Virtual Finance Director - Profiles

A part time Finance Director or Virtual Finance Director provides you with years of sharp end financial and management experience, at a fraction of the cost of employing a full time person. Smaller businesses can not afford a full time Finance Director, and would not have sufficient work to keep him or her properly occupied and efficient. Our part time Finance Directors or Accountant resource could be your answer you are looking for!

The benefits are:

• Fully Qualified Accountants
• Years of commercial experience
• No recruitment costs or salary oncosts
• a scalable solution - we grow with you

All our freelance Finance Directors are qualified and have had many years of commercial experience in business working alongside MDs, chief executives and Chairmen.   Click on a name to view their profile:

James Shand BSc FCA

Alastair Ingram ACMA

Mark Tracey CA
Chris FitzGerald ACA BSc (Econ)

Chris Gardener BSc ACA

Malcolm Warden FCMA

Colin Black BSc FCA FInstD

Pauline Cakebread FCMA

Anne Tutt BSc(Econ) FCA

Michael Rae ACA
Peter Mcdonald FCCA

Management Accountants

James Shand BSc FCA CF - Director

vfdnet is led by James Shand, a qualified Chartered Accountant with fifteen years of commercial experience, who has worked with entrepreneurial SME owners and managers as Finance Director for the last nine years, enabling them to achieve successful growth.

James has managed rapid growth situations, such as when he was Finance Director of the water cooler business Well Well Well where the business grew from £3m to £30m turnover in 3 years, involving 4 acquisitions and raising £6m in venture capital funding. James also gained invaluable commercial experience in the automotive engineering sector, and has significant technology and pharmaceuticals experience. In February 2008 James was awarded the Corporate Finance Qualification by the ICAEW in recognition of his recent achievements in negotiating and completing deals.

Outside of work, James is a great believer in the old adage that 'if the body is fit, so is the mind'. Having proved his fitness and stamina in the London Marathon, he has moved on to the less physical, but perhaps more mind-challenging, pursuit of fly-fishing. When he is not taxiing children around he likes to enjoy tennis, watching rugby, gardening and even singing.

Associates

Alastair Ingram ACMA

Alastair is a Chartered Management Accountant with twenty year's blue chip experience in financial and commercial leadership roles. His experience covers manufacturing, FMCG and Retail with companies such as WH Smith, Helene Curtis and Black & Decker. As FD of Helene Curtis UK, Alastair was responsible for Finance and IT, and he saw the business through start up to £25m turnover 5 years later. Alastair provides his experience and commercial strengths to clients, often refocusing their drive for revenue streams and delivering strong improvements to bottom line profitability. Alastair is also co-owner of a recently launched new clothing brand and Deputy Chair of Governors for his local primary school. He is married with three children and relaxes keeping fit.

Mark Tracey CA

Mark, is a New Zealand qualified Chartered Accountant, with over 14 years post qualification experience. He has operated at Finance Director level for over 6 years, prior to working as a virtual Finance Director. Mark has extensive software and high tech experience, having worked for several software and service businesses and also a hardware distributor. Mark has good experience of working with subsidiaries of US and Canadian companies and establishing European branch offices. In addition, having worked in both in venture capital and high net worth individual backed businesses, Mark has extensive investor relation skills. Mark is a keen skier and sportsman as is married with three children.

Chris FitzGerald ACA BSc (Econ)

Chris is a big five Chartered Accountant and has honed his management accounting and systems skills during 16 years as a Finance Director within SME business. He has been successful in several different industries from high volume/low value to low volume/high value manufacturing, project engineering, retail, logistics and even financial services. He has operated in both turnaround and high growth scenarios and relishes the change culture so much that he decided to become a virtual FD. Using the formula of gaining financial control and improving efficiency through procedure and systems re-engineering Chris has changed finance departments from processing centres into value adding teams that have contributed significantly to the growth of their businesses. It is this efficiency he considers that virtual FDs can bring to growing companies that have built their finance teams from the bottom up.

His project work has included exit strategies, turnarounds, installation and repair of integrated business systems with minimal cost, fundamental restructuring of organisations and investor liaison. His board responsibilities have included IT, Human Resources, Commercial Review and Supply Chain as well as Finance and Administration. Outside of work Chris is a big sports fan and heavily involved in community matters. He loves living in the countryside with the relaxation that brings.

Chris Gardener BSc ACA

Chris has more than 15 years experience in business growth development, including senior positions in multi-national companies. He's led the financial management of businesses, with budgets of £40 million and 1200 staff as well as working with many smaller companies.

Chris is a Chartered Accountant with a background in Marketing, Training, Coaching and project, change and commercial management. This broad technical expertise gives the edge when supporting the diverse business issues that his clients face.

Chris has experience not only at finance director level, but also in general management, leading large teams and complex European wide major change projects. He has a passion and talent for developing people and has a track record of clients achieving greater rewards from their businesses.

When not helping to grow businesses, Chris is a regular player of squash, tennis and football. He also plays piano and double bass for the finest East European folk band west of Oxford!

