BUSINESS JARGON THAT YOU ARE GUARANTEED TO FIND

Celebrating International Women's Day with Louise Shute

In celebration of International Women's Day, we continue our series by highlighting the inspiring journey of female leaders in finance who are making a significant impact throughout their career.In this installation we are thrilled to feature an interview with Louise Shute, the Chief Financial Officer of Hollybank Trust, a not-for-profit care provider dedicated to supporting individuals with complex needs. Since joining Hollybank Trust in 2019, Louise has been instrumental in driving financial sustainability, operational efficiency, and strategic growth. Her leadership goes beyond numbers, focusing on ensuring that every financial decision aligns with the organisation's mission to provide outstanding care. Join us as we dive into her career-defining moments, the traits that have contributed to her success, and her invaluable advice for the next generation of female finance leaders. 1.Please can you provide a summary of who you work for and your current role?I am the Chief Financial Officer of Hollybank Trust, a large not-for-profit care provider that delivers specialist care and education to individuals with complex needs. Since joining in 2019, I have been responsible for overseeing finance, IT, estates, and HR, ensuring financial sustainability, operational efficiency, and a strong, well-supported workforce. My role is not just about numbers—it’s about making sure every financial decision supports the organisation’s mission. I work closely with the executive team and trustees to strategically plan for the future, secure funding, and drive initiatives that enhance the care we provide. This includes leading acquisitions, driving digital transformation, and optimising resources to ensure we remain sustainable and continue to deliver outstanding care in an increasingly challenging financial landscape.2.What have been the one or two most defining moments in your career to date?A few pivotal moments have shaped my career and leadership style: Building a finance function from the ground up – One of my most challenging and rewarding experiences was setting up an entire finance team from scratch for a large care group. Bringing the finance function in-house, creating new systems, and ensuring financial stability in a complex organisation gave me invaluable leadership experience. Leading an acquisition – More recently, I successfully led the acquisition of a care business, ensuring financial due diligence, securing funding, and integrating the new business into our operations. This was a defining moment in navigating the complexities of growth while maintaining financial security. Driving digital transformation – Overseeing our transition to a nearly paperless organisation has been a major milestone. Introducing new financial, HR, and operational systems has made us more efficient and forward-thinking, ensuring we are well-equipped for the future. Beyond these, every year brings new challenges in the not-for-profit and care sector, where funding is tight, costs are rising, and financial sustainability is an ongoing battle. Navigating these challenges while keeping the organisation strong and adaptable is something I take pride in.3.What are the most important personal traits, values or characteristics that, being a female finance leader, has really helped to contribute to your success?Leadership isn’t just about making decisions—it’s about bringing people with you. The qualities that have shaped my success as a finance leader include: Compassion and genuine interest in people – I care about my colleagues and take the time to listen, understand their perspectives, and create a supportive environment. Decisiveness and resilience – In finance, tough decisions need to be made. I can balance strategy with reality, ensuring we remain financially stable while protecting the organisation’s core values. Strong communication – Finance can sometimes feel like a separate world, but I ensure complex financial insights are communicated clearly to teams, trustees, and stakeholders so they can make informed decisions. Positivity, even in difficult times – The financial landscape for care providers is constantly evolving, and it’s easy to focus on the challenges. I believe in staying solution-focused and adaptable, ensuring we embrace change rather than fear it. A positive outlook helps to motivate teams, find creative solutions, and maintain momentum even during difficult periods. I wouldn’t say I’ve faced direct challenges as a woman in finance, but finance leadership remains a male-dominated space, especially at board level. Many women struggle with imposter syndrome, and I think it’s crucial to own your expertise, trust your ability, and bring your unique strengths to the table.4.What is the one piece of advice that you would share with the next generation of female finance leaders as they look to build their careers?My biggest piece of advice is: do what makes you happy. You spend so much of your life at work—it’s essential to enjoy it. If you don’t, don’t be afraid to seek out something that challenges, excites, and fulfils you. Beyond that, a few key lessons I’ve learned: Be true to yourself. Work for organisations that align with your beliefs, morals, and values. Build a strong team. Surround yourself with capable, driven people—it will make all the difference. Keep learning. I haven’t had an official mentor, but I invest in seminars, courses, and networking to continuously grow. Finding a mentor or widening your professional network can be invaluable. Stay adaptable. Finance, technology, and the business landscape are evolving rapidly. Staying open to change and embracing new ways of working will set you apart. Above all, believe in yourself. Women often doubt their abilities more than men, but confidence comes from experience. Keep learning, keep leading, and don’t be afraid to step up and take your seat at the table.Louise’s journey is a testament to her power of resilience, compassion, and strategic vision in leadership. Her dedication to Hollybank Trust's mission and her ability to navigate the complexities of the not-for-profit sector have set a remarkable example for aspiring female finance leaders. Her advice to stay true to oneself, build strong teams, and continuously learn resonates deeply, reminding us all of the importance of passion and adaptability in our careers. We hope her story inspires and empowers the next generation of women to pursue their ambitions with confidence and determination. While women are making strides in leadership roles, a significant gender gap still exists. In 2024, 36% of new CFO hires in FTSE 100 companies were female, a notable increase from 2023 when only 14% of new hires were female [1]. Despite this progress, women hold only 25% of CFO positions in the FTSE 100 [2]. These statistics highlight the ongoing need for greater gender diversity and support for women in finance. Looking for your next career move in finance or accountancy? At Sharp Consultancy, our expertise lies in matching your potential with the perfect temporary, interim, or permanent position. With a well-established presence in Leeds and Sheffield, our seasoned team of consultants extends their services across Yorkshire and beyond. Don't wait for opportunity to knock, reach out to us TODAY and let's chart your career path together.

