Trading Places: From General Counsel to COO

Transitioning roles mid-career requires both risk taking and ingenuity in today’s unpredictable market. This is especially true in the C-suite, where job requirements are constantly evolving to make a lasting impact on organizations.

In this Q&A, I sat down with Paul McConomy, most recently Managing Director, COO for APAC & MENA at Principal Asset Management (Principal), to discuss his incredible career journey. Since first arriving in Singapore in 2000, he’s spanned different trade locations, companies and roles. I was keen to discuss his motivation for changing roles mid-career from Regional Counsel to Regional COO — including how he was able to navigate growing into different roles over the years.

Paul began his corporate career in London as an in-house lawyer for an asset management company. When it was acquired, he lobbied for an overseas posting and was assigned to Singapore as Regional Counsel for a major investment management brand. He then left to join a similar role at Principal Asset Management in Hong Kong, with a mandate to help grow the Asia footprint. After 10 years in the region, Paul sought more leadership opportunities and eventually accepted an offer to move to Malaysia as Regional COO. There, he helped lead a start-up Islamic asset management joint venture. After achieving success there, Paul took on other Regional COO roles with Principal in London and Singapore, where he currently lives with his wife and two kids.

Q: Can you describe your career journey and the factors that motivated your transition from Regional Counsel to Regional COO within the same Investment Manager?

A: “You never start out as you end up.”

I started out on the corporate path as an in-house lawyer for a leading investment manager in London, negotiating investment management agreements, distribution agreements and business divestitures. Then my employer was acquired by a global investment bank, and everything changed. I raised my hand for an international assignment and soon found myself heading to Singapore as Regional Counsel for Asia. I guess I must have been doing something right, because a couple of years in, I was hired to assume a similar role for a competitor in Hong Kong.

I’d enjoyed a wonderful decade in Asia, leading legal initiatives and building teams across the region, but the realization was dawning that I needed a fresh challenge. I was keen to stretch myself and take on broader leadership responsibilities. A role emerged internally as COO for a start-up Islamic investment management joint venture (JV) in Malaysia and — by then with a young family in tow — I headed south to Kuala Lumpur.

Q: Transitioning from legal to a COO role is a significant shift. How did your legal background prepare you for the responsibilities as a COO, and what new skills did you have to acquire to succeed?

A: “Same, but different.”

Moving from an established business and familiar role in Hong Kong to a start-up in Malaysia was a baptism of fire, so to speak. I joined a lean team of around nine or 10 and, from the outset, it was “all hands to the pump.” The core competencies I’d honed in my prior legal roles, including attention to detail, analytical skills, articulation and problem-solving, were critical. Even so, the learning curve was incredibly steep.

I had to bring myself up to speed quickly on Islamic investment, the Malaysian market and the complexities of managing a JV. I sat in on master’s degree evening classes at INCEIF (an Islamic Finance University in KL) to understand Shariah principles, spent hours discussing the investment process with my CIO and leaned on senior colleagues to guide me through the political landscape. There was no “COO manual” to fall back on; hence, my learning was largely hands-on and consisted of long hours, endless questions and frequently rolling up of sleeves.

Q: Continual learning and development are crucial in any career. Can you share how you have invested in your professional growth, especially when switching roles, and how this contributed to your success?

A: “Education is not the filling of a pot but the lighting of a fire.”

I’ve been fortunate to work for firms that have consistently supported my professional development. In parallel, I’ve also invested significant personal time and dollars. A short while after taking on the COO role in Malaysia, I engaged an executive coach, which was transformational. Inspired by this, I self-funded a year of study — alongside my day job — and earned my own professional coaching certificate.

When moving from a functional role to a leadership role, interpersonal skills and empathy became even more critical. As my career progressed, I found myself spending significantly more time leading teams and mentoring individuals. A strong foundation in coaching has proved invaluable.

Q: In your experience, how can cross-functional skills acquired in a previous role, such as legal expertise, be leveraged effectively in a leadership position like a COO?

A: “You manage things; you lead people.”

Managing legal aspects is a comfort zone for me; hence, there’s often a temptation to step in and take the lead. Being mindful of that, I’ve tried (wherever possible) to exercise restraint on legal matters to empower my legal teams, while leaning in more intentionally to those business functions where I haven’t necessarily had such a strong formal grounding, such as risk, IT, operations or finance, for example.

The COO role is multi-faceted and ultimately less about being a subject matter expert in a particular discipline and more about having a level of knowledge and proficiency across multiple functions. It’s also about the leadership acumen to drive positive outcomes. An effective COO asks the right questions, connects the dots and leads others to solve problems.

Q: Many professionals worry about the risks associated with switching careers. How did your employer support your transition?

A: “Never have a career, have a project.”

That’s a valid concern. In my case, the opportunity to switch was serendipitous — right place, right time, intriguing project. My leader showed good faith in giving me the chance to pivot, and I was ready to take on a new challenge. Yet it was not without risk on either side, and it was far from smooth sailing. However, it was probably the most fertile training ground of my career and, in hindsight, one of my most fulfilling assignments. The skills, experience and resilience I acquired served me well in my subsequent COO roles.

Q: The financial industry is constantly evolving. How do you stay updated with industry trends and regulations, and how do you ensure that your team is equipped to adapt to these changes?

A: “You can’t do today’s job with yesterday’s methods and be in business tomorrow.”

Change is constant, and information overload makes tracking developments a genuine challenge. Monitoring every data source would be practically impossible. However, targeted screening by leaders and their regulatory compliance teams, supported by an external law firm as an extra layer of oversight would be a pragmatic, risk-based approach. Smart firms cultivate close relationships and open lines of communication with their professional advisers and regulators. Smart leaders empower their teams to attend conferences, networking events and peer forums to keep a finger firmly on the industry pulse.

Q: As both a legal professional and a COO, how do you balance the need for compliance and risk management with the operational efficiency and growth objectives of the firm?

A: “Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not.”

As a lawyer, my focus was on the legal and regulatory impacts of strategic decisions. As a COO, my mandate extended to business growth, product development, change management and more besides, but with the benefit of a wider lens through which to see and make sense of the broader organizational implications and interdependencies. Regardless of role or title, the imperative to do the right thing is non-negotiable. As a COO, my aim has always been to ensure stakeholders have appropriate visibility over strategic initiatives so that compliance, risk or any other concerns are tabled and addressed.

Q: Finally, what advice would you give to professionals considering a career switch, particularly if they are transitioning into leadership roles like the COO positions you have held?

A: “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.”

Be flexible. Be open minded. Ensure your leader, HR and relevant other individuals are aware of your aspirations. Have a mentor. Know your strengths and weaknesses. Solicit candid feedback from trusted colleagues and peers. Be willing to take a risk (and hope for a little serendipity along the way). Good luck!

If you are considering a career move, seeking advice on the current job landscape, or looking to hire your next star employee please get in touch.