Alan Burr's activities with the CISI since 1999 have included: presentations for 19 training courses and CPD events; chairing 25 member events; authoring 5 workbooks; writing questions and reviewing 6 Revision Express modules; and appearing in 8 of our ebook videos. He holds 15 CISI voluntary roles, including chief examiner and exam panel member, and is a member of 8 of our 11 professional forums and interest groups, currently serving as deputy chair of the CISI Operations Forum Committee and previously as chair of the Risk Professional Forum Committee from 2014 to July 2020.
CV: Alan Burr, Chartered FCSI
1993–present: Director, Burr & Company
2014–2020: Chair, CISI Risk Professional Forum Committee
1992–1993: International director, Meff Renta Fija
1972–1992: Executive director ICCH; CEO Hong Kong ICCH; chair of ICCH France and ICCH Belgium
1965–1970: Computer programmer and systems analyst, ICL
1970–1972: Richmond Computer Services
Alan’s career in global financial services spans five decades, but he didn’t plan it that way, he says. “It was by sheer chance that the computer systems designer role I took when joining International Commodities Clearing House (ICCH – known today as the London Clearing House) was for a financial services company. Back then the financial services sector was very different. Much of today’s familiar market infrastructure and regulatory environment had not yet been put in place. Work in financial services has proved a good fit for me. I have no regrets.”
During his early ICCH career, Alan was at the forefront of establishing some of the world’s leading global markets and exchanges. “I spent 20 very enjoyable and productive years with the company, progressing to become a main board member. While with the firm, I served as the chief executive in Hong Kong and finally as an executive director in London. I was responsible for helping to start and support several new exchange markets. These included the London Gold Futures market, the Hong Kong Futures Exchange and the Belgian futures market, then known as Belfox. After leaving the firm, I worked for two years as international director based in London for the Spanish derivatives exchange, Meff Renta Fija.”
Alan was then able to build on his skills and international experience to take his career to the next level by setting up his own company in 1993 – Burr & Company Limited – offering marketing, consulting and training services. “This has been very satisfying and has provided me with the opportunity to work with and assist so many people in the UK and around the world. It is my experience of the functions at the heart of the marketplace embracing trading, clearing and settlement that has been central to my career and the development of my skillset.”
Today Alan’s work is chiefly concerned with providing consultancy, advice and education. “I am actively involved as an educator for many subjects in the financial services realm. Some of this work is with the CISI. Operations remains high on my list of specialisms together with derivatives, clearing and settlement, all of which have undergone significant development and modification in recent years. Risk management and corporate governance are also active areas of professional engagement for me.
Keeping pace with progress
“The biggest challenge in my work is keeping up to date with developments in the marketplace. The evolution of regulation and technological transformation are prime examples of areas of fast-paced change. Things just don’t stand still and why should or would they? Innovation and progress are to be expected. Membership of and participation with the CISI help me to keep pace with this.”
Alan’s role as a CISI trainer has meant his skills as an educator are in demand globally. In 2017 he went to Lagos to commence CISI commodity derivatives training with the Nigerian Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers. His observations on the market’s growth and investment opportunities attracted a number of local media headlines at the time, including ‘Foreign securities expert bullish on Nigerian capital market’.
His personal career highlights include making his mark in the City during his time with ICCH, establishing new exchanges, and helping students prepare for the CISI’s flagship operational qualification, the level 6 Diploma in Global Operations Management. “I am proud of the fact that several prize-winners in this qualification have been students of mine. It is this involvement in helping others achieve personal success that I find particularly gratifying.”
A glance at Alan’s LinkedIn profile reveals the students to be equally, if not more, appreciative. Testimonials pay tribute to his teaching style, “which incorporates sharing ideas within the group while drawing on key facts and, of course, topical events”, his ability to “effectively communicate the course material” in a way that would “maintain the interest of everyone in the room”, and his ongoing commitment to his students “long after the course in the run-up to the exam – he was only ever an email away and would come back with prompt and useful answers”.
“Since becoming a member of the Institute,” said Alan, “I have always wanted to contribute to its work and development. In my view, CISI membership offers so many opportunities for professional development for those making their way in our sector that it should not be ignored but should be seized with both hands and utilised to the fullest. The standards that the CISI sets for itself and its members are high and the support mechanisms provided are powerful.”
A look ahead
Alan is mindful of the challenges facing the financial services sector: “From a UK standpoint, with the final stages of Brexit just around the corner and in today’s far from usual environment under Covid-19, things have been and will continue to be in a state of flux. This manifests itself in the way commerce and business operate and affects the availability of employment. As a result, people are facing great uncertainty. Firms and their personnel are having to adapt to new and sustainable ways of working. This is affecting financial services organisations as much as anyone else.” The Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey’s recently echoed this point using starker language, saying that the effect of a no-deal Brexit on the UK economy would be worse than the Covid-19 pandemic.
But there are other challenges ahead, given that “the provision of financial services impacts everyone directly or indirectly in all walks of life”, he says. “The challenge of cyber risks, the drive to green and sustainable investment, the growth in the importance of data management and the adoption of new technologies will all greatly influence the future.”
For those looking to get into financial services, Alan says: “Personal qualities are fundamentally important. Education and experience are obviously key. With job opportunities reducing, employers will choose the best candidates. It is with the support of the CISI and other similar bodies that individuals can develop themselves and work to acquire the necessary knowledge to gain both experience and the essential qualifications.”