Leaders Insight - with Steve Hammell, Experienced

Celebrating International Day of Accounting with David Cameron, Vice President of the LCASS

International Day of Accounting is an annual celebration to commemorate the publication of Luca Pacioli's book on double-entry bookkeeping in 1494 which is the bedrock of modern day accounting. In the modern day, International Day of Accounting is about the appreciation of the crucial work Accountants do and the recognition of their importance for business longevity and success. This year, we caught up with David Cameron of EY's Restructuring Team and Vice Presidentof the Leeds Chartered Accountants Student Society (LCASS) to gather his advice for those in the early days of their accounting career and insights about all things ACA.Starting a Career in Accounting 1.What advice would you give to someone just starting their career in accounting?I would say the sooner you realise that all of the exams require a fair amount of work and can’t be blagged (no matter how easy you found A-levels or university), the better. ACA is tough but I think it is certainly passable for most people, as long as you put the work in. The next big piece of advice I would give is if you go into the initial mundane tasks, when you first start, with a positive can-do attitude, it goes such a long way. The people who go into tasks with that outlook often find they move onto much more interesting tasks, quickly. Finally, the last tip I’d give to anyone starting out in accountancy is start building your network straight away, not only will it benefit your career in the end when everyone climbs the ranks together, it is even more beneficial from a social point of view at the junior levels. People you meet at networking events will become your friends and just enhance your overall experience when you are starting out. 2.How can recent graduates make themselves stand out to potential employers?It sounds cliché but I think showing your personality in an interview and just being yourself is something people feel as though they shouldn’t do. I really believe that that’s by far the easiest way to stand out. The majority of applicants will also have a great CV, the way you will stand out is by the employer thinking that they will enjoy working with you every day. Picking an ACA Specialism 3.Can you share some insights on the different specialisms available whilst studying ACA?Audit and Assurance:Examining financial statements and processes to verify accuracy and provide confidence to stakeholders through regulatory compliance. Tax:Advice on tax planning, compliance or strategy, dependent on what department of tax you’re in. Transactions:This could be a role in Mergers & Acquisitions/Corporate Finance, Transaction Due Diligence or Restructuring. 4.How did you decide on your own specialism, and what influenced your choice?I work within the Restructuring service line and absolutely love it. I’d always had a big interest in how businesses work operationally, and Restructuring allows me to assist businesses through times of distress with the hope that we can help to provide a solution to save/improve the business. Being in the service line I am in, it has allowed me to think outside the box and use problem solving at work as there is never the same solution for each business in a time of crisis, with solutions ranging from running an accelerated sale process of the business to possibly refinancing its existing debt. What the ACA Has to Offer5.What are the key benefits of pursuing the ACA qualification?First and foremost, the comprehensive skillset you acquire through completion of the ACA qualification shouldn’t be overlooked as it allows you to apply knowledge you have learnt from topics/exams usually unrelated to your usual job role to situations where it is required or even personal situations. I believe that the practical work experience you gain (at least 450 days of practical work experience) whilst completing your ACA enables you to improve your technical skills at a far quicker rate as you are utilising knowledge you have learnt at work on a daily basis, to better your understanding of the technical aspects, something which you don’t get to do at university or school. I would say the largest benefit is realistically the career flexibility and opportunities it allows you to have access to. As mentioned above, there are so many different avenues that you can go down through having an ACA qualification. If you don’t like one role, you can quite easily try something different. 6.How does the ACA prepare accountants for the challenges both inside and outside of the profession?As touched on above, the comprehensive knowledge gained from an ACA qualification is fantastic and can be applied to so many different scenarios outside of an accountancy role, such as personal tax planning or even the strong financial acumen gained to assist with running your own business. ACA also of course reiterates the importance of ethical behaviour and integrity throughout your studying period which helps instil such traits into students. Learnings from this will help students make correct decisions at work or even in their own personal life when faced with difficult choices. Personal Journey into Accountancy 7.Can you tell us about your journey into accountancy and what inspired you to choose this career?I joined the EY Leeds Restructuring team back in 2020 via the school leaver programme. I probably got unlucky with the year I joined given we were in the midst of the pandemic, however, what I was certain of even back then was no matter what, I still just wanted to get into work rather than continue full time education. I was keen on the potential qualifications I would come out of university with; however, I knew that I had always much preferred working throughout school than the education side of things. I was drawn to the Restructuring apprenticeship due to the element of problem solving involved and the opportunity to leverage commercial skills. Admittedly, I wasn’t overjoyed about the prospect of 15 ACA exams, however, I knew the end goal was worth it and provided some incentive. Four years later and I have completed my ACA and my apprenticeship. I’d recommend this path to many, for the experience and level of qualification I’ve been able to obtain by such a young age, coupled with the opportunity to meet so many people that will be mates for life. 8.Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently in your career path?Nothing I would change that’s in my control. It would’ve been ideal to have joined at a time outside of the pandemic as it did effect the social side of things for the first year or so. To find out more about the ACA click here.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 TODAYand let's chart your career path together.

