Nickel, 39, left her job as San Francisco regional director of the Jewish Community Federation to replace retired director Marlene Siminow at Israel Bonds.
After walking through the door of the downtown office only a month ago, Nickel already has firmed up her campaign to solicit bond buyers.
The low-risk investments last year bought $857 million of new roads, highways, electrical infrastructure and plans for a future desalinization plant in the Holy Land. The bonds have become one of the primary ways in which individuals and institutions can support Israel.
Nickel may have more hurdles ahead of her than the High Holy Days drive. While institutions such as the Koret Foundation and Stanford University are buying more bonds than ever, individual purchases have leveled off in the past year, she said.
“The pluralism controversy is impacting us. There’s no question,” she acknowledged. “The country as a totality is facing some serious issues that the Jewish communities in both countries are evaluating.”
Nickel maintains that ultimately neither factionalism nor the troubled peace process dissuades an Israel supporter from buying bonds.
The political situation “is not as much of a turnoff as it appears,” she says. “It’s an investment, a financial instrument for one’s portfolio,” and most repeat investors have stayed true through Israel’s political ups and downs.
Nevertheless, Nickel is set to launch new programs to revive investing. After the holidays, she wants to add to Israel Bonds’ ranks a “young leadership” team that can attract younger investors.
“We are seeing an aging Jewish community in San Francisco. There are younger people in the community who are interested in getting involved in Jewish activities and Israel Bonds.”
She also wants to campaign labor unions with attractive pension and investment packages, something her rabbi grandfather did to support the 40-plus-year-old organization in New York.
“He felt the support of Israel was a necessity. It’s nice to walk in his shoes a little bit.”
Nickel claims her financial savvy comes from a variety of “trial-by-fire experiences,” in her native New York. Before settling in the Bay Area 10 years ago, she headed a museum management institute, which specialized in museum marketing and finance for curators from around the world.
She taught the curators how to research their markets, a skill Nickel learned previously while coordinating conferences and in the sales field. A self-described “jack-of-all-trades,” she also has worked for the New York Bar Association’s judiciary committee, helping politicians fill federal judicial appointments.
Nickel lives in Marin with her husband, Mark.