His life has taken a few twists and turns, but Ian Couper finally found his vocation in business development.
In his latest posting, at the helm of Energy North, previously known as North Scotland Industries Group, he has helped to boost membership from 26 to nearly 160 over five years.
However, as skill shortages loom in the oil and gas and renewable-energysectors, he says there is still plenty more work to do.
With a career that has seen him work in quantity surveying, insurance sales, scaffolding and business development, Mr Couper is undaunted at the task ahead.
It is a long way from touring the west coast in the 1970s and 1980s playing acoustic guitar, banjo and mandolin with his band.
He said: “It was called Home Brew, which lets you know how serious we were. It was really just a hobby with three of us, just for the fun of it, playing everything from Scottish folk to pop.”
Music and songwriting is still a hobby Mr Couper keeps up, although perhaps not as much as he would like.
Born in Glasgow, his father was a glazier who moved the family to East Kilbride.
Mr Couper’s first job out of school, not being sure of what he wanted to do, was as an apprentice quantity surveyor.
After a year he switched to insurance; in the days when insurance salesmen were given a car and told to go on the road.
But insurance still wasn’t what he wanted to do.
He then did two seven-year stints at different scaffolding firms, with the second seeing him help set up and build an offshore division.
However, Mr Couper then wanted to run his own business and set up a consultancy.
He said: “It took me a while but I found my direction.
“It wasn’t just sales, it was helping firms develop in particular market. I had three I was helping at one time, in Aberdeen, the Cromarty Firth and another in the central belt.”
The Cromarty client, Cromarty Firth Port Authority, then encouraged Mr Couper to go for the top role at North Scotland Industries Group.
“At the time, it was very much an Invergordon group. Now we have far more geographic coverage and we make sure members in all the areas are equally represented and get equal benefits.”
The growth in members has gone from 26 companies to getting on to 160 now, above Mr Couper’s aim of reaching 150 by next year.
“We also wanted to raise the profile of the organisation in general,” he added.
Other achievements have been launching nine region-specific focus groups, annual awards, a members directory, a complete rebrand and launching trade events and delegations.
The organisation also launched a database, which lists renewables projects and their timeframes to help the supply chain.
With a team of three staff, plus a graduate joining them for six months, Energy North is as busy as ever; organising more events, conferences, delegations, lobbying and working on the skills agenda.
Mr Couper said there was still more work to do, adding: “We are very much going down the skills route, but also continuing to raise the profile of the group and there will be more in terms of lobbying, building up from feedback from members with issues they would like us to address. We’re also looking at more individual projects – this could be skills related or promoting a particular sector such as fabrication – that perhaps outside organisations or government would like us to develop.”
However, skills is the big issue.
Mr Couper said: “The big thing that is going to stop the projected growth in the north through the potential from renewables and oil and gas, which everyone is highlighting, is a possible shortfall in skilled labour to take it forward.”
It is a big work stream for Energy North and its CEO, who seems determined to make it happen.
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