eFinancialCareers

David Crum from investment consultancy Hewitt fields eFinancialCareers’ questions, and he’ll answer yours if they tickle his fancy…

A brief history of your career?

I started at Scottish Provident straight out of school in 1988 as an investment administrator. I then joined Lothian Pension Fund in 1996. There I was given the opportunity to train in investment analysis and moved into the asset management side. During my time there, I moved from an investment officer to head of settlements, before starting at Strathclyde Pension Fund as chief pensions officer in 2004. I joined Hewitt in October last year.

Moment of glory?

When I went to get my postgraduate diploma in investment analysis at Sterling University, they very politely told me that I had a “weaker academic background than they would normally expect”. I was proud to be able to prove them wrong.

What would you rather we forgot?

At Lothian we started doing active equity management just as the tech bubble was about to burst. It was difficult enough making the move from passive management, and the timing certainly didn’t help.

What do you know now that you wish you had known then?

Just to be a little bit more patient and thorough, which is something I’ve learnt throughout my career. I think I was a little too quick to form opinions and make judgements in the past.

Luck or hard work?

A bit of both. Luck, in that I’ve worked with some good people who gave me the opportunity to make some good career moves. But I’ve made the effort to try and repay the faith they put in me.

How did you get your first job in finance?

It was straight out of school. I couldn’t decide what I wanted to study at university, so decided to work for a bit. I applied to Scottish Provident and it was blind luck that I ended up in the investment department.

Which role propelled you to the top?

Undoubtedly, the role at Strathclyde. It’s the biggest local authority pension fund in the UK, so you get exposure to the right sort of people in the industry. It was probably how I came to the attention of Hewitt.

When did you feel you’d made it?

When I started out, I had a slightly tongue-in-cheek conversation with a colleague, saying “whenever you start earning £30k, you’ll be happy”. But I’d have to say, when I switched from administration to the front office.

Where will you be in five years' time?

I will have gained the experience on the consulting side that I don’t currently have and will be able to offer a very rounded product. At the moment it’s all practitioner experience. Still with Hewitt and doing a good job – I won’t offer anything more ambitious than that.