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The latest instalment of our “Leaders Insight” series is with Steve Hammell, experienced CFO in Industrials & Technology markets. In an insightful interview conducted by Michael Ball, Partner at The CFO Partnership, Steve shares his journey, the strategic initiatives he’s spearheading, and his vision for the future of finance.

Steve Hammell brings a wealth of experience and a unique perspective to his role at Pressure Technologies. With a career spanning over two decades in various financial leadership positions, Steve has navigated through numerous economic cycles and industry shifts. His expertise in mergers and acquisitions, financial strategy, risk management, and operational efficiency has been instrumental in driving the company’s growth and resilience.

Join us as we delve into Steve’s experiences, explore the evolving responsibilities of a CFO, and uncover what defines successful financial leadership in today’s environment.

What are both the best and the most challenging aspects of being the CFO of a fast paced, listed business?

Best aspects;

Supportive shareholders with capital to inject into the business, including the ability to provide innovative financing instruments (e.g. convertibles, quasi debt-equity instruments)
High quality Boards with NEDs who bring in-depth experience and a steady hand.
The public profile helps to attract and recruit high quality candidates and offer incentive structures not available in private companies.

Challenging aspects;

Everything plays out in the public domain, so the interplay of strategic projects and business performance need to be carefully handled.
Short-term share price movements can become a barometer of success rather than progress against strategic objectives and long-term improvements to the business.
Regulatory burdens are heavy and the costs of being listed can be prohibitive for any plc with revenue < £30m.

What are your opinions about the relationship between a CFO and CEO? What is critically important in building a successful partnership and providing the right support to the CEO?

CEO and CFO must have each other’s back and provide a united front with all stakeholders, especially the Board, shareholders and employees.
They should complement one another in terms of skills/expertise, leadership style and teamwork.
Each needs to have strong leadership characteristics and deliver on their own responsibilities aligned to common strategic objectives.
CFO needs to be the financial authority in the company and have command of the numbers, with the ability to simplify complex areas and deliver concise analysis for the CEO to use commercially.
CFO should recognise that being CEO can be a lonely place with responsibility for almost every facet of the organisation. The CFO should be a strategic sounding- board and challenge the CEO regularly as an outspoken partner.

What new key skills or attributes do you think the next generation of CFO’s are going to need to develop?

Technology;

Cyber security is becoming a core competence and leadership responsibility of the CFO; ability to develop the cyber defence strategy of the company and work with internal and external resources to provide a robust operating framework and a response capability if the business is attacked.
Ability to lead and deliver ERP and data analytics projects as Board sponsor.
Ability to harness Artificial Intelligence and automation to deliver value to the business; in manufacturing, this translates to delivering full integration of manufacturing and financial data to drive operational improvement.

Procurement;

Supply chain integrity, performance and reliability has become a significant issue post-pandemic.
CFOs need to be able to develop and lead high performance procurement functions to serve the business and manage operational and financial risk.

People;

The world of work has changed in the last 5 years with many competing pressures emerging. CFOs need to develop a core set of values to guide their recruitment decisions.
CFOs need to develop high performance cultures by harnessing a broad range of skills across the increasingly integrated functions of finance, IT and procurement to deliver first class support to the business.
CFOs should focus on big-picture priorities and determine what gets done, not how it gets done; CFOs should therefore prefer to empower their teams and encourage collaborative decision-making.

You have worked in some challenging turnaround environments in your career. What specifically are the most essential skills and personality traits that a finance leader needs to be able to steer a business through a turnaround project?

Resourcefulness – CFOs must be able to draw on a broad array of skills and a network of dedicated advisors and funders to find their way through complex situations.
Resilience and being strong-willed – CFOs must be acutely risk aware but be able to carry on regardless in a dark, uncertain and ambiguous situation where the route to success is not clear and the odds may be stacked against you; CFO’s need a plan B if things go wrong.
Change management – turnarounds involve significant change for organisations and create new priorities, pressures and working relationships; CFO is normally in the eye of this storm.

Working patterns and individual priorities have never been as much at the forefront of working life as they are for people now. Is it possible to maintain a reasonable work life balance at C-suite or do you have to accept that there will be personal sacrifices in order to succeed at that level?

C-suite responsibilities are time consuming, and you are usually dependent on the performance of others, which requires flexibility and ability to handle time pressure.
However, by organising the activities of your internal and external teams, space can be created for your personal life, albeit at certain times the job has to come first.

You come from an advisory background yourself. How important is it to put time and effort into building and maintaining a network of trusted advisors that you can go to time and again?

Developing long-term relationships of trust with CF advisors, lawyers, diligence providers, tax advisors and a range of debt and equity funders is critically important and enables a CFO to deploy the full suite of skills and expertise required.
As a CFO, the businesses I have worked for have been employing not only myself but my entire network (whether they realised it or not!)

What is the one single best piece of advice you were given early in your career that still holds true today?

Frame your career and skills in terms of the market you operate in and develop the flexibility to deploy those skills in new ways.
For myself, I have served the Yorkshire M&A market for over 25 years in diverse roles including CF advisor, corporate banker and most recently CFO and have been able to re-invent myself a number of times using a core set of skills and relationships.
Looking forward, I have ambitions to move into non-executive roles and expect the flexibility I have developed over the years to serve me well again.

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.