In all my years in business, I have seldom referred to my previous life as a hurler in my beloved Tipperary. Whether I was referred to as “hot-headed” or “passionate”, depended on which side of the pitch you were standing. It was only when attending a recent event which we hosted to celebrate five years in business that a local reporter asked me; “So, Tony, what makes you tick? What is behind this exponential growth in your financial planning business in just five years?”
The SYS Group story
SYS Wealth was established in 2015 specialising in Investment and Wealth Management, Retirement and Inheritance Planning and Life Protection. Back then it was just me, and my administrator who happens to be my sister. I made the move to venture out on my own after twenty two years with New Ireland. Now, five years on, SYS has a team of 32 amazing individuals. We have offices in Nenagh, Cork and in Waterford, as well as bases in Dublin and Carlow where we can meet our band of three thousand valued clients. Assets under management have grown to over €250m. SYS Group recently completed the acquisition of two brokerages, which will see our business expand to include mortgages and car finance. Our aim is to become one of Ireland’s largest independent brokerages, serving our clients with the full spectrum of services to meet their present and future needs. It was indeed a reason to celebrate.
Answering the question, success was not a surprise
What struck me when I thought about my answer to the question was that the success of my business hadn’t come as a surprise to me at all. When I dug deeper, I found myself referring back to my days playing hurling for my club, Toomevara. Undisputedly, GAA players are the most professional amateur sports group in the world. They leave every ounce of themselves on the pitch for their team and supporters, and not for any financial award, but their own personal drive.
The two most memorable moments in my playing career were the County Senior Finals in 1998 and the Quarter Final in 1999. Being Man of The Match in the former and seeing the pride on my father’s face is a memory with its’ own special file in my brain. It was all the more sweet because my father didn’t live to see our back-to-back win in 1999. He died the week before the Quarter Final. The upcoming match was the last thing on my mind, so not being selected to start was no surprise. However, on the day of the match, twenty minutes in and my team were losing badly. The selector looked at me and said “Tony, what do you think?” Not for a minute am I saying I was central to the team, but we were a team, we worked best together. I nodded without hesitation, and got ready to go on. What came next, I was not expecting. As I ran on to the pitch, the crowd and my team mates erupted in a cheer. They understood the week I had been through. With an uplifted team spirit, and a crowd right behind us, we went on to a historic win.
These events taught me two things; I didn’t have a fear of losing but a very strong will to win. And, with a great team around me and the trust of our supporters, I could achieve anything.
SYS Group – a Financial Planning Brand you can trust
Trust is to the core of team sport as it is with Financial Planning. Whether you were a forward, a back or the goal keeper, your team mates trusted you each time they passed the ball, to score, to defend or to save. To this day, I always appreciate the trust a client bestows on me, whether it is growing their pension fund, protecting their family, or simply saving for a rainy day.
SYS Group seems to have grown organically into a team of like-minded dedicated professionals, all with one purpose in mind; to fulfil the goals and aspirations of our client base. The focus is on discovering the life our clients aspire to now, and where they want to be in five, ten or twenty years. Together, we put a game-plan in place. If a need is identified, we do offer services such as pensions, life assurance, investments and mortgages, as a solution.
What makes us different is that we want to build lasting long term relationships with our clients; be there with them when they are buying their first home, raising their families, changing jobs, planning for their retirement and enjoying the freedom of their golden years. We are with them every step of the way.
Still leaving every ounce on the pitch
I may be a long time retired from my hurling days, but I have carried the same passion, pride and team spirit with me into my business. And still, I would leave every ounce of myself on the “pitch” , this time for my colleagues and clients.
