My name is Jonathan Delport, and I recently graduated as a Mechanical Engineer from the University of Johannesburg at the end of 2018. My academic career taught me many things, but above all it taught me that it’s not about being the smartest in the room - it’s about surrounding yourself with the smartest people in the room. My dissertations and designs allowed me to sharpen my problem solving abilities, but the times I learnt the most were during the most difficult group projects. These difficulties taught me how to synthesise multiple, often conflicting viewpoints, and ultimately innovate more than I ever could have on my own. Moreover, my work experience makes me an excellent candidate for the associate position on offer, as I have experience in different fields which forced me to look outside the analytical field of engineering and connect more with people. As an illustration, my time as a Pure Mathematics tutor at university was invaluable for my personal growth. While I myself understand mathematics very well, I would never have learnt as much as I did about how people perceive different problems, had it not been for my 3 years of continual problem solving. I believe that most people will often come in with what they think is a problem, but they might not be able to see further than the fog they find themselves in, and that is where a skilled teacher is so valuable. It is not in solving their problem, but in inspiring confidence in the person to see past the immediacy of their problem and look further into how to break apart a complex situation and ultimately understand it. Furthermore, I was fortunate enough to spend a month working in a data center for First National Bank in my time as a student. In my time there, I was exposed to the work environment of the finance sector. My greatest takeaway from that experience was the diversity of people that I met. Employees, all from different industries, sharing ideas and innovating, is why I believe that finance experiences such high levels of innovation – it is this diversity that breeds creativity and ultimately ideas that no one group could ever have thought of on their own. I currently hold the position of Mechanical Engineer and Operations Manager at Eco Energy Trading in Germiston, Johannesburg. In my short time at this company, I have increased production and decreased downtime considerable amounts. I believe that ultimately if you are able to fundamentally understand a system or process, then it is possible to reduce the input variables to only a few levers which you can then adjust to optimise the process. As an engineer, this skill of being able to understand the fundamental variables in any process is what makes us valuable to businesses no matter the industry. However, I must say that the greatest learning I have done is in my own self-education. I have always had a passion for finance, more prevalently investing. My father has been a real estate investor all his life, and it inspired me to pursue my own investments. My investment philosophy is simple – building long-term wealth takes time, so understand your investment and know what it costs you. To paraphrase Warren Buffet, someone is sitting in the shade today because someone else decided to plant a tree a long time ago. As such, I have no notion of getting rich quickly or trying to time the market, because ultimately the greatest wealth is built simply on understanding your investments very well and then holding them as long as the fundamentals remain true. Thus I believe that I have both the hard skills and emotional intelligence to truly add a new dynamic to your team. I am an excellent orator and I have no problem with breaking down complex topics into more understandable segments for people of all levels. I do pride myself in maintaining strong personal and professional relationships and enjoy meeting and engaging with new people. I am highly organised and approach every problem I am faced with an open mind.