From Chief Operating Officer at Gladstone to CEO of Jonas FinTech, and now a Group Leader, Mike Rowland’s journey reflects the opportunities to grow within Vesta. Along the way, he’s embraced new challenges, taken on greater responsibility and drawn on the support and experience of colleagues across the group.
As part of our Investors in People series, we caught up with Mike to reflect on the experiences that have shaped his development, the people who have supported him and what he’s looking forward to in his new role.
You have progressed from Chief Operating Officer at Gladstone to CEO of several fintech businesses, and now to a Group Leader at Vesta. Which experiences have shaped your development the most along the way?
I’m not sure where to start; there have been so many. I’ve said this to many people, but I genuinely think I have developed more in the last 4 years than over the 10 years prior. The Group makes you truly accountable and gives you access to great people and networks. Events like Back to Basics and Jonas Grows, where leaders come together to share best practice, are awesome. If you want it, it’s there; soak it up like a sponge. With so many businesses and so much experience in the Group, there isn’t a scenario that someone else hasn’t been in before. Being pushed, encouraged and supported to take on additional responsibility and businesses, and given some freedom to try new things, is a great way to learn.
Your move from Gladstone into a CEO role was part of an internal leadership transition. What support or encouragement helped you feel ready to take that next step?
Gladstone is a great business, one of the biggest and most successful. I came from a very different background when I joined, much more of a corporate construct, so there was a big learning curve for me. Learning there and being pushed outside of my comfort zone was a great start for me. Naturally, with 25 years in financial services, the fintech opportunity felt like a great place to take all of the learning from Gladstone and take it into a subject matter that was a little familiar. Honestly, I’m not sure I personally felt that ready when the opportunity came up, but knowing that the Group Leader at the time, the Group CEO and the previous CEO of Gladstone all believed I was ready was a real boost for me. The support they gave me in the first 6 months of my role was brilliant. A real high-challenge, high-support environment. I made a few mistakes and, like everyone, still do, but I never once felt on my own. Knowing that I had the network of other CEOs in the Group helped loads. I continue to call on that network, often.
What was the biggest adjustment when moving from an operational leadership role into a CEO position?
It’s a bit of a football analogy, but one minute I was in the stands giving my opinions (hopefully often good ones), and then the next minute you’re the manager picking the starting 11, and every win and loss comes down to decisions you make, and often decisions you don’t. It’s very easy to feel a bit overwhelmed at that point. Submitting your forecasts and updating senior people on your strategy and the performance, good or bad, is a different thing when you’re the one in the driving seat. That’s why the people here are great. Surround yourself with great people, have a little courage and learn by listening and having a go.
Looking back, when did you first begin to see Group Leadership as a possible next step in your career?
Taking on Jonas Fintech was great for me in this sense: 3 different businesses with 3 strategies and 3 P&Ls to consider. Each business needed, and still needs, different things to be successful. It took me a little while to find my feet, but when I felt like things were a little settled, an acquisition came into the Group, and I was asked to play a player-coach role. The opportunity to support and coach another CEO, whilst still running my businesses, gave me a good taste of what being a Group Leader might be like. After doing that for a little while, the opportunity came up and, like last time, the level of support, encouragement and challenge from those around me really does help!
What attracted you to the Group Leader role, and what are you most excited about as you begin this new chapter?
The opportunity to have a greater impact across the Group and start to get involved in M&A activity was a real pull for me. I must admit I did think hard about whether I wanted to stay inside the business; I really do love the 3 businesses, the people that work there, and the day-to-day challenges that running businesses brings. On balance, though, I felt like the opportunity for more accountability, more impact and to try something new was a real pull. It was also great that the businesses I ran still fall into my portfolio, so I’m grateful to still be part of that team, albeit with a slightly different role.
Moving from leading individual businesses to supporting several leadership teams requires a different approach. How do you expect your leadership style to evolve?
I love being where the action is and am naturally drawn to that, especially with businesses that I am genuinely passionate about. That’s going to be a little different for me now. I was, and continue to be, incredibly grateful for the support, challenge and advice of those people who have always played that role for me. Now I’m slightly away from the day-to-day action, I have the privilege of being able to do that for the SLTs of each business.
What are your main priorities for your first year as a Group Leader?
Learning from and listening to each of the business SLTs, understanding their businesses and trying to work out where I can add the most value to ensure we collectively meet the Group’s goals. Learning more about the M&A processes has been really enjoyable. We have a few potential acquisitions at different stages, so I’m just trying to soak all of that up. Primarily, though, my core focus is on supporting the businesses to be as successful as they can be and helping them get beyond what they thought was possible, like others did, and still do, for me.
What do you hope your journey shows other people across Vesta about the opportunities available to develop and progress within the group?
If you want it enough and are prepared to throw yourself in, then any development or progression is possible. I don’t think there are many places to work with such a wealth of experience and knowledge to be able to learn from. As we grow with more acquisitions, as we do every day, there are always opportunities available to do more and be better.
Grow your career with Vesta
Mike’s story highlights the difference that encouragement, shared experience and the opportunity to take on new challenges can make. As he steps into Group Leadership, he’s looking forward to helping others grow and succeed, just as colleagues across Vesta have done for him.
If you’d like to explore opportunities to grow your own career with Vesta, take a look at our current openings on our careers page.
