Career Profile
As Managing Director, most of Karl’s time is taken up with the day to day running of the firm but Karl also manages a busy portfolio as an Independent Financial Adviser.
Karl’s career began at Yorkshire Bank in 1995 where he quickly progressed to Private Banking Manager for high net worth clients. From Yorkshire Bank, Karl moved to RBS as an Investment Banking Manager where he spent two years before joining Active as MD in May 2007.
Karl says “The banking profession provides excellent grounding for a company director, as you gain a unique insight into company structure, processes and management.”
In 2013, Karl was part of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Programme at Leeds University Business School which is aimed to help entrepreneurs create jobs and economic opportunity.
In 2017 Karl became a Fellow of the Institute of Directors (IoD) and 2 years later he was appointed Chair for the IoD North East (South region). In this role Karl works with other local businesses to drive the IoD forward and ensure that the voice of local businesses is heard.
In addition to this, Karl is a Trustee of local charity, Middlesbrough & Teesside Philanthropic Foundation (MTPF) and has taken on a number of fund raising challenges over the years, including reaching the summit of Kilimanjaro in 2018 in aid of mental health charity MIND.
Key Services
As MD, most of Karl’s time is spent developing and managing the company strategy and ensuring Active continues to provide an excellent client experience. Taking part in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Programme in 2013 and then becoming a Chartered Director in 2017 have both helped Karl to drive Active in to the forward thinking, award winning firm of today.
“I believe that you can always better yourself, whether that be as an individual, or as a business. At Active, we will always endeavour to be the best at what we do and we can only achieve that by developing personally. I chose to focus upon becoming a better company director, thus developing a better place to work and do business – ultimately running a better business.”
In his role as an adviser, Karl’s extensive background in the higher net worth market means he specialises in advising clients with complex financial planning needs. Karl also has a number of professional athletes as clients with a specialist understanding of financial planning needs in this area.
Qualifications
– Chartered Director (CDir, 2017)
-Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Programme graduate (2013)
-Diploma in Personal Finance Services (Dip PFS, 2010)
– Mortgage & Equity Release (Dip (MP & ER), 2009
