Being a yachty and a fund manager may seem pursuits far removed from one another, but Callum Burns (Wyvern 1982) believes there are not only strong parallels between the two, but that one can enhance the other.

“Over a long investing career, you are always striking a balance between risk and return. You take too little risk you will be mediocre, unsuccessful and not deliver what people want. If you take too much risk you can permanently lose capital. Sailing is the same, if you go up the middle you are going to be middle of the fleet and that’s not what you want, but if you tack right out to the outside, you might win the race but you’ll never win the regatta. In both you are constantly finessing between risk and return. Being involved in the two, I feel that one helps the other.”

Callum came to Queen’s from Belmont High School in Geelong, starting a family tradition.

“It was amazing to be with a big group of smart, motivated people. It was so stimulating. You are lucky to be able to mix with such an impressive bunch in your formative years because you learn so much, and you keep running into them throughout your life. My daughters Clare (Wyvern 2017) and Sofia (Wyvern 2019) had the College experience, and when they went to Queen’s they really enjoyed it, thought it was great.”

Callum’s mechanical engineering degree has held him in good stead, despite an initial employment hiccup.

“I went to BP straight out of uni to start a mechanical engineering role and there was an admin mix up and I ended up with a chemical engineering job. After six months I picked it up because I didn’t have to understand 100% of it, I just focussed on 5% of it. It gave me the confidence to try other things so when I made the leap over to the stock market it made me think if you can pick up one thing, you can probably pick up another. It was a lucky mistake, actually.”

A combination of thinking logically and keeping an open mind has served Callum well.

“The great thing about engineering is it teaches you logical thinking and it’s really helpful in whatever you do. In my career I believe you take your opportunities where you find them. I’m not big on advice because it implies you know everything, and I don’t feel I do, I don’t feel anyone does. It’s important to have a broad plan, but not too much of a plan because that can lock you in. If you take experiences as they present themselves, often you look back and there’s a plan. The experiences shape you as well so it’s best to have your eyes open and be willing to respond to opportunities.”

As Managing Director and Lead Portfolio Manager for ICE investors, Callum enjoys the opportunities afforded him.

“Finding the right investment is super exciting. We invest in smaller companies outside the top 100. When you meet the people behind the companies, they don’t have a PR team, haven’t been to media school, they are at the cutting edge of technology, social development, whatever it might be and you are seeing it really early. You learn a lot yourself. Most of these people have built something very big from nothing and it’s very motivating and exciting when you find them. All these years later, that’s what gets me out of bed.”

Like many of us, the work-life balance can be tricky for Callum.

“My biggest challenge in life is wanting to do it all. It’s time and people management. There are so many good things to do. Being a fund manager takes a lot of hours. It’s really motivating, interesting, exciting but it’s never over. Then you want time with your family and friends and on top of that I’m a very keen sailor and do that at a decent level so just fitting it in is always challenging. I try to put family one, business two, and prioritise accordingly.”

The Queen’s years have left a lasting impression on Callum.

“One quirk of College is I hadn’t seen spoon banging before, and I haven’t seen it since. Queen’s helped my career enormously, not directly but in that I was in an environment with super smart people, the vast majority also had really good people skills. It was an honour to be part of it. That’s how I felt about it then and that’s how I still feel about it.” 

Callum is very happy to hear from Queen’s students or fellow Wyverns via email – cburns@iceinvestors.com.au

Callum sailing.