Burton Albion: Pesch factor crucial for Rowett
And Rowett says the appointment of Paul Peschisolido as manager at the Pirelli was the deciding factor in joining the club himself.
"I've turned down a few other jobs for similar roles. One of them was Exeter City about two years ago and, obviously, now they've gone on to do wonderful things," said Rowett.
The former Derby County, Everton and Charlton Athletic defender explained how the Peschisolido factor made Burton the ideal move for him.
"I think for any other manager it would not have been right for me," he said.
"Fortunately, Paul rang me and asked if I would be interested in coming alongside him.
"I knew him before and we had a good relationship. He's new and young and we both think in the same way, so it's a really exciting opportunity."
And Peschisolido admitted he already had Rowett in mind for the assistant role when he applied for the Burton job.
The pair had previously spent time together at Derby County when Rowett was in charge of the youth academy.
"Gary stuck out a million miles," said Peschisolido.
"You have to have people around you can trust, people who you know and people who have the same view on how the game should be played.
"I think Gary is extremely professional, he has an excellent knowledge of the game and he's a fantastic coach, which is essential. He's a genuine fellow and a nice guy who I trust. He ticks all the boxes."
Rowett ended his playing career with Burton Albion and sees his familiarity with the club as an advantage.
"I think it helps with the blend that I know the players and what they've achieved," he said.
"I think it also helps that Paul hasn't been part of it before. He can judge the players on exactly what he sees.
"It's a good blend. You have the closeness to the players that I've got and a manager who can take a step away and be more objective."
Rowett had applied for the manager's role at Burton himself.
"It was something I wanted to do, with my links to the club, but I can understand how my lack of experience would have counted against me.
"When I originally applied for the manager's job I sent a document to the chairman and one of the pages was about the 'young manager.'
"Last season we saw a lot of success from the likes of Paul Tisdale at Exeter and Andy Scott at Brentford.
"We're young – and I think we're passionate. We'll work harder than most people who've been around the game for years because we can't fail. You only get one chance at this and then you're out on your backside."
Rowett now sees his future in a management team alongside Peschisolido – and, for the immediate future at least, with the Brewers.
"I said when we both signed there were absolutely no plans for me to look for another manager's role," said Rowett.
"The way I'm viewing it is we're in this together. The pair of us are a management team. Paul will obviously make the decisions and the buck will stop with him but I see myself as responsible in that way.
"Who knows what is down the line five years from now. But there are certainly no plans to do anything different."
Rowett's views are shared by Peschisolido: "By all means, we want to take this club on together," said the former Derby County striker.
"When you achieve success you grow together and you learn together. We've got a long-term plan and long-term goals. The chairman has been wonderful and we feel we're going in the right direction."
Peschisolido expanded on the working relationship the duo first forged at Derby.
"Gary was running the youth team and we struck up a good relationship," he said.
"One year I was sent to work with the juniors and we would speak regularly. I've always admired his work on the training ground and the other pros thought he was fantastic.
"Now we work in close proximity. What I would like is someone who is not just going to say, 'yes gaffer, yes boss.' You need someone there who has his own opinions. If he thinks there is a player who should be playing over somebody else, I would expect him to pull me up on it."
The transition into a full-time role is in itself a step up for Rowett, in management terms.
"Before I was doing a bit for England Under-16s and some coaching as well as media work.
"It amounted to about three or four days a week. Now I've found there is a huge amount of work to be done, although Paul's doing about three times more than me. I don't know how he's getting any sleep!
"Paul's trying to negotiate with a lot of players and agents. I'm trying to take a lot of other stuff away.
"I've put a framework of training in place and I've said to Paul, he can now go and change that as he wants.
"We're working hand in hand and I'm trying to take all the jobs he doesn't need to be doing."
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