03.
When I first moved into Compliance from accountancy, my new boss said to me:
It was obvious that you knew nothing about Compliance, but you knew the right questions to ask!
And, second, when I got the role as Group Compliance Director at Lloyds TSB, and I queried whether not knowing anything about retail banking was likely to be an issue, my new boss said:
Not to worry – we have 50,000 people who know about retail banking, but we have nobody who knows how to reform and manage a compliance function – and it’s always been the case that it’s better to recruit an individual with a skillset and instil product knowledge into that individual, rather than recruit an individual with product knowledge and have to instil a skillset into them!
Strategic Governance Oversight
This includes serving at Board or Board Committee level in relation to governance matters (for example Audit Committee membership).
My expertise here is gained from exposure to and providing significant contributions to decision making through membership of forums such as Management Committee, Investment Committee, Investment Governance Committee and Risk Management Committee in substantive institutions.
At all such Committees, the key is knowing – based on business experience across sectors but also with a deep experience of incidents in past institutions – the right questions to ask, sometimes when very limited information has been provided, and knowing, from experience, the right course of action.
Strategic Governance Advisory
This includes designing and implementing Board Codes of Conduct and Employee Codes of Conduct together with underlying policies, and advising on Portfolio Governance issues.
My expertise here is gained from setting and implementing a variety of such strategic initiatives over my career to achieve improved governance.
Integrity Advisory and Compliance
This includes advising on establishing Compliance and Risk frameworks, structures and policies, and in particular addressing specific integrity issues, due diligence on investments, and providing oversight for investigations into potential misconduct.
My expertise here is gained from having achieved this in multiple institutions where I worked during my executive career.
IPO Preparation
My expertise in this is gained from experience in both preparing internally for an IPO at a former employer and with examining and advising on a number of IPO preparations in my role as a contributor to investment committees.
Climate Change
My expertise here is gained from experience in designing an operating framework to introduce climate change considerations into investment decision-making and reporting as part of President Macron’s OnePlanet Sovereign Wealth Fund Initiative.
Soft Skills
Leadership
Ability to achieve results through both thought leadership and people leadership – designing a strategy, winning commitment for it, and building or reforming a function.
Adaptability
Ability to adapt expertise to different sectors (eg from Investment Banking to Investment Management to Oil and Gas consultancy to a leading Sovereign Wealth Fund and Technology Investment) and to different disciplines (eg ability to achieve results of a governance and compliance change nature in both regulated and non-regulated environments and applying change expertise to climate change issues).
Working successfully with and in different cultures
Ability to apply methodologies for success in different cultures, especially the Gulf.