The Blog

Musings on corporate finance, fund raising, capital markets and other matters

Q&A with Advisor to the Board, Peter Joseph

Can you share the most valuable advice you've ever received?

“Solve the difficult problems first”.

These days I find myself giving advice more than receiving it. However, I’ve lived with this philosophy and have guided many others to use. It enables the earliest assessment of the chances of successfully completing a task and is a vital component for forecasting completion timetables.

What do you focus on at Altimapa?

As an advisor to the Board, my main focus is on management and strategic issues, sharing the lessons I have learned from growing a similar business. However, there are occasions when my experience has helped to break deadlocks or offer an impartial view on a difficult issue.

Is there a specific achievement or moment in your time at Altimapa that stands out to you?

While I would love to claim responsibility for some of Altimapa’s big achievements, my role is about support. That said, I am very proud of the headway the business has made against the almost unprecedented trading conditions over recent years.

What inspired you to pursue a career in Capital Markets?

“It seemed like a good idea at the time”.

The City was an exciting place in the 1980s, with changes in regulation and more than its fair share of excesses. It clearly offered better short-term prospects that the large engineering company where I was employed, although I fully expected my time there to be a short excursion before returning to a “proper” job.

What was your professional background before joining Altimapa?

I trained in Electrical and Electronic engineering before moving to the City as an analyst to interpret technology trends for investors in quoted equity. Over the following 25 years I held increasingly senior roles, growing institutional equity research departments and working on IPOs, secondary fundraisings and valuations across a range of market sectors. More recently, I divide my time between a number of non-executive directorships and board advisory positions and, for fun, teach captains of industry to sail yachts.

What's your favourite part of your role at Altimapa?

“Working with a fantastic team”.

Despite being a small business, Pedro Tavares the founder and CEO of Altimapa has managed to assemble a very capable and dedicated team of professionals. They are united behind the simple goal of building a successful business focused on very high standards of client service. Best of all, they are all really nice people to work with; enthusiastic and with no internal politics or hidden agendas.