Listen: Ep51: Richard Attias on FII8 & Networking With Super VIPs

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Joe Cass   00:00:00

Hello, and welcome. My name is Joe Cass, Senior Director at S&P Global Ratings and the host and the creator of the FI15 Podcast. On this episode, we have Richard Attias, Founder and Chairman of Richard Attias & Associates and CEO of the FII Institute. So just a quick reminder that the views of the external guests are their views alone, and they do not represent the views of S&P Global Ratings. Richard, thank you so much for joining us today.

Richard Attias   00:00:24

Thank you for having me, Joe.

Joe Cass   00:00:26

So I thought we might start with an overview of the FII Institute. Could you share what the FII stands for, its main objectives, the kind of events it hosts and also how you became involved as CEO?

Richard Attias   00:00:42

The FII Institute is a not-for-profit foundation, and I would describe it as a new generation of such foundations. It was established almost five years ago in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The idea behind the FII Institute was to become a vehicle for multiple initiatives that would have a significant impact on humanity. The ambition is very high—when we talk about humanity, we are referring to billions of people and ways to help them lead better lives. Why did we set this ambition? Before the creation of the FII Institute, the Kingdom launched the FII, the Future Investment Initiative. This platform, a conference that started in 2017, quickly became one of the largest global conferences on investment. From its inception, it served as a gathering point for investors from across the world—north, south, east, and west. Over three days, participants explored where investments should flow in terms of geographies and sectors. This initiative was spearheaded by PIF, the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund. After the success of three consecutive editions of the FII conference, we concluded that it should become independent, owned by an autonomous entity both financially and in terms of governance. This would ensure the creation of a sustainable movement. This is how the FII Institute was born. We have a Board of Trustees chaired by the Governor of PIF, who was the initiator, but it also includes notable figures such as the former Prime Minister of Italy, Matteo Renzi; Peter Diamandis, the founder of XPRIZE; Noel Quinn, the former CEO of HSBC; and many others. I have the privilege of being one of the board members and was also asked to serve as CEO. In all humility, I was the driving force behind the FII conference itself, drawing on my 30-plus years of experience in creating international conferences around the world. As you may know, I served as the Executive Producer of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos for 15 years and also helped launch the Clinton Global Initiative, among others. What we do at the FII Institute extends beyond hosting and creating conferences. Every year in Riyadh, we host FII as a flagship event in October, attracting almost 4,000 to 5,000 CEOs alongside prominent public figures. We also hold an edition in Miami every February, focusing on AI and new technologies, reflecting Miami's current growth as a tech hub. Additionally, we have expanded to Latin America, hosting our first edition in Brazil a few weeks ago, and plan to continue expanding in Asia. The FII Institute is distinct as a foundation because it operates with two additional pillars beyond hosting events. One pillar is called “Think,” a lab of ideas. Every year, we publish indexes to challenge world leaders. For example, in the coming weeks, we will release the "Priority Compass," which identifies citizens' priorities globally. When we first launched the Priority Compass three years ago, many believed climate change was the top concern. However, after COVID, priorities shifted. The Priority Compass revealed that the number one concern was the cost of living, followed by healthcare, security, and immigration, with climate change ranking fifth. We also produce indexes focused on healthcare, analyzing how governments manage their healthcare systems, and on the future of work, examining how countries are addressing evolving employment trends. The second distinctive pillar is our “Do” tank, called “ACT.” We invest the financial contributions we receive from our 35 strategic partners—leading corporations such as HSBC, Aramco, Visa, and Reliance—into impactful initiatives and startups. This allows us to remain financially independent. Through our ACT department, we support startups that can make a difference in humanity’s key sectors: AI and robotics, healthcare, education, and sustainability. I apologize for the lengthy explanation, but I wanted to provide a comprehensive overview of what the FII Institute is about and the breadth of its activities.

Joe Cass   00:06:39

Fantastic. Thanks, Richard. Richard, can you talk a bit more about the upcoming FII conference in Riyadh, the flagship event, as you said. What can attendees expect? And what will be areas of focus be at the conference?

