Alistair Gray

After graduating from Kent 1975, Alistair Gray’s career has taken him all over the world – from Europe to Australia, Japan, and the USA. He credits the university for enabling him to find secure employment and igniting his lifelong love of Italy.

Tell us about your career path since graduation.

Initially after graduation, I spent a gap year travelling and working in Australia. I then joined Peat Marwick Mitchell (now KPMG) where I qualified as a Chartered Accountant. I spent several years in Asia, firstly as an Accountant for The Swire Group in Japan and then as a Director of an Italian Trading Group in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur.

After seven years, I returned to the UK and re-joined KPMG as a Consultant and at the same time completed an Executive MBA at London Business School. Following this I moved to the US to become the Finance Director then CEO of JAS Forwarding USA, an Italian based Global Logistics Group. I later became its first Group Finance Director.

More than a decade later, I took up the same role at Darley Stallions where I was responsible for its Global Equine & Estates Portfolio – which comprised more than 3,000 thoroughbreds & 30,000 acres of stud farms worldwide (worth billions!). The role necessitated regular visits to the most fabulous Stud Farms in UK, Ireland, France, USA, Japan and Australia.

For the last 10 years I have been self-employed working as a Non-Executive Director for a farming and property business. I also consult – mostly for WiseTechGlobal (WTG) in Sydney – on Financial Settlement systems and undertaking their Mergers and Acquisitions work in Italy.

What does a typical work day look like for you?

Frankly there isn’t one; sometimes I’ll do Zoom or Teams calls on WTG business with people from around the world; if not I pursue my interest as a “Hobby Farmer” (Podére obbistica) in Sardinia tending my olive trees, vines and fruit orchard.

Can you share a professional highlight from your career so far?

Being head hunted to work for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid of Dubai as Group FD for his global thoroughbred breeding and racing operations.

How did your time at Kent help you achieve your current career?

Studying Accounting at Kent made it easy to secure employment with a top five Accounting firm – they all offered me a Student Accounting position.

Beyond that, studying Italian in my first year at Kent inspired me to really try to learn the language. I fell in love with the country and its people, and the task was helped when I met my wife, who is Italian. She is a very strict grammarian and never tires of correcting me even after 40+ years. But this has enabled me to more fully enjoy life with her in Sardinia.

Although not part of my career, the singing that I did at Kent also helped greatly in giving me access to good choirs when I lived and worked in Tokyo (Tokyo International Singers)  and London (The London Chorus) which has included singing in venues such as The Albert Hall RFH, St. Pauls Cathedral & The Barbican.

What advice would you give to our current/prospective students who are looking to get into the same line of work?

Make sure you study what you are interested in and passionate about. This will show through when you are discussing a career or position with a potential employer – irrespective of the job itself. 

In addition, a professional qualification - such as an ACA/ACMA - immediately gives you credibility and the technical competence to do the job. 

Furthermore, involvement in clubs, teams, societies, voluntary associations, and charities – both at university and whilst in work – will create great networking opportunities which should not be discounted when it comes to job seeking.

Did you get involved in any extracurricular activities as a student?

I spent a lot of time singing with The Choral, Madrigal and Operatic Societies. I also rowed in the University’s first four  - the Stour was too narrow to accommodate an eight!

Do you have a favourite memory from your time at Kent?

My time spent rehearsing and performing in Offenbach’s La Belle Helene in which I had two (small) solo parts.

Is there anything you would do differently if you could repeat your time at Kent?

I think I would defer entry for a year to travel and work. I was only 17 when I arrived at Kent and was always the youngest of my peers.

Are you still in touch with other Kent alumni or academics?

One alumna in particular – Sally Deacon. We graduated together almost fifty years ago and she’s now my online yoga teacher.

A few years ago I also had the pleasure of returning to Kent to have lunch with Mark Grimshaw, who had been my Italian lecturer. I wanted to thank him for the important impact he had on my life.

What are your future ambitions?

To continue to improve my Italian, to sing in local choral groups where and whenever possible and to perfect the art of fruit tree grafting.