Stellar Muthoni

Simon: Welcome to The Money Maze Podcast. I'm Simon Brewer, and Will Campion and I have created this show to explore and unravel some of the mysteries surrounding the investment business. We hope through direct and insightful interviews with masters of the real-life money maze, we're going to learn about different approaches to allocating capital, making investment and business decisions, and navigating the pitfalls that lie in the paths to prosperity. Whether you're a current or aspiring investor, entrepreneur, professional or student exploring career options, we hope you gain some helpful insights and enjoy the shows. You can keep up to date by visiting moneymazepodcast.com, and please sign up to our newsletter to ensure you won't miss a release. If you enjoy this show, please subscribe, and we'd love you to tell a friend or colleague about it. Thank you for listening. We're delighted that Bremont will be sponsoring The Money Maze Podcast throughout this year. Bremont is an award-winning British company that produces beautifully engineered chronometers designed to appeal to those who share the passion and appreciation of the innovation and mastery behind a beautiful, mechanical wristwatch brought to you by the luxury British watchmaker, Bremont. We're also delighted to announce that Schroders, the global investment and wealth management business, will be welcomed as co-sponsor from next month. Today, we're going to talk about one of the most important companies you probably haven't heard of, but about a topic that is central to everyone, pensions. My guest today is a rockstar to the changing landscape of the insurance and pension worlds, and running an increasingly critical part of the UK financial services. There's nothing new about pensions. Soldiers who served in the Roman armies were guaranteed an income after they retired. The first corporate pension in the US was established by the American Express company in 1875, and here in the UK in 1908, the Old Age Pensions Act introduced the pension of between 10 and 25 pence per week to people over 70. But the importance of the pension promise, whether in the Roman army or British Steel, has lost none of its significance to help you avoid poverty when you no longer work. So whilst when my parents first talked about pensions to me and had me wanting to run for the hills, please stay with this podcast. And if you're a CEO, a CFO, or a pension trustee, listen up especially, your world is changing. Now to our guest, Tracy Blackwell, CEO of the Pension Insurance Corporation with £50 billion of assets and growing rapidly, and involved in almost a third of the pension by ins and by outs. We do appear to be at the foothills of immense change. So Tracy, welcome to The Money Maze Podcast. Tracy: Thank you for having me. Simon: So let's step back to the 1970s. I think you were brought up in the midwest of America. Is that where it all starts? Tracy: I was, indeed. Outside of Chicago. Simon: Right, and you funded yourself through university and also worked in a magic shop, is that right? Tracy: Oh, gosh, yeah. I did all sorts of things. My mother was a single mother, had me when she was very young, and didn't have much money really. So I had to put myself through university and did lots of different things to do that. Worked in a ice cream shop, and in university, yes, worked in a magic shop. So ran the costume department of a magic shop where I went to university, and I was also a time a magician's assistant, which is really good fun but I know all the secrets and can't tell any of them. Simon: Right, and someone said that equips one beautifully for the investment business. Tracy: Oh, I think so. Yeah. Simon: But you then moved to Malaysia in '89. So just talk me through that. Tracy: When I graduated from university, it was in the teeth of a recession, the 1989, '90 recession, and I wanted to go into the finance industry. There were no jobs of any kind which I'm sure a lot of people today will recognise given everything that's happened in the last year but went to Malaysia doing something called ISEQ, which is an international business programme which is in many, many countries around the world where you go and do internships, traineeships in different places all over the world. So I did that for two years then moved to do an MBA in Holland and then moved to the City of London to work for Goldman Sachs. Simon: Okay, if I just pause on that post MBA. If I understand correctly the chairman of Philips came to talk to your class and offered you a job but you told him that's not what you wanted to do. Is that right? Tracy: No. Slightly different, actually. So he approached me to come and speak to his female employees. When I finished my MBA, I finished top of the class and was doing a speech for the commencement ceremony, and did a speech on general issues and women and work and how we needed to work together and network and look after each other. He was so impressed by what I said. He wanted me to come and speak to his female employees, and at the same time he said to me, "What would you like to do?" I said, "Well, I'd like to work in London in the City in financial services", and he very kindly set up three interviews for me.