Plan your goals, and plan to win

When it comes to roadblocks, Carmel Mortell is a bulldozer. A low socio-economic background when growing up as the youngest of five siblings did not prevent her being the first is her family to get a degree. In her early 30‘s she had her first investment property, followed by a partnership in international accounting firm KPMG, where she is now Victorian Chairman. That’s just a few of her accomplishments.

Carmel is also a keen advocate of equality, and is a director of UN Women Australia, Women Corporate Directors, and a founding member of the 30% Club in Australia – which advocates for women in decision making positions. She is also a member of the Risk and Audit Committee of Melbourne Girls Grammar School.

Obviously, time is a precious commodity for Carmel, but she still manages to look after the family investments.

She says, “I don’t shift investments around, I look to long term investments, which suits what I am trying to achieve, but also has the added benefit of being easy to manage and does not require too much time.

While Carmel receives a lot of good intentioned advice, particularly around shares, much of it is like water on a ducks back. As a KPMG partner, Carmel faces a lot of restrictions on what companies she can invest in, so as to avoid conflicts of interest. It’s the same with investing offshore, and despite having worked in the United States and United Kingdom, Carmel’s portfolio of investments is domestically positioned.

And it is all long term: “For me, investing is putting your excess savings to work over an extended period to maximise your returns while minimising risk. I don’t have short term profit goals,” she says.

With a portfolio comprised of shares, property, superannuation and fixed income, Carmel has a diversified set of assets, and given the level of volatility in recent years has also been an investor in hybrids - which is a security that combines elements of debt securities (typically bonds) and equity securities (typically shares).

“Because I invest long term I tend to ride-out periods of turbulence, although in very rough times I do get a bit more directed on asset allocation, says Carmel. 

Carmel’s best advice for an investor is a classic, and it has become a classic because those that ignore it can get into significant difficulties: “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”

She also encourages people to take an interest in share and fixed income markets so they build their education and can make better investment decisions. Another important aspect, she says, is to understand what type of investor you are and the risk you are prepared to accept. “We all invest to make money, but your goals (like retirement) have to be considered, and so does the possibility that you may lose money – are you prepared for that?”

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