I had a wonderful start in life – growing up on a farm in Devon. I didn’t pursue an agricultural career though, despite my keen interest, but instead took the academic route studying Mathematics and Statistics, and became a qualified actuary whilst working within the insurance industry. But what that farming start to life did do, from a very early age, was to show me what can be achieved with high energy, enthusiasm, a vision, a sense of urgency, team-work, hard-work, organisation, determination, the confidence to trial and error, an environment that nurtures as well as challenges, the desire to continuously improve, the use of technology, and, of course, technical skills. Technical skills are critically essential to the farmer and the actuary alike but what I have come to realise is how truly valuable they become when coupled with the other human traits listed. These traits sum up my character and personality, and after watching my Dad produce value from them on the farm I’m enjoying following in his footsteps albeit producing the value in a different field, as an actuary.Summary of my skills and experiences to date:► 15 years insurance industry experience.► Held senior roles and achieved success in a variety of business structures including small private-equity owned and large global composite insurer.► Proven track record of creating and fostering highly motivated, productive, talented and empowered multi-location teams.► Deep experience of non-life general insurance covering commercial and personal lines.► Strong technical skills including significant reserving and pricing experience.► Senior strategic business experience including 6-month full-time secondment to a company wide change programme, which resulted in the sale of a product division and splitting the remaining business into separately accountable strategic business units.► Non-Executive Director and vice-chair of a multi-academy trust of 6 primary schools across Devon.