Richard Attias   00:06:53

For the past seven years, with this being the eighth edition, we have, in total humility, been shaping the path for investors. In 2017, the main topic was "The Big Shift." We understood that the shift between West and East, North and South, was happening. While it’s obvious now, at the time, people didn’t fully realize that it wouldn’t just be a trend, but a long-term, sustainable direction. The East was growing, emerging economies were booming in that part of the world, and the global South was beginning to assert itself more strongly. So, in 2017, we started helping investors and CEOs understand these trends. We’ve continued doing that every year since, even during the height of COVID. We were the only international conference to still take place in 2020 and 2021. This wasn’t because we were geniuses—not at all. It was because we have an amazing observatory team and are extremely well connected with global CEOs and world leaders. We understood that the world wasn’t entirely in danger or at risk. Instead, we chose to focus on the half-full glass, rather than the half-empty one. That’s why, at the time, the theme of FII was "The Neo Renaissance." We believed that in certain sectors, the world would emerge stronger, bigger, and more resilient. This led to significant investment in new health initiatives because COVID exposed how broken healthcare systems were. Looking ahead to 2024, which is just a few weeks away, we are sending a strong message: "Infinite Horizons." If you truly want to invest for good, for humanity, and with a new compass to guide you in the right direction, we are extremely optimistic. We see infinite horizons. Yes, many challenges exist today. Technology is booming, and people are understandably concerned about the new AI revolution—questions about ethics, job displacement, and the limits of AI abound. But we need to focus on the infinite possibilities AI offers in many sectors. We are also exploring renewable energy horizons and the new energy equation, driven by solar energy, wind energy, and hydrogen. There will be multiple conversations about energy, entertainment, sports, the future of industries, technology, AI, and the new Africa. Africa, with its 1+ billion people, must be included in the global economy. To address this, we are hosting a mini-summit on Africa to better understand the continent. Africa is not just one country; it’s 54 countries, each with its own specific challenges and opportunities. While corruption and governance issues remain, Africa is also a reservoir of natural resources. We need to explore ways to transform those resources into local jobs and help Africa become a new emerging market. We’ll also be discussing the future of ESG. At the FII Institute, we believe the current ESG framework is not inclusive enough. That’s why we’ve proposed ESG 2.0, which, if adopted, could unlock nearly $5 trillion of new investments in Asia alone. In addition, we’ll address broken supply chains, logistics, and the future of these sectors. We’ll delve into other areas like infrastructure, venture capital, asset management, real estate, and the future of retail, which is currently facing significant challenges. At FII, you’ll spend four days engaging in unexpected conversations that help you understand what is happening and what will happen across multiple sectors. This year, FII takes place just days before the U.S. election, making it an opportune moment to discuss what experts believe will be the economic and geopolitical consequences of the election results, which, as you know, are very tight.

Joe Cass   00:12:42

Richard, you mentioned it there. Can you go into a bit more detail about the FII Institute's partnership with PIF? How do you incorporate their objectives into your events? And what's really been your broader experience with working alongside them?

Richard Attias   00:12:59

PIF is the founding partner of the FII Institute, and it is one of the most important sovereign wealth funds in the world. Their agenda is to invest globally in multiple sectors to support the diversification of the economy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. At the FII Institute, we are strong believers in the fact that you will not improve any economy, create jobs, or build inclusive economies unless you encourage foreign direct investment and diversification of the economy, which, by the way, are two of the mandates of PIF. Our horizons and objectives are almost quite similar. We are extremely happy and proud to have the PIF entity on our side because they also have access to multiple international corporations. We are totally autonomous at the FII Institute in the way we build the program and in the way we recruit speakers; in terms of editorial and management, we are totally independent. The beauty is that our Chairman is also the Governor of PIF. When we meet every two or three months, he inspires us a lot with insights on the trends happening globally because, as the governor of a sovereign wealth fund, he knows very well what is happening in multiple sectors worldwide. This is why we always start our FII conferences with an amazing session, which has now become a benchmark for many conferences. We call it the "Board of Game Changers." This 90-minute opening session is a debate where we usually have people like Jamie Dimon from JPMorgan, Larry Fink from BlackRock, Stephen Schwarzman from Blackstone, Jane Fraser from Citi, and Yasir Al-Rumayyan, of course, Chairman of the Board. We also have many other big players from Asia, India, and Africa, such as Patrice Motsepe from Rainbow Capital in South Africa. For 90 minutes, we hear from them about their vision and where they see the main trends and challenges that we need to consider. This is also an illustration of what PIF brings to us because they are part of these conversations more than once a year. Working with PIF is great chemistry. We know each other very well because we started FII together almost eight years ago. They are not just a partner; they are friends, and we are extremely complementary. We use a lot of their expertise and experience to expand and also stay in touch with global CEOs who are working with PIF or partnering with PIF. Of course, the Governor of PIF has multiple mandates; he's also the Chairman of Aramco and a member of the board of multiple international corporations. This is a great plus for us, as it allows us to stay connected with the global economy.

