Steven Galbraith – Five Tool Player (Capital Allocators, EP.01)
Apr 13, 2017
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Steven Galbraith, an investment manager and writer, discusses his career in investment management, market inefficiencies, and his experiences with running a local brewery and investing in education. He also shares insights on the importance of process vs outcome in finance and offers advice for managing money as a married couple.
Success Academy focuses on replicating success at a massive scale to address educational problems.
Success Academy's success is attributed to longer school days and a well-rounded curriculum including subjects like science and chess.
Writing down thoughts and clarifying investment perspectives play a crucial role in decision-making, while non-financial perspectives are essential in investment committees.
Deep dives
The Success Academy's Rapid Growth and Mission
The Success Academy, initially starting with one school and 250 students, has grown exponentially over the past decade. With nearly 40 schools now and plans to educate a hundred thousand students within the next decade, the organization is committed to addressing the educational problem by replicating success at a massive scale rather than relying on isolated examples of excellence. The goal is to have a framework that allows for effective replication and impact across demographics, achieving exceptional outcomes even in underprivileged areas.
Key Success Factors: Time in School and Curriculum
Two important factors contribute to the success of the schools. First, students spend more time in school and have shorter breaks, minimizing learning loss during the summer. Second, the curriculum includes subjects like science and chess from an early age, ensuring a well-rounded and stimulating educational experience for students.
Influence on Traditional Education System
Success Academy's success is poised to influence the traditional education system. By achieving exceptional outcomes and impacting a significant number of students, the organization hopes to push other schools to compete and improve their practices, ultimately elevating the overall quality of education.
Building and growing Narragansett beer
The podcast episode discusses the experience of opening a brewery for Narragansett beer in Rhode Island. The speaker shares that the brewery had not been in operation for around 50 years before the endeavor. They highlight the significant growth in revenue, from $87,000 to approximately $15 million. The speaker also emphasizes the importance of gaining real-life experience in a company to understand the challenges and value creation in business.
The role of writing and capital allocation
The podcast delves into the speaker's writing process and its role in investment decisions. They emphasize the power of writing down thoughts and clarifying investment perspectives. Additionally, the discussion touches on the challenges of capital allocation, including the pressures to chase returns and the importance of non-financial perspectives in investment committees. The speaker also reflects on their experience in managing money with their spouse and the unique dynamics and challenges that come with it.
My first guest on Capital Allocators is Steve Galbraith, an investment manager, brilliant writer, engaging thinker and one of the most well-liked men on Wall Street. Steve’s career has touched every aspect of investment management – he has worked as a research analyst, portfolio manager, investment strategist, business leader, entrepreneur, and Board member at an endowment and a large family office.
After getting started as an equity and credit analyst, Steve was recruited by Morgan Stanley to succeed the legendary duo of Barton Biggs and Byron Wien as Chief Investment Strategist. He left a few years later to try his hand in the hedge fund world, and today he manages his own family office in true family style – as you’ll hear later in the show.
We discuss Steve's journey, incorporating his broad insights in the investing world alongside colorful anecdotes of market inefficiencies in European football, college sports gambling, local breweries, and Charter Schools.