Paul Underwood

Current Employer/Organisation Name

PPU Enterprises Limited

What have you been doing since leaving Exeter, and what are you doing now?

I worked in Banking and Financial Services, starting my career in a Business Relationship Manager role and working my way through Business Developing and Coaching roles to an Area Director role. From here I progressed to Head of Sales and Head of Service roles, managing departments nationwide for Financial Service companies. I have worked in Private Equity ventures, designing and building departments from scratch. Most recently I act as Managing Director for a Private Ultrasound company, which I personally invested in and founded.

Why did you choose this career? And what do you enjoy most about your work?

I have always been fascinated with businesses and what makes a good business a good business; and what makes a bad business a bad business. I enjoy building positive work cultures that lead to mutual success for all concerned.

What did you enjoy most about your programme and what was the biggest highlight?

I enjoyed the variety of modules in my degree and enjoyed the exposure to Human Resource Management, Marketing, Economics, Public Finance and Behaviour Management as well as the Financial Accounting, Management Accounting and Financial Management side of things. The biggest highlight was achieving across all facets of the course, and meeting some great people who were also taking the course at the same time as me.

What did you enjoy most about studying here?

The people and the location.

Why did you choose to study at Exeter?

The high performance of the University and the campus layout and environment.

What skills and experiences have been most useful for your career?

Having to deal with other people and come up with different ways of working that both play to others’ strengths and mitigate their weaknesses.

What advice would you give to a current student who wishes to pursue your career?

Be agile and always ready for change. How you adapt to changing factors is the biggest factor in how successful you will be in the long term.

What are your plans for the future?

To invest in more businesses and to build a long term sustainable income stream for future generations of my family. To watch as much live sport as is possible!