Where are they now? Russell Kennett on life after financial services

Russell Kennett was the executive vice president of State Street when he left the financial services industry in 2009. In the years since he has built an alpine resort in Japan, joined a venture capital firm and sat on two boards. He has also attained what is elusive to many - a healthy work-life balance.

Why did you leave financial services?

After 30 years in financial services, I took the opportunity to take a 'sabbatical' while considering a couple of other directions. In 2009 there weren't too many financial services firms looking to expand and there weren't that many even looking to hire, so a 12 month break to do some travel and review some interesting opportunities was not a hard decision. One of these opportunities, which I ended up pursuing, was turning an old asparagus farm on the edge of the Niseko ski village in Hokkaido, Japan into "The Orchards" a housing community of (ultimately) more than 40 alpine homes.

Where are you now?

The early stages of The Orchards, took up a lot more time than I had initially expected but as the project has progressed, this has changed. As a result, in addition to my role with Niseko Resorts Group, I have recently taken a regional role with Novus Folium Venture Partners, a US based venture capital firm that specializes in bringing innovative technologies to market. I became a non-exec director of NBI (a grassroots 'not for profit' delivering respite, recreation and support for families of kids with disabilities) and earlier this year also joined the board of Energy Industries Superannuation Scheme (EISS).

In what way are your new roles different to previous role/s?

While there is an important distinction and significant difference between a non-exec role and an executive role, my role with State Street had a lot in common - business development, governance, risk and general management - with my current financial services roles at EISS and also more recently with Novus Folium. The characteristics of my property development role are very different on a day-to-day basis but even so, there are many times when I realise skills or experiences from my previous roles are totally relevant to the issues and challenges that arise in developing a holiday resort in Japan.

What do you like about your new roles?

Building businesses was always the part of my financial service roles that I enjoyed the most. As The Orchards, EISS and NVFP are all currently very much in 'build' mode, it is an interesting time to be involved with each of these businesses. I am also excited to be exposed to a couple of new industry sectors including property development, venture capital and nanotechnology. One day I'm talking through a design or landscaping issue at The Orchards and the next I am working on financing strategy for a science technology opportunity. And on a personal level, my work-life balance is much better - I thought it was ok before, it's only now that I appreciate that it really was out of whack.

What don't you like about it?

There's not much I don't like about it. - other than no longer flying up the front of the plane (and a few other similar perks still found in financial services sector)

What did you learn in previous roles that has helped you in your new role/s?

Many aspects of management and business development: risk analysis, marketing and strategic planning, to name a couple are very similar. I was fortunate to have had the opportunity, while working in the finance industry, to learn and appreciate the importance of cost control, thorough planning, and of having (and sticking to) a clear vision of the purpose and value proposition of the business.

What do you miss about financial services?

As I'm still involved in financial services I can tap into many of the things I enjoyed. However I miss being involved in the bigger issues within financial services. I also miss the energy and impact of being part of a larger team - however I don't miss the eternal meetings (especially the midnight conference calls) or the HR issues that go with being part of a large organisation.

Would you go back to an executive role in financial services?

I don't have any current plans to take on an executive role but "never say never", some things in life are unpredictable.