‘We should be judged on what we do, not what we talk about’

Mark SchubertMark Schubert, managing director of food management consultancy Coriolis, talks luck, laughter and lower raw material prices…

Describe yourself in three words
Confident, passionate, driven.

What’s your biggest professional achievement?
Transforming the Coriolis business over the last 18 months and recently becoming MD.

How did you get to where you are today?
A lot of hard work and laughter, with a little bit of luck

What are your pet hates?
I don’t know why but I have a pet hate for people who eat the individual food components on a plate in sequence. The components are on the plate to complement each other, with the tastes combining to make an even better eating experience. Consider even basic things like sausage, grilled tomato and HP brown sauce?

Give us a positive prediction for the food industry over the next 12 months
The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) first forecast for world wheat production in 2013 stands at 690 million tonnes, which would be 4.3 per cent up from the 2012, harvest and the second largest crop on record after that of 2011. The increase is expected mostly in Europe (up three per cent), driven by an expansion in area in response to high prices, which results in raw material inflation for food manufacturers. I appreciate that this only represents one-fifth of the commodity price indices that make up the FAO food index, but I think that it is reasonable to predict lower raw material prices in 2013.

What do you consider to be the most important attributes for a leader?
Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality; we should be judged on what we do, not what we talk about. A truly great leader’s courage to fulfil a vision comes from passion, not position.

Who do you most admire?
My adorable mother. I admire her for numerous reasons but her ‘loving’ honesty keeps me grounded.

Which people/organisations or companies are the ones to watch right now?
We should expect to see further consolidation activity in frozen food, including ice cream, and in the seafood sector where there is significant capacity.

Expect more private equity deals this year, both in situations where trade buyers are absent and in situations where owner-managers are looking to take some cash out of the business but still maintain a front-line role.

The Indian food industry is expected to grow at 18-25 per cent over the next 10 years as the largely disorganised market of small family enterprises becomes organised by larger private players, and as the chilled distribution infrastructure reaches critical mass. The scale of this opportunity has resulted in significant interest from foreign business.

Which word or words do you most overuse?
I used the word ‘obviously’ far too often until a client pointed out that it probably wasn’t as obvious as I thought…

If you weren’t at Coriolis, what else might you be doing?
I would love to fly a fighter jet but they don’t take many 40-year-olds.

Tell us something about yourself that few people know
I have achondroplasiaphobia.

Any vices?
Defining ‘vice’ as a serious moral failing, I suppose this very much depends who is doing the judging. I would normally say drink but I don’t think many (other than a Quaker, perhaps) would regard it as a moral failing these days. On a serious note, I don’t give enough to charity, either time or money, and on reflection this needs to change.

What single thing would most improve the quality of your life?
A bit more time. However, this isn’t going to happen, so I work on the basis that when your life flashes before your eyes, you should make sure you’ve got plenty to watch.

How do you relax?
I thoroughly enjoy cooking, with a good glass of wine. Following a Heston Blumenthal recipe is not always that relaxing, though. Although physically draining, my mental relaxation comes from kung fu and skiing.

How would you like to be remembered?
Being remembered will be reward enough, it means people care. Some memories will be good and some bad – I just hope the there are more of the former than the latter.

 

Related content

Leave a reply

Food and Drink Technology