NEWS
Marcus All Over David Humble David Humble GCert Agri20, AssocDipFM’87 recently completed the Graduate Certificate in Agribusiness at Marcus, while working for Bell Potter Securities, where he has spent the past 20 years. David, who advises private clients, small institutions, family offices and company directors, thought 2020 was a good time to further his undergraduate qualifications so he could add to his skillset to benefit his clients. “As an undergraduate of Marcus in 1987, and currently working for a stockbroker, there has been a focus for industry-wide upgrading of educational standards. In options jargon, I decided the best course of action was to ‘roll up and out’,” he said. “The postgraduate agribusiness program at Marcus was an ideal fit, with my exposure to business and the requirement to research, analyse and recommend to clients on appropriate investments.”
James Mitchell COVID-19 lockdowns meant not having to chase after children’s sport and gave David more time to pursue his study. The access to resources and lectures via a virtual platform, worked well too, but the pandemic also exposed a change that made further study more compelling. “With COVID, the importance of food and fibre security has been heightened and the rise of agriculture as an investment class is seeing more and more agricultural enterprises list on the stock market. The requirement for agribusiness qualifications to be added to these boards as a skill set, sees the potential to add some non-executive director’s roles into the mix.” David’s only regret is that he didn’t pursue further study earlier as it has focused and sharpened his perspective on commerce and executive decision making, helping with more detailed modelling on companies that can be discussed with executives and institutional investors, on their terms. “The four core subjects of the Master of Agribusiness that form the Postgraduate Certificate in Agribusiness, are to me very similar to the core of any of the major MBA’s that I have looked at: Business Strategy, Systems Analysis, Marketing, and Financial Analysis. Whether the focus is on GrainCorp Ltd or Harvey Norman- is purely academic, the theory and perspective is the same.” An important aspect to David’s decision to study was both the negative and positive impact on his family. “It can be a little stressful to be working, studying, schooling, and living in a confined space, but my family was exceptionally supportive. Another upside was I wanted to set an example for my kids, who are still at school, that education is a lifelong journey, and that one should strive to excel. I do recall last century when studying at Marcus, that my focus was on completion rather than excelling. I now understand that folly.” DHumble@bellpotter.com.au
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James Mitchell BB(Ag)’20 has joined the executive team within JLL Agribusiness Capital Markets, Brisbane, focusing on the divestment of agricultural properties across Australia. Growing up in Brisbane, James had always wanted to pursue a career in agriculture so worked for several years on cattle stations and broadacre farms before studying at Marcus. “I chose Marcus to get ahead in a competitive work environment. It’s highly regarded within Australia as a leading agricultural college, and I saw an opportunity to experience life outside of my home state of Queensland,” he said. “I got a lot out of the strong mateships I made within the class group and the broader college over the three years of the course. These friendships were further strengthened by many social events like the Marcus Races, social nights on campus, and weekends spent in Geelong and Melbourne.” Despite having his final year disrupted by COVID-19 James said Marcus did everything to make the two lockdowns during 2020 run smoothly for the students. James is looking forward to his new role with JLL Agribusiness, building new relationships with a range of agricultural industry participants from private family enterprises through to institutional investors. JamesA.Mitchell@ap.JLL.com
