From Pittodrie to Hampden Park via the Harvard Business School
● Ex-aberdeen striker turned accountant Malcolm Kpedekpo joins the SFA board
Fo r me r A b e r d e e n f o r wa r d Malcolm Kpedekpo is aiming to use his experience from the worlds of fo otball and business to help shape the direct i o n o f t h e n a t i o n a l g a m e after he joined the Scottish FA board as an independent nonexecutive director.
Kpedekpo, whose appointment was ratified at last week’s board meeting, is a chartered accountant with global experience in corp orate finance and private e q ui t y across a r a n g e o f s e c t o r s , i n c l u d i n g media and technology. Most recently, the 42-year old was also a board director of Scottish Golf.
H a v i n g j o i n e d A b e r d e e n as a schoolboy, he made his debut in 1995 at the age of 18 and made 11 first-team appearances while completing a university degree in Management and Accountancy. His studies took him to Aberdeen University and he subsequently spent t i m e a t H a r v a r d B u s i n e s s School, where he focused on the international private equity and venture capital market.
He left Pittodrie – and gave up professional football – to t a ke u p a r o l e wi t h K P MG, firstly in Aberdeen and latterly in Australia, returning to S cotland to work in the venture capital arm of the Bank of Scotland before leaving to set up a private equity firm alongside two of his colleagues.
Kpedekpo said: “I am excite d b y t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o h e l p s h a p e t h e d i r e c t i o n o f t h e n a t i o n a l g a m e a n d , a s s o m e o n e w h o h a s p l a y e d boys club, junior football and p r o f e s s i o n a l f o o t b a l l , l o o k forward to sharing my experiences from the dressing room and the boardroom. The football industr y has been transformed globally in the past decade, with investment and innovation through technology. I believe Scottish football’s history gives us a rich platform o n whi c h to b u i l d a b r i g h ter future, by complementing that heritage with deliver y of what fans want and, indeed, expect from modern sport and entertainment organisations in the digital age.
“My focus will be to advise, c h a l l e n g e a n d s u p p o r t t h e effor ts of the S cottish FA to grow and govern the game in Scotland.”
S cottish FA chief executive Ian Maxwell said: “On behalf o f t h e S c o t t i s h FA , I wo u l d like to welcome Malcolm on to the board. We were hugely impressed by him throughout the selection process: he has a unique, first-hand experience of both grassroots football and the development pathway to the professional game, combined with an enviable business pedigree and recent experience with Scottish Golf.
“W h i l e w e n e v e r p l a y e d against each other on the pitch during our respective playing careers, I’m looking for ward to having Malcolm on our side as we drive the S cottish FA forward.”