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Whether you consider these to be jargon or clichés, there are some phrases that are used in every workplace which we guarantee that almost everyone will find annoying! Saying that, we imagine that you – like us – are guilty having used, or do use, many of these yourselves! Here are our favourite – or should that be least favourite – overused terms.

Thinking outside the box

How many times have you used or heard this when referring to creative or innovative thinking? Using it probably demonstrates a lack of creativity, or innovation – or maybe both!

Close of play

Often abbreviated to COP to mean the end of the day however the non-specific timeframe can lead to confusion and potentially missed deadlines – just say the time you are working towards!

Low hanging fruit

A term that refers to an easy target that does not require much effort. Do you really want to indicate to your colleagues that you are choosing to take the easy option?

It’s on my radar

This is an oldie – but not a goodie! Meaning that you are aware of something – but also that you haven’t quite got round to doing anything about it!

Let’s take this offline

How many times have you heard someone come out with this? Most likely to be used when someone feels a conversation is getting a little too heated or too close for comfort and attempts to change the subject!

Singing from the same hymn sheet

This is a very widely used phrase to try and cajole agreement and collective thinking. You will often hear this when someone is making an attempt to diffuse a disagreement or bring someone round to their way of thinking.

Blue sky thinking

Hands up, almost everyone is guilty of using this one! Whilst its intention is to be applauded – the creation of ideas that are free from the normal constraints – the reality is that such ideas are likely to be impractical to implement. Recognising the obstacles and developing feasible solutions is a far better use of one’s time.

Thought shower

The pressure of having to come up with many, many ideas (probably whilst using ‘blue sky thinking’) will more than likely bring you out in a cold sweat!

Going on a journey

This one ranks quite highly on our list of corporate bugbears. Again, its intention is correct – people do need to be brought along and be heading in the same direction – but the word ‘journey’ has us conjuring images of people making a trek to reach the South Pole!

Win-win situation

This particular nugget is most likely to be used by those attempting to save face when they’ve had to relent more than they would have ideally liked to in order to resolve a situation.

There’s no ‘I’ in team

This is a tricky one – and is generally used to address those who are perceived to not be pulling their weight or focussing upon their own interests. Being a good team player is an essential characteristic of almost every employee – we agree with the sentiment, but dislike the phrase!

Touch base

The reason why this one makes the list is because it is actually just as easy to say what the phrase itself means! Used when you want to catch up with someone about a particular matter, you can score extra annoyance points by inviting someone to ‘touch base offline’.

Sharp Consultancy specialises in the recruitment of temporary, interim and permanent finance professionals. With offices in Leeds and Sheffield our highly experienced team of consultants recruit for positions throughout Yorkshire and beyond. CONTACT US today to speak to a member of our team about your next career move.

BUSINESS JARGON THAT YOU ARE GUARANTEED TO FIND ANNOYING!