Malcolm Warden FCMA

Malcolm is an experienced Finance Director with considerable manufacturing and engineering experience. Malcolm is particularly profit and results oriented with strong strategic, analytical and implementation skills and significant experience in developing, motivating and leading diverse, international teams in European and USA accounting environments. Malcolm has achieved considerable success in organising and running the finance function for smaller businesses – either in- house or outsourced.

Malcolm is married with three children and his hobbies include electronics, photography and public speaking. He is the 2006-7 Governor for Oxfordshire and Warwickshire Toastmaster Clubs.

Colin Black BSc FCA FInstD

Colin is a chartered accountant with considerable experience in the SME area. He qualified with Arthur Andersen working in audit, small business advisiory and insolvency. An experienced finance director and group finance director, mainly in the software and services sector, he has also experience in the retail and motor engineering sectors. He was FD of a group which during his stewardship grew from £9m to £35m in revenue and expanded to operations in 7 European countries, mainly by way of acquisitions and start up and gained much valuable experience in the process. He then bought his own business via a MBO, grew it organically and by acquisition and subsequently successfully sold to a public company. During this period, in addition to his finance function, he was very involved in project management of a number of customer implementations. Colin also has considerable experience as a non-executive director for both private and public companies, where he has been involved in a range of projects from recovery senarios to AIM floatations. He has many useful contacts in the City and with VC’s.

Colin is an active member of the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists and its Entrepreneurship Committee, is a member of SWAIN (South West Angel Investor Network) and at home is a hobby farmer and enjoys a variety of equestrian pursuits.

Pauline Cakebread FCMA

Pauline is an experienced company director, both as Chairman, Finance and Managing Director, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.

Her career initially spanned a broad range of industries in the commercial function of high-ranking household name businesses, including J Sainsbury and the global Unilever concern where she initiated some key high profile projects. In the last twenty years she has worked in marketing services, pharmaceuticals, IT, retail property and publishing, in companies facing major market challenges and with significant internal issues to resolve. Having chosen to specialise in the SME sector, she has performed financial, commercial and general management roles inside all types of company. These include small owner-managed businesses up to £10m turnover, where she has worked closely alongside VC investors. She has likewise held the senior financial or change management position in subsidiaries of multi-nationals, both UK and US-owned, ranging in size from £20m - £100m turnover.

As a longstanding governor, she has recently also spent eight years as an Officer of The School of St Helen & St Katharine in Abingdon which, early in her Chairmanship, was named the Sunday Times “Independent School of the Year” for its first-class financial, academic and pastoral track record.

Pauline is 47 years old with three children and has bases in south Oxfordshire and Yorkshire. In her spare time she is a keen local historian, tries to keep the garden under control, and is currently learning to sail.

Anne Tutt BSc(Econ) FCA

Highly effective Finance Director/MD with 20+ years of Board-level experience in diverse businesses - from multinational groups to MBO’s - leading successful finance & management teams. Current portfolio career includes a number of part time financial directorships, non executive directorships & consultancy roles across the private, government & charitable sectors.

Combines breadth of business knowledge with attention to detail - equally adept at advising on key strategic decisions and ensuring robust systems and controls. Strong record of improving business performance.

A natural communicator, engendering confidence and respect at all levels, with an open management style.

Anne’s interests include travel (including multiple trips to Africa, India, South America & China), a keen interest in other cultures(especially in the developing world). Horse riding & skiing. She has recently spent  time in a remote community in Northern Malawi organising the renovation of a medical centre with funds she raised.

Michael Rae ACA

Michael Rae is a chartered accountant with eighteen years of commercial experience in SMEs as director / non-executive director / consultant and project manager, with hands-on experience in starting up businesses and raising finance.  Methodical, approachable and project focused, he has worked in both the UK and Middle East.

Deloittes qualified, Michael combines his Virtual Finance Director experience with an entrepreneurial bias to enable him to provide an effective and pragmatic service to ambitious owner managers seeking funding and step change growth.

Outside work Michael enjoys active pursuits such as sailing, skiing, walking as well as the more intellectually challenging pastimes of Bridge and cooking.

Peter Mcdonald FCCA

Peter is a fellow of the association of certified accountants who has over 20 years successful FD experience in a wide variety of industries. Peter’s experience covers manufacturing, FMCG and retail with such companies as British American Tobacco, Safeway, Lillywhites and Booker Food distribution.

Peter’s experience has covered both large companies and the SME sector with turnovers ranging from £4m to £1.7bn. The large company experience of good financial control, excellent management reporting and assisting management teams to achieve rapid profit growth, through organic growth and acquisitions, are skills that Peter’s SME clients particularly value.  Peter’s project experience includes MBO’s, acquisitions, raising finance, turnarounds, and post acquisition integration.  Peter also has strong experience of cost reduction, managing system implementations and business exits.

Peter is a member of the local Institute of Directors, Federation of Small Businesses and the Chamber of Commerce.

Virtual Financial Controllers

Our Virtual Financial Controllers all have considerable commercial experience and in many cases are also fully qualified accountants. The  advantage of the Virtual Financial Controllers or Management Accountants is that they are focussed on producing excellent management information, accounts which are accurate, timely and above all meaningful.  Virtual Financial Controllers are also typically strong in systems selection, report design and systems implementation.

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