Joe Cass   00:16:56

Perfect. Thanks, Richard. Richard, you mentioned then you work very closely with the governor of the PIF, his excellency Yasir Al-Rumayyan
 and he also serves as the Chairman on the FII Institute. I've seen him interview a few times, as you mentioned. What's it like working with the governor? And what kind of things have you learned from him?

Richard Attias   00:17:20

He's a very inspiring leader because he has the privilege of working closely with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, who is another visionary leader. It's amazing because, at the end of the day, FII was his idea. We are benefiting a lot from this leadership. His Excellency, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, is the one who taught me a few years ago the importance of data, and this was before all these trends with AI. It’s thanks to him and his vision that the FII Institute is becoming a data-driven organization. You will see at FII8 that almost all debates and conversations are supported by data. As a civil engineer, I know how important data is because I am a man of facts and figures. So, for me, it’s extremely stimulating and refreshing. He always raises the bar, so nothing is taken for granted. We are always trying to be more ambitious in what we do, and we share the same conviction: the key to success is content, content, content. We must always be obsessed with the quality of the content. It’s very stimulating, as I said, to work with His Excellency and to hear from him, because he's traveling so much, about the trends in Asia, China, Latin America, and Europe. He’s part of all these global conversations, which is very, very stimulating.

Joe Cass   00:19:26

Great. Richard, putting your hat on as Founder and Chairman of Richard Attias & Associates, in such a packed calendar for CEOs, for decision-makers, how do you go about creating an event that really stands out, something that attracts individuals? Essentially, how do you create this perfect event?

Richard Attias   00:19:48

Oh my God, this is a $1 billion question. But as you perfectly say, Joe, so many conferences exist in the world. The beauty of our conferences really is that we are obsessed with the quality of the content, as I just said. To be sure that you will have the right people, to be sure that you will be one of the top three choices of the conference to attend, the conference to come back to, the conference to support—these are definitely three parameters. Number one, content, content, content. The content has to be absolutely accurate. You should be extremely transparent, and the content needs to be supported by unexpected conversations. You need to put the right people on stage and not host conversations that you can watch on TV every day or read about in any newspaper. So unexpected conversations, the format itself of the conferences, this is one of our special, I would say, chemistries, which is extremely important. Then, to really attract global CEOs, it's not just about the quantity of sessions; it's about quality. We put a lot of effort into having our conferences very well organized, where you don’t lose time, where the logistics are perfect—even if perfection doesn't exist, at least excellence—where time is money for all these people. So it's extremely important to be sure that they will not lose time between sessions for logistics, accreditation, or anything related to their comfort. Also, what they like about our conferences, I think, is that they are extremely inclusive. The media, which are an extremely important part of our conferences because, thanks to the media, what is discussed is shared with everyone, and we produce a lot of content, so knowledge is shared. The media are always at the heart of my conferences. I never put the media on the side, like, "Oh, let's have a media center on the other side of the street." No, the media are literally in the center of my conference center. Why? Because I want the media to have access to everyone and everything. This year at FII, we have more than 40 media partners and more than 400 journalists, who will be part of our community. Last but not least, which is extremely important, is inclusion in terms of generations. You will see the old guard, the global CEOs who are in their seventies, and you will find some young entrepreneurs and start-ups who are in their twenties. This combination, this mix of people, is extremely refreshing, and both are extremely demanding when it comes to having access to the others. The old guard, as I say, is very interested in understanding the new generation. This is how you will even reinvent your own company—by understanding the new consumers, the trends in terms of technology, etc. The opposite is true for the young entrepreneurs—they want to learn lessons from the elders who developed great success and also potential investors in their start-ups or projects. So we're extremely inclusive. The demography of our conferences is unique. And the geographies—people from China, Japan, Korea, Africa, Europe, Latin America—we are probably, in total humanity, the most global conference in terms of citizenship and representation of what humanity is about. Last but not least, we invite a lot of NGOs because it's extremely important also to give a voice to the people who are on the ground, trying every day to have an impact by giving access to education, access to clean water. We are supporting many of these NGOs and foundations on the ground.

Joe Cass   00:24:34

Great. Thanks, Richard. Richard, prior to the FII Institute, you founded the New York Forum and you cofounded the Global Clinton Initiative. And as you said, for 13 years, you were the Executive Producer of the World Economic Forum in the Annual Meeting at Davos. Given this expertise, what tips would you give to anyone watching anyone listening who wants to improve or grow their own professional network?

