For investment industry veteran Randy Gunn, CFA, MBA, it’s all about making the right connections to grow and thrive. That’s why he focused on the CFA designation early in his career and has been forging foundational relationships both locally and abroad through his volunteer efforts with CFA Society Toronto, which helped him navigate to his current role.

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Randy Gunn, CFA, MBA, Career Highlights

After graduating with an undergraduate degree in international business from Brock University and an MBA focused on finance from the University of Windsor, Gunn kicked off his finance career in 1999. In 2004, he took a major professional U-turn to work in London, U.K., where he spent two years at Citigroup Private Bank working with high-net-worth clients. Upon returning to Canada, he spent six years with Scotiabank before shifting to the independent investment manager Connor, Clark & Lunn Private Capital. Gunn eventually rounded out his experience across the three major arms of the industry with stops at consulting firms, including BNY Mellon Wealth Management, before joining BULLWEALTH in 2021. As vice-president and portfolio manager, he now manages high-net-worth portfolios and drives business development across Canada.

Outside of his career, Gunn – a father of two sons, Jacob and Cooper – has become a pillar of the CFA Society Toronto community. From his early days on the Private Wealth Committee 17 years ago to his role as a key contributor to the Annual Wealth Conference, his involvement has been a career-long constant.

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What inspired you to get started in the finance industry?

My first experience with investments began when my parents hired an advisor; I started sitting in on their meetings when I was 13. Watching my parents interact with this advisor, I had read The Wealthy Barber, and I walked out of a meeting saying, “You need 30 stocks, and this guy’s selling us 14 mutual funds with 2,000 stocks – we’re overdiversifying!” When I was 14 or 15, my parents decided to let me start helping them manage investments on our own.

My primary source of inspiration, however, was my mother. She was a real estate agent who specialized in helping first-time homebuyers. I saw how much she genuinely enjoyed helping people and how much she cared. It showed me that you can make a successful living while truly being of service to others.

My primary source of inspiration, however, was my mother. She was a real estate agent who specialized in helping first-time homebuyers. I saw how much she genuinely enjoyed helping people and how much she cared. It showed me that you can make a successful living while truly being of service to others.

What do you enjoy most about working in the private wealth sector?

I would say really helping high-net-worth people solve their problems. Most people don’t fully understand what they own when they invest. I enjoy bringing transparency to that process, helping them understand their holdings and introducing a disciplined process that can impact the rest of their lives.

How did you first get involved with CFA Society Toronto, and where have you primarily focused your volunteer efforts?

I was looking for a way to connect with the broader market – I wanted to have other people at competitive firms to bounce ideas off. At that time, and it still is, the CFA designation was kind of the global standard. I remember I got into a committee meeting with the Private Client Committee at the time, and the chair was Tom Trainor, and he said, “You can come to the meeting, but you’ve got to take the minutes.” So basically, he was looking for a note taker! I ended up doing that, and that’s how I got involved with what is now called the Private Wealth Committee, and I’ve been involved ever since.

The biggest volunteer commitment is the Annual Wealth Conference; I’m actively involved in organizing the speakers. We have a group of us that go out to the industry and ask them, “What’s keeping your clients up at night? What’s keeping your staff up at night?” And then we try to put together a program of four or five sessions that are in line with that. I’ve also gone to quite a few of the global annual CFA conferences; I was at the one in Chicago last year. They’re valuable from a thought leadership perspective.

What are some of the key takeaways from your experience with CFA Society Toronto?

I’ve had lots of great mentors. Tom Trainor has been a career sounding board. I also learned a lot from Marg Franklin, who recently stepped down from leading CFA Institute globally. She taught me the importance of listening and introduced me to mindfulness to manage my high energy. I’ve been involved in at least 15 Annual Wealth Conferences, and I’m always very involved in selecting the speakers. We had a speaker last year, Amy Castoro, and she focuses on family dynamics. I learned so much from speaking to her, reading her book and understanding how to approach some of that stuff. And more importantly, knowing that if there is conflict in a family, you’ve got to bring in a professional.

From your perspective, what are the benefits of joining and volunteering with CFA Society Toronto – why should others get involved?

I think certainly building a network is a major benefit. In Toronto, through the CFA community, I have been able to build a good network with many of my competitors, and it’s important to be able to use that network, because we’re all trying to solve the same problems, right? And then, frankly, just building global relationships. When you go to the conference in Chicago, you meet people from Asia and Europe, and you’re able to expand your network. And then I guess the last thing is, from a thought leadership perspective, whether you’re going to conferences or using the website, it’s amazing how much intellectual capital is there.

We’re in a time when everyone wants a piece of your wallet, and everyone wants a piece of your time. But ultimately, I thought leadership is important. Understanding best practices and applying them globally makes sense. It’s no longer a bank in Canada competing against a bank in Canada – you’re competing against global institutions. CFA Institute is one of the few global footprints in finance that can share that intellectual capital, and you can understand what’s happening around the world.

What advice do you have for those new to the industry or to CFA Society Toronto?

The private wealth sector is among the fastest growing and most profitable segments of the wealth market. If you are looking for a rewarding career that offers a decent living, the ability to help people and flexibility for a family, it’s a great opportunity.

From a business development perspective, I had a lot of great mentors, but one of the things that I did early on in my career was I tried to almost emulate their behaviours and their skills. What I learned over time is that you actually just want to be yourself. Be genuine. It’s not about selling, it’s about focusing on helping people solve problems. If you be yourself, you have a better chance of connecting with people.

WWhat’s next on the horizon for you – what are you looking forward to the most?

I’m kind of in between – I have a 16-year-old and an 18-year-old – so I’m a couple years away from being what they call an empty nester, and I’m not sure how I feel about that. My youngest, next year will be his last year of hockey, and I’ve coached him every year, so I think I’ll be a little bit sad. But I’m actually very excited, because once the kids are off doing their own thing, I’ll be able to dedicate more time to doing what I do – finding clients, helping clients and continuing to grow our business. We’re looking to grow our business nationally, so that means an office out west at some point.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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FUN FACTS ABOUT RANDY

Activities outside of work and volunteering.
Hockey is my thing. I play hockey every Friday with a bunch of guys for an hour, and I just love it. When I’m out on the ice, I forget about everything. The other thing I really like to do is travel. I’ve got a trip booked with my partner to go to Greece and I’ve told her I would love to travel somewhere every six months.

Bucket list travel destination.
I would say right now Costa Rica is right at the top. And I love South America, so I’d love to spend more time in South America.

The last interesting series you binge-watched.
I liked Yellowstone. And in fact, the new one is just out, called Marshals, which features his youngest son as a marshal. I grew up reading westerns, and I love Louis L’Amour, so I love the whole genre.

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Lauren Huneault is a content and marketing professional with 15 years of experience in content creation and strategy. Lauren has spent the last 14 years focused on producing relevant educational content to help aspiring and current business owners successfully navigate the challenges of the Canadian business landscape. She has served as writer and editor of trade publications including Your Convenience Manager, Octane and Franchise Canada.