engagement with the “science” of targeting and tracking.

Daniel also discusses the challenges and opportunities of new client acquisition, particularly in the fast-growing but complex RIA channel. He advocates for a consultative, business-minded approach, focused less on product pushing and more on providing value—whether that’s market insight, operational advice, or branding strategy.

On leadership, Daniel defines his style as collaborative, present, and servant-oriented. He believes in staying close to the business and investing time with his team to remove roadblocks and reinforce shared goals. He encourages open communication across levels, structured reporting, and measurable goals that prioritize effort and process over uncontrollable  outcomes.

For young professionals, his advice is to be a “student of the game”—stay curious, work hard, and differentiate yourself through depth and breadth of knowledge. His biggest challenge today? Focus. With multiple initiatives underway, Daniel’s priority is maintaining clarity on what matters most and building infrastructure to support that focus. This episode is a masterclass in strategic sales leadership and thoughtful organizational growth.

Podcast Experiences

  • Building a Culture ofKindness and HighPerformance: LeadershipLessons from Dakota

  • Mastering Sales Targeting & Outreach with Gui Costin

  • Measure Success: Successful Sales Strategies That Actually Work

  • Mastering Institutional Sales with Allen Gray of Silvercrest

  • Driving Sales and Success with Brad Jung, Russell Investments

  • Democratizing Private Equity with John Bailey, OneFund Investments

  • Guantong (“GT”) Sun on Process-Driven Fundraising at Turning Rock Partners

  • Scaling Private Wealth with Doug Krupa, KKR

  • Michele Colucci on AI-Driven Healthcare at DigitalDx Ventures

  • Driving Distribution with Discipline – Daniel Noonan, Cohen & Steers

  • Earning Trust, One Deal at a Time – Drew Dolan, DXD Capital

  • Joe Grogan on Culture and Consultative Sales at WisdomTree

  • How Stacy Havener Built Havener Capital on Storytelling and Strategy

  • Capital Formation, Not Sales – Inside CAZ with Christopher Zook

  • Fundraising with Precision: Inside Optimizing Sales at LAB Quantitative Strategies with Shane McCarthy

  • Inside the Capital Formation Playbook of RMWC with Michael Rubenstein

  • Educate, Don’t Sell – Danielle Brown’s Fundraising Playbook at Altriarch

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  • “Thinking Big” with Urban Standard: Seth Weissman’s Approach to Fundraising and Growth

  • Andrew Saunders on Building a Collaborative Sales Culture at Castle Hill Capital

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  • How Dakota Raised $30 Billion For Their Clients

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  • What We’re All Missing to Be Successful at Sales and Like It with Gui Costin

  • A Culture Of Success

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  • Mastering the Art of Fundraising: $40 Billion Raised Dakota CEO, Gui Costin

  • Unlocking the Leadership Code: Lessons from the Frontlines

  • The $40 Billion Secret: Gui Costin on Trust, Leadership, and Redefining Sales

  • Helping Investment Firms Thrive – Fastlane Founders with Gui Costin

  • The Power of Kindness

  • Sales Leadership in the Investment Industry with Gui Costin

  • A Modern Leader’s Guide to Sales Success with Gui Costin

  • Gui Costin’s Proven Formula for Coaching Sales Teams to Success

  • Capital Raising Campaign Strategies with Gui Costin

  • Embracing Accountability in Sales with Gui Costin

(610) 764-0539
Gui@dakotaLive.com

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