From fighter pilot to fashion house financier, Mohammed Alardhi has taken Investcorp to great heights – so what’s the secret to his success?
From fighter pilot to fashion house financier, Mohammed Alardhi has followed a path less travelled to becoming Executive Chairman of US$50 billion global investor Investcorp.
Once the youngest and longest serving Commander of Oman’s Royal Air Force with zero experience of running a hedge fund or private equity firm, Alardhi has propelled Bahrain-headquartered Investcorp from a US$10 billion alternative asset management firm to one looking towards US$100 billion.
Now he is sharing the secrets of his success via new book Connecting To The Future where he combines business chops from a Master’s at Harvard with what he calls ‘cockpit culture’.
“The popular assumption is that both flying and investing satisfy an appetite for risk. I don’t think that’s quite right,” says Alardhi. “I think they require fortitude in the face of risk. The secret to survival and success is acknowledging the full range of risks and calculating how to mitigate them long before you push the throttle forward or sign off on an action plan.
