It all started with a handbag and some buttons. Twenty years ago I sat in the year end accounts review meeting of a company in Cheetham Hill that made handbags. I listened to how well the business had performed and what their plans were for the future. For a number of years I prepared accounts for a button factory near Strangeways and watched as the owner moulded his son to take over the business. I loved being in these meetings listening to the owners plans, how they had dealt with the various challenges they faced that year and planning for what was to come. I decided that this was the path for me – I wanted to be in a business as a part of it making changes, influencing decisions – I didn’t want to be on the outside looking in.

Fast forward 20 years and I’ve had the good luck to work across a variety of industries from printing to professional services. I’ve taken some tough roles where cash flow was so tight some weeks we only secured the cash to pay the weekly wages with a day to spare and others where we needed to resource quickly to meet rising demand. I’ve seen both the challenges and demands on a business under threat from recession and the equally cash consuming challenges of a growing business.

In all these roles from revenue analyst to Finance Director and many in between it’s the people who have made my job so enjoyable. I’ve loved the range of people I’ve looked after and worked with from contact centre managers, Printing floor Manager, Sales Directors and equity partners in small accountancy practices and international law firms. The challenge is understanding their level of financial knowledge and interest in the figures, the impact on them and how I can be of most help. The enjoyable part is rising to that challenge, building a relationship and helping them to improve their financial performance.

So now after almost eight years in my last role I realised I yearned for that variety again. I’ve jumped from corporate life in to being in control of my own destiny and look forward to working with different clients across different industries to help mould their financial strategy. On a recent course after an icebreaker my fellow delegate summed me up pretty well as

Helen- she works in finance and helps businesses understand where they want to get to and helps them to get there

With the experience I’ve gained over the last 21 years of working I know I can help businesses at a level that means they see me as part of their management team. I can’t wait to get started and one of the best parts is I get to do it alongside my husband who has built up his own accountancy practice over the last seven years.

So that’s me part-owner of a family business and eager to get out there and help fellow business owners be the best they can be. If this inspires you to think about what you want to do with your business then give me a call and we can meet up for a cuppa and a chat.