Johnny McGrath is a Birmingham-based client advisor at Brown Shipley - a Quintet private bank - who has been in his current role for five-and-a-half years.
IN ONE SENTENCE, WHAT DOES YOUR ROLE INVOLVE? I’ve been a private banker for 38 years looking after private clients and advising on their investments, lending, cash management and overall holistic wealth planning.
GIVE A BRIEF SUMMARY OF YOUR PROFESSIONAL CAREER TO DATE. I was at Lloyds Bank from 1988 to 1996, and then Allied Irish Private Banking until 2012. I then went to UBS until 2021 and have been at Brown Shipley since.
DID FURTHER/HIGHER EDUCATION SET YOU UP WELL FOR YOUR PARTICULAR VOCATION? Yes it has been very beneficial. I studied management science at Trinity College, Dublin, which provided me with a strong foundation and helped me secure multiple job offers after graduation. I chose to join Lloyds Bank through their management training programme, which was an excellent starting point for my career.
I am also a firm believer in continuous development and ongoing learning. I have since become a chartered wealth manager with the CISI, further strengthening my expertise in the field. Also, I achieved EPA Level 3 qualification for leadership and management development in 2022.
HOW IS YOUR JOB IMPACTED BY UNCERTAINTIES IN THE ECONOMY? Economic uncertainty is often a hot topic and something clients are keen to discuss with me, particularly with market fluctuations over the past few years. It’s really important that I stay fully-informed about market conditions, volatility and broader economic trends.
At Brown Shipley, we have a wide team of investment specialists and economists who provide us with insights, investment commentary and viewpoints along with the latest update on our asset allocation, which is aligned to Quintet, our parent company.
These insights, along with my daily reading from financial press enables me to provide clear, considered guidance to clients, helping them understand how different scenarios may affect their individual circumstance.
This can span a range of areas, including investment performance, tax implications and political developments. Being able to interpret and communicate these factors clearly ensures clients feel informed and supported in making confident decisions despite changing conditions
WHAT’S YOUR VIEW OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE – AN OPPORTUNITY, THREAT, OR BIT OF BOTH? I see AI primarily as an opportunity to enhance insights, productivity and efficiency. In my role, it allows me to spend more time focused on clients and understanding their individual needs, while streamlining more routine processes.
Used well, AI can support more informed decision making, and improve the overall client experience supporting in-person meetings. However, it is important to be mindful of the potential risks of AI including data protection and accuracy. Overall, I believe AI is a powerful enabler if we learn how to use it responsibly. It will complement human interaction and judgement rather than replacing it.
SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM OF CHOICE, AND WHY? I tend to use Instagram, primarily to connect with friends and family because this is their platform of choice.
HOW DO YOU HOPE YOUR COLLEAGUES WOULD DESCRIBE YOU? I would hope my colleagues would see me as diligent, approachable, hardworking and genuinely supportive. I would also expect them to highlight the range of interests I bring to conversations, from cricket and rugby to horse racing and most sports, which helps create connections and adds a personal dimension to our working relationships.
HIGHLIGHTS OF YOUR CAREER SO FAR? I helped grow a private bank at Allied Irish Bank in Berkeley Square from a low base into a business making a strong contribution to their GB profitability. More recently, I’m particularly proud of the progress we’ve made at Brown Shipley in continuing to sustainably grow the client book.
ANY PARTICULAR FAUX PAS OR EMBARRASSING MOMENTS IN YOUR CAREER YOU WOULD PREFER TO FORGET? I once took a colleague out to late drinks with clients and a firm of lawyers. It turned into quite a late evening and, unfortunately, this colleague overslept and missed an important meeting the next morning. Thankfully I can say he is still a colleague today!
PET HATES? Sayings and clichés that mean nothing including: ‘it is what it is’ and corporate jargon like ‘reach out’ and ‘to be fair’.
IF YOU COULD GO BACK AND GIVE YOUR YOUNGER SELF SOME WISE ADVICE, WHAT WOULD IT BE? Don’t rush, be more patient, read more and enjoy yourself like you have.
HOW DO YOU RELAX AWAY FROM WORK? I enjoy staying active through playing sport, in particular cricket and getting fit again through running. I enjoy following rugby and national hunt horse racing. Outside of that, I like to unwind by watching films, cooking and spending time with family and friends.
TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOU THAT MOST PEOPLE PROBABLY WOULDN’T KNOW I’ve been a mentor with Action Tutoring, a national charity which partners with schools to help tackle educational inequality and support disadvantaged children. I volunteer across local schools in Birmingham and have also completed the Birmingham 10k for the past three years, raising more than £10,000 in support of the charity.
In my younger years, I represented Ireland in cricket at every level from schoolboys to universities through to Irish U23s, before I moved to London. In Irish Universities, we won the British Universities tournament twice in my four years and became the 1st Irish cricket team to win an overseas tournament.
YOU CAN TAKE ONE BOOK, ONE FILM AND ONE CD ONTO A DESERT ISLAND – WHAT WOULD THEY BE? Book: Crossing the line – Autobiography of Willie Anderson. Film: Good Will Hunting. CD: Thin Lizzy.
YOUR FIVE DREAM DINNER PARTY GUESTS, DEAD OR ALIVE? Richie Benaud, Joanna Lumley, Cliff Morgan, Saint Peter and Robin Williams.
WHAT WOULD YOU CHOOSE TO EAT FOR YOUR LAST SUPPER? Mushroom risotto to start, seafood linguini for main and chocolate profiteroles for pudding, all accompanied by a good Chablis.
