Porsche-driving chief officer sped to the top

Few bankers can claim as quick a climb up the career ladder as Andreas Tautscher. The chief operating officer of Deutsche Bank International joined it in 1994 as an accountant and was in the top job in less than nine years. He told Tom Bradshaw that luck was a factor, but also making the most of every opportunity

'The biggest change has been the amount of regulation,' he said. 'In the beginning the trust business was not regulated, but now it seems every sector is. That has become a massive factor.'

But his responsibilities stretch far beyond the island's shores.

Two years ago he was made chief operating officer for all offshore business in its four centres, Jersey, Cayman and Mauritius being the others.

He heads a team of 120 in Guernsey and worldwide there are another 300 staff.

'What I have been very lucky about is the way the group has evolved. I have seen the industry on a much wider scale as Deutsche Bank encompasses a lot of businesses. I have to deal with regulation structures in a lot of different jurisdictions.'

'We are a small operation within Deutsche Bank's 65,000-strong work force, but we are involved in several parts of its operation.

'Our business has progressed considerably over the years and my role has changed within that. In a sense I have had several different careers within one organisation.'

Although his work takes him all over the world, home is where the heart is and he remains very confident about Guernsey's economic future.

He said that full employment here meant the industry would remain strong.

'It is still such a buoyant business. You don't find many people saying it is quiet.'

Mr Tautscher, 41, was born in Switzerland but moved to Guernsey, his mother's place of birth, when he was very young.

Other than a few years working off the island and travelling after graduating, he has lived here since.

He was educated at Elizabeth College and went on to study for a geology degree at Kingston.

'I dare say I had no interest in finance at that stage.'

His first career was in the oil industry. 'I did some work logging oil recordings mainly in onshore wells. It was not very interesting.'

After less than a year he went travelling and spent 12 months in Australia working in various jobs.

While he said the travelling lifestyle was fun, the prospects in the oil industry at the time were not good.

'I had always been pretty good at maths and heard a number of friends were training as accountants so I returned to Guernsey to give it a shot,' he said.

'It seemed like an interesting line of work to get into, especially the business management side.'

In September 1990, he joined Coopers & Lybrand as a trainee accountant. Three-and-a-half years later, he left as an audit senior.

In May 1994, he joined Morgan Grenfell, which became Deutsche Bank International in 1998.

'Business management is what I trained for and have always loved. It is a lot about running projects and putting teams together.'

He started as operations manager for fiduciary services and was responsible for all non-administration processes within the bank's global private client trust business.

In 2000, he was made chief financial officer responsible for all finance staff in the four offshore centres.

Two years ago he became managing director of the Guernsey office and chief operating officer for all offshore business.

Through this role he oversees all operational, risk, compliance and regulatory issues and chairs a number of senior committees.

On average he spends two days a week in Guernsey and makes 150 business trips each year.

'You have to enjoy travel to do what I do, but I still get frustrated with all the delays through fog and heightened security,' he said.

'I would not go out of my way to travel, but I can cope with it. Still, it seems like I spend half my life at an airport or in a taxi.'

Looking back at his career, Mr Tautscher is very modest about what he has achieved.

'Luck is always a big factor. But you have to make the most of any opportunity.'

But equally important was the need to devote a lot of time to gaining a comprehensive understanding of things.

'I have always spent a lot of time sitting down with my colleagues learning everything about them and what they do. Not only do you learn all about your business, but you get to know how to get the best out of people.'

He said the finance industry did not always have the best reputation among islanders. That was a perception he set out to overturn with the bank's recent community challenge.

To mark its 35th anniversary year, the bank offered 70 of its staff the chance to give up 35 hours over a weekend to help a local charity.

More than 10 applied and they were narrowed down to a shortlist of three by a panel of judges. From that, the Ron Short Centre went on to to win the public vote and was given a makeover.

'We hope this demonstrated our commitment to the community.'

Several other events are planned throughout the year to mark the anniversary.

The group has the biggest corporate art collection in the world, with 55,000 pieces on display in its offices.

Late this summer, the Guernsey office is staging a public exhibition of it at Candie entitled Beyond Sensation.

'It will showcase a number of avant-garde artists. It will not be to everyone's taste, but it will offer styles rarely seen in Guernsey.'

As well as celebrating its 35th anniversary, Deutsche Bank was pleased to receive from Euromoney the best-private-bank award for the Channel Islands.

Mr Tautscher is married to Amanda and has three children, 10-year-old twins Peter and Andrew and Jacques, two.

'Obviously quite a lot of my time outside work is devoted to them. The twins are very sporty so I spend a lot of time cheering them on in various things.'

But when he has time to himself, geology is still a passion.

'I collect fossils when I can but there are not many opportunities for that over here so when I get the chance, I go on trips to the UK,' he said.

Another interest is motorsport and he is the proud owner of a 1988 Porsche 911.

'It's a bit of a cliche for a middle-aged accountant to have a car like that, but it is a lot of fun.

'My brother, Adrian, used to be an engineer at Lotus and now works in design at Jaguar.

'An interest in cars runs in the family.'