<B>A career with ?the world?s local bank? </B>

At 17, he spotted a prominent advertisement in a UK careers magazine, ?Travel East Young Man?. Without hesitation he applied for a job on HSBC foreign staff. Today Phillip Dawe is the HSBC CEO in Mauritius.

Phillip joined HSBC in London in 1976. He was then posted to Hamburg at the age of 19 and travelled out to Singapore a year later. He has been based overseas permanently since that time, living and working for HSBC in nine different countries, mainly in the Asia Pacific and the Middle East.

?HSBC is a remarkably successful, progressive and disciplined organization. It is also a very good employer. I am fortunate to be surrounded by an excellent team in Mauritius whose work was rewarded in 2005 when HSBC was awarded the Bank of the Year Award by the influential ?Banker? magazine.?

However, Phillip admits there is plenty of work still to be done. In fact, he is now busy with his team preparing to establish a new Mauritian incorporated bank to capitalize on the full potential of HSBC?s successful offshore business. He expects the bank to open later this year to coincide with HSBC?s 90th anniversary.

Phillip also has a number of other responsibilities. He says his role over the past year as Chairman of the Mauritius Bankers Association has been a particularly interesting and rewarding experience. He has also enjoyed supporting various community activities, either in his capacity as CEO, HSBC, or as member of ?the Circle?, a group of Mauritian and expatriate businessmen who meet on a monthly basis.

Phillip lives with his wife, Caroline. He says how lucky he was to meet her in Hong Kong 20 years ago. They have two sons, Christopher and William, who are 11 and 10 years old. Both sons, he says, have seen a lot of the world. In fact his elder son, Christopher, had, by the age of nine, attended school in five different countries including Alexandra House School in Floreal, where both his sons spent two very happy years. Phillip also has plenty of other things to say about his family and the happy times they have spent on the island.

?As a family, we?ve enjoyed all the good things that come with life on the island; a lovely home in Floreal, an abundance of fresh air, exceptional hotels, beaches and countryside and the unique mix of cultures, which makes Mauritius so special. We tend to spend weekends relaxing on one or more of the many beautiful beaches around the island, swimming, playing the odd game of tennis, and walking our dog, ?Peanut?, who, shortly after our arrival, invited herself into our home while still a puppy.?

Phillip was born in London in 1958. He then went to a series of private schools. He did his secondary education in a well-known public school called Charterhouse. His two sons are also now in boarding school in the UK, which is why he and Caroline regularly visit England.

Phillip says he will miss Mauritius and, in particular, all its interesting and friendly people when his four-year posting comes to an end in six months? time. Caroline and he then plan to move to Guernsey in the Channel Islands.

?Guernsey is much smaller and colder than Mauritius but it has its own particular charms and has the benefit of a well-established offshore financial services industry. We also have our family home in Guernsey, with views over the French coast. This will no doubt serve to remind me that I have still to master the French language. Shame on me!?