What is your role within RG?
I am a Manager within the Audit and Assurance and Accounts and Business service lines.
Tell me about your career to date..
The bulk of my career has been spent with Rowlands Chartered Accountants where I joined as an Audit and Accounts Senior progressing to Manager and more recently Stokoe Rodger LLP, gaining a wealth of experience dealing mainly with corporate businesses of all sizes.
What does your current role involve?
I work closely with a variety of clients across a range of sectors with the majority being corporate entities and owner managed businesses. My role is to assist with the delivery of our technical services which include audit, accountancy, and tax.
As an Audit Manager, I oversee the full audit engagement and will often be the direct contact between RG and the client, as well as reporting back to the Partner/ Director to ensure deadlines are met to the agreed timetable. It is my responsibility to ensure that the audit is running as smoothly as possible, and that any matters arising are appropriately taken care of.
Also, as part of my role, I manage and review the work prepared by junior members of the audit team and spend time assisting with their audit training which is something that I particularly enjoy.
What makes RG different?
The team at RG are all very friendly and there is a wide range of knowledge throughout the firm.
We are genuinely interested in our clients, and we have the technical knowledge and experience to meet their needs across all of our service lines.
My approach throughout my career has been to put the client first with a friendly and professional service. I am proud to say that I worked with some of my previous firm’s clients for nearly 20 years. I have only been at RG for 8 months, but RG already feels a great fit, so I’m looking forward to developing new client relationships in the future.
Tell us about your day so far…
Today started with a quick German lesson on Duolingo. I have been learning German for nearly a year now. Usually, I go for an early morning swim before heading into work, however today I caught up on some lost sleep! 2 days ago, I returned from a holiday in Cyprus, on the final approach to Newcastle Airport the landing was aborted due to a hole in the runway! We were diverted to Manchester, finally arriving home 6 hours later!
After arriving at work, my first task was to catch up on my outstanding emails after my week off. Much of my day was then spent reviewing the audit work for a UK subsidiary company of a large US parent and finalising another audit of a UK subsidiary manufacturing company of a large German parent.
Finally, a Teams call with one of our senior managers to discuss my next few assignments. Planning and collaboration within our team, and with other service lines, is a big part of the RG culture. Working day over it was off to the golf course at Hexham for 11 holes practice ahead of the first competition of the summer season!
What do you enjoy outside of work?
I enjoy keeping fit, travelling, and spending time with family and friends. My main passion though is golf where I have maintained a single figure handicap from the age of 14.
And finally, leave us with one interesting fact about yourself?
Whilst competing at the age of 14 in the 100m school sports day race, I tripped just before the finish line, flew over the line, won the race setting a new school record and breaking my wrist! My wrist still bothers me now at times!