Superannuations Rising Stars Gather To Hear From Industry Leaders

It was extremely encouraging to see so many young professionals last Thursday night at AIST’s Young Super Network EOFY event. Kaizen was there to catch up with the industry’s bright and burgeoning stars and were blown away by the passion and energy in the room.

The Young Super Network (YSN) hosts social, educational and professional development events across the year and allows professionals to expand their networks with members from a wide variety of roles within superannuation and the broader financial industry.

Graeme Miller, Claire Keating and Ian Silk spoke to the YSN about their personal career paths and journey into leadership roles. All three panellists kindly congratulated the YSN for showing interest and passion in what they believe to be a fantastic industry with a bright future and mandated growth.

The panel were extremely generous with their anecdotes and advice. It was interesting to hear that they did not consider themselves good leaders when first placed in such roles. Their leadership skills were developed over time and they continue to learn. I jotted down a few pearls of wisdom to share:

• Graeme Miller, Chief Investment Officer, Telstra Super believes that experience and skills in any domain are highly transferable throughout one’s career and in order to progress, one should seek to be the ‘solution’ or at least be part of the solution within their organisation. It is critical to have real examples of success.

• Claire Keating, Board Member, CareSuper and State Super was a big advocate of seeking mentors and ‘sponsors’ who can not only provide guidance but hands-on support. Claire learned quickly that stakeholder management, listening, empowerment of others and delegation are critical to effective leadership.

• Ian Silk, Chief Executive Officer, AustralianSuper who was once left devastated after being sacked by Jeff Kennett, encouraged the audience to pick themselves up and get on with it after set-back. If you get an opportunity, “go for it, all power to you”, but know that one’s career is unlikely to go on a linear path to great success.

I might take this opportunity to congratulate Nicole Vaughan, ​Shyam Rajagopal and the YSN Committee for a highly enjoyable and successful event. I encourage all young professionals in superannuation to join AIST’s YSN it is a very impressive group of people and as Ian Silk rightly pointed out, your professional network is absolutely critical to success and progression.

Best regards

Matt

Matt McGilton – Director