Harry Paschalidis

“During my tenure at the Royal bank of Scotland, I had known Harry Paschalidis personally and professionally for 12 years. My earliest years at RBS was in Product Control. During my most formative years, I appreciated Harry being one of my most trusted confidants. His eagerness to mentor was truly appreciated as I quickly understood the culture, brand and etiquette of the firm. Harry was extremely busy during those early years and worked longer than most piers and senior managers. However, he found time in his day to help navigate the corridors at RBS. My nervousness of joining a new firm quickly disappeared and I was able to be a valuable contributor to the firm. As I progressed at RBS, so did Harry. No longer was he a pier but a manager. I could see this was an obvious promotion as his credit product and settlement knowledge was strong and what l experienced first hand, his ability to manage people effectively. I remember a meeting which Harry chaired. It was on new products. The members were not sure how to contribute but Harry made sure everyone participated and felt their ideas were valid and everyone came out of the meeting encouraged and enthusiastic about their part in the discussion. This is one of Harry ' strengths. His ability to make sure all who work with him get a say and are not ignored or cornered out. In my last 2 years working at RBS, Harry was my direct manager. When the decision was announced that he would own Middle Office and Product Control, I was a little hesitant. I mean, these are two different and competing functions that require different skill sets. I should not have been so quick to judge as Harry spent many early weeks and months working directly with the subject matter experts. He put together a strong and well blended management team that would be able to achieve the firm's strategic goals. He succeeded were many thought it was a tough ask to blend these groups. He worked so hard to be fair and balanced with such a large group of employees working for him. Even with these facts, he still managed to create time for his employees. He gave everyone an opportunity to succeed. He gave them the framework to be better than the day before. I have professionally known him to be a voice of reason amongst a sea of chaos. Harry did not micromanage. He, gave me the appropriate level of freedoms and trust to deliver . He always checked up on the progress of my work and had scheduled team meeting to inform his direct reports on everything pertinent. His meetings were organized and I was able to breakdown new deliverables that was easy to understand for the whole group. In all my professional years in the finance industry, I have found it a challenge to work with someone who was either strong on product but weak on people skills, or visa-versa. However, it was a pleasure to have someone in my career who comfortably owned both skills. This is how I see most companies, divisions and departments run. ”

“I had the pleasure of supporting Harry from the HR perspective at RBS. In this capacity I have witnessed Harry's dedication, support and leadership capabilities. He is forward thinking and proactive. Working with him and for him was a great experience.”