New | Fidelity retail chief shows how career path opened the door to success

Bruno Lee Kam-wing has at one time or another been a hotel receptionist, fashion designer and fund manager. Somehow, he has managed to handle all three jobs well. Lee, 51, is the chairman of the Hong Kong Investment Funds Association. He is also the regional head of retail business at Fidelity and will move to Manulife Asset Management next month to become its regional head. “I have worked in the fashion and hotel industries, which I think is useful experience for my career as a fund manager,” Lee said. “Working in the hotel industry taught me how to serve customers well while the fashion industry helped me to have a forward-looking attitude.” Born in Hong Kong, Lee is the youngest in the family. He has a brother and a sister. His father was an accounting clerk. His academic results were not very good in school so he started work at an early age. “My first job was as a bellboy at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Central. There were many customers giving me good tips. That was a good start,” he said. He then joined Shangri-La hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui as a bellboy and later became a receptionist. “The hotel was usually overbooked and there were times customers would blame me if they could not get a room,” he said. “I learned how to keep my temper and try to find a solution for the customers.” Lee later met a customer who owned a small boutique. He then took a course on fashion design and joined the industry. During an interview with the South China Morning Post, he showed a design done in his early 20s. He participated in some fashion shows including a Trade Development Council event with his offering of Tang dynasty inspired knit-wear. Lee is proud of his designs. He believes the experience as a fashion designer is similar in some aspects to fund management. “As a fashion designer, you need to catch the latest trend, taste and fashion,” he said. “Fashion is related to the society and economy. “The clothes made after the second world war were simple and used cheap materials due to the poor economy. “Fund managers also need to pay attention to the socio-economic changes when making investment decisions. “As a fashion designer, I need to have forward-looking thinking as you are designing the clothes for the next season or next year. “This is somewhat similar to the fund industry in that you need to predict what will be the new investment trend next quarter or next year.” Although he loved being a designer, Lee only stayed for about three years. “The fashion industry is tough. A designer in Hong Kong would find it hard to compete with those from Japan, France or Italy. I decided to change my career,” he said. Believing the financial industry would be a better fit, Lee went back to school in 1986 and got a degree in economics from the University of Calgary in Canada. He returned in 1989 and applied for a job at HSBC. He was turned down, twice. He then wrote to the bank’s then chairman, William Purves. “I wrote to request an interview since it was my passion to join the bank. It was the late 1980s and many people had migrated, but I wanted to start my career in Hong Kong by joining HSBC. I asked why the bank refused to give me a chance,” Lee said. “Sir William wrote back and accepted my argument. He told the human resources department to interview me and I was hired. I still have his letter and am grateful that he gave me the opportunity.” After about two years, Lee joined Fidelity, where he stayed for 10 years and was promoted to senior roles in its Taiwan office. In 2004, he crossed over to Invesco to head its Taiwan office. When his son was born in 2005, Lee returned to Hong Kong. He rejoined HSBC in 2006 and was its wealth management regional head for five years. Then it was back to Fidelity in 2012 as its Hong Kong head. He was elected chairman of the HKIFA last year. “Many customers put their life savings in the hands of fund managers,” Lee said. “We are not just doing the job for the commission income and management fee, but we have a mission to help customers grow their wealth, to prepare for their retirement and to improve their standard of living. “As such, a fund manager should never take high risks. They should also think of risks and danger when they invest for their customers. “We should think that sudden shocks such as the September 11, 2001, attack or the 2008 subprime crisis may happen anytime.” As chairman of HKIFA, Lee wants to promote the fund industry to take advantage of the many reforms on the mainland, including the mutual recognition scheme that started last month allowing fund sales on both sides of the border. Lee enjoys spending time with his family and two dogs. He is also trying to learn to play the saxophone. “I like music. But more importantly, it is because my son is learning the piano. I think it would be good for father and son to learn to play music together,” he said.

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}New | Fidelity retail chief shows how career path opened the door to success

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Bruno Lee started out as a hotel bellboy and fashion designer, experiences he says have been helpful to his career as a leading fund manager

New | Fidelity retail chief shows how career path opened the door to success

Bruno Lee started out as a hotel bellboy and fashion designer, experiences he says have been helpful to his career as a leading fund manager