Bulls n Bears Entrepreneurship Zone :: Meet the Boss: Paul Boynton, CEO, Old Mutual Alternative Investments

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1. What was your first job?


Following in my father’s footsteps, who was an accountant, I started my
professional career at Deloitte as an articles clerk in 1985. In those days,
before MBAs became popular, accountancy was regarded as one of the best
foundations for a business career. And it turned out to be an excellent
grounding. I learnt about business models, the reasons behind their
successes and failures.


2. What parts of your job keep you awake at night?


Any investment manager worries about the performance of their portfolios.
They are constantly assessing risk, always looking at the effects that
political and economic events might have on their portfolio. In the unlisted
company space, putting great assets on the books is the first line of
defence and you can mitigate most risks, but you can never rule out unknown
risks. It’s the difficult assets that end up taking up more of your time and
they can keep you up at night.


3. Name three traits required to survive in your role.


Long-term perspective, persistence and people skills. I have learnt that
the investment business is about surrounding yourself with great people and
ensuring that the businesses that you back with capital equally have high
calibre teams.


4. What is the biggest misconception about your job?


When I interview budding investment professionals, I ensure that they
understand two things. First, that the investment industry should not be
seen as a stepping stone to another career. When you sign up, you need to be
110% committed to immersing yourself in the space: it must be a vocational
decision. Second, working in private equity is not a glamorous career. It
doesn’t employ huge numbers of people, so it’s about personal graft. Ninety
percent of private equity is about disciplined execution in the trenches.
Even in a senior role, you will never get away from the importance of close
scrutiny and while you may have a big picture view, attention to the detail
is always at the core of your role.


5. Who has had the biggest impact on your career? And why?


After my training, I joined Investec and was privileged to work with
Stephen Koseff. I was inspired by his razor-sharp intelligence and his
outstanding execution. Another role model was Roddy Sparks, my first boss
when I joined Old Mutual. Having left investment banking and moved into
investments, Roddy was the perfect person to learn from. I learnt an
enormous amount both content-wise but also on investment philosophy and
business growth from Roddy, who was one of the first backers of several
companies that grew into giants, such as Bidvest, Imperial and Coronation.
My father’s advocacy of accountancy also played a huge part.


6. What is the best career advice you’ve ever received?


As a student of the University of Cape Town my tax lecturer, Keith Huxham,
told me to never pursue a career because of the commercial prospects but
focus on something you find innately interesting. This is the advice I
continue to pass on as I truly believe that if you pursue your passion, you
will lead a happy life and success tends to follow.


7. The top reason for your professional success?


I majored in statistics and can recommend ‘Black Swan’, a book by the
statistician Nassim Taleb who analyses the role that luck plays in our lives
and it’s much more than you might think. I have been very fortunate in my
life and spending time in an investment bank and a first-rate investment
shop (Old Mutual) was fortuitous training. In addition, I think resilience
and grit are among the foremost character traits that decide success: the
ability to tough it out.


8. How do you relax?


My favourite way to relax is spending time with my family. We enjoy outdoor
activities including hiking, water skiing in the summer and also snow
skiing. On my own, I like to go for a run or read.


9. By what time in the morning do you like to be at your desk?


My ideal morning begins with a 30 to 40 minute run followed by breakfast
over a newspaper. I am at my desk by 8.30am. In the summer, I enjoy going to
the beach and taking a swim before breakfast. I am often travelling but I
still aim to fit in a pre-work run when I can.


10. Your favourite job interview question?


I prefer open-ended questions in order to best understand where a candidate
wishes to take their career in the medium to long term. I want to understand
their motivations as best I can.


11. The biggest perk of your job?


I find meeting and engaging with people in the business and through travel
wonderfully inspiring. Investors in private equity are privileged to be able
to build a real understanding of different cultures, businesses, strategies,
opportunities and challenges and how to benefit from them.


12. In addition to your own industry, name one untapped business
opportunity in Africa.


One space that we are not currently involved but where I see huge potential
is the application of technology to solve some of Africa’s problems. For
example, Zipline is a Californian company that uses drones to parachute in
medical supplies in Rwanda, which is particularly hilly and, in some places,
very remote and inaccessible.

What’s inspiring is that there are more possibilities in Africa for this
particular business model than there would be in the developed world, which
shows that Africa can take a lead in leveraging technology.

Paul Boynton is CEO of Old Mutual Alternative Investments, a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Old Mutual Investment Group and a private alternative
investment manager in Africa, with over R58bn (US$4.3bn) – as at June 2018 –
under management in infrastructure assets, private equity and impact
funding.--Howwemadeitiafrica



Paul Boynton

 

Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

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