Richard Attias   00:25:02

Networking is extremely important. Today, we are living in an era where we are spending too much time totally isolated with the type of devices, okay? We spend almost, I don't know how many hours on social media, on emails. We think we are connected. No, we are totally disconnected. The real connection is meeting people in person, looking into your eyes, and feeling the chemistry. This starts when you take the metro or the bus every morning—just say hi to the people around you. Just have empathy. Don't be just in your bubble. Forget your device for a few minutes. You need to be connected to real people. You can do that by going to a sports club where you practice sport and see real people with you. You become friends with some of them or, at least, you will learn about people. My advice: love people. As a civil engineer, I was supposed to build bridges. I decided not to go in that direction. I decided to build bridges between people to create platforms of dialogue to be sure that people will be connected. Trust me, I’m not trying to be a humanist, but it’s so refreshing to know who the people around you are. When I go to any city, the first thing I do is take a taxi, and I speak a lot with the taxi driver. I love taxi drivers because they are the pulse of any city, of any country. You learn a lot from them. So this is how you not only get knowledge, but also by talking to people. When you are in a restaurant, just try to connect for two minutes with the people next to you. And this is how you will build the network. And, of course, multiply the opportunity of networking with people. This is why conferences, the right conferences, are a great plus. When you attend these conferences, of course, it should not be a full-time job. You need to pick the right conferences that will help you to be connected to the business community, maybe the media, and specific communities to help your network grow, to guide you, and to inspire you. Don’t just be opportunistic and say, "Oh my God, how can I make more money?" No. Meeting people is not just about making money. It makes you richer inside, okay, which is extremely important. So this is a humble advice I will give to all the next young generations who are obsessed with TikTok, Meta, Facebook, etc. No, please, it’s good to be connected that way, but also be connected in the real traditional manner, which is in person. You need to be real, okay? This is extremely important.

Joe Cass   00:28:38

Great. And Richard, after decades of engaging with world leaders, CEOs, change makers, are there any shared characteristics or traits that stand out to you within that group?

Richard Attias   00:28:56

World leaders and CEO leaders have the range to achieve their goals and their ambitions. You cannot become a leader unless you have a vision, passion, and range. They all share this common denominator—that's point number one. Point number two, some leaders know how to be surrounded by the right people, and some make the mistake of not doing so. This is what distinguishes the winners from the losers. You need to have a team, and there is no way you can succeed as a leader unless you have a team. It’s extremely important to have a good team. So, I see this common denominator between some leaders based on their success or failure. Last but not least, I would say that they usually have another common denominator: they are very inspiring people. I will not mention any current leaders, but I will mention some leaders who have passed away and who truly are the definition of leadership and have something unique. Nelson Mandela—I had the privilege to meet him in Davos, and I will share with you a short anecdote. Two minutes before he was going on stage, he told me, "Oh, Richard, sorry, I have to go to the restroom." So we were obliged to walk for a few minutes because they were not so close by. I was walking with Nelson Mandela, an icon, and while he was doing what he had to do, he told me, "You know, Richard, the most important thing in the world is the youth." This was years ago, so he already understood after so many years in jail and becoming the President of South Africa that there is nothing we can do great in the world unless we include the youth, we hear from the youth, and we work with young people.

Joe Cass   00:31:39

Great. Thanks, Richard. So Richard, last question now. Over the course of your career, what's the best piece of advice you've been given and who gave it to you?

Richard Attias   00:31:57

I had the privilege to become a very young CEO at the age of 29. It was in Paris. I just left IBM, and we created with some friends, a computer leasing company. And the major shareholder decided after one year to appoint me as a global CEO of the company. And I was managing people who were all in their 40s and 50s. So it was a big challenge. It taught me two things. One day came, he told me, listen, Richard. Less is more. By trying to do everything, you will do everything bad. So just focus on your priorities, less is more. And he is absolutely right. We see so many people who are trying to achieve many things at the same time and then the day you don't achieve anything. So you need to be focus, focus, focus, extremely important. So this was my ex boss, the first boss I had. The second is an advice I got from my late father, who was always inspiring me on everything I do. I'm trying to share that with many of my staff, my colleagues, the kids, the grandkids, complicated to be adopted. I'm calling that the rule of the three H. Number one, humility. There is nothing you can achieve in the world if you don't have humility with you. You need to always be humble. Even if you become extremely successful, you need to be humble. Humility as a H number one. Humanism, H number two, you need to love people. You need to love people. You need to have a certain part of humanity with you to be sure that you carry empathy, you carry compassion, extremely important. Don't be selfish. And number three, always keep your sense of humor because you need to relativize everything. You need to keep your sense of humor. So with humanism, humanity and humor, you can achieve great things and you can enjoy life, which is the most important.

Joe Cass   00:34:27

Brilliant. Well, that was fantastic. Thank you so much, Richard, for your time today. And for everyone watching and everyone listening, see you next time on fixed income in 15.