Director Of Finance SPRING 2017 | Page 3

CONTENTS | Spring 2017 Contents 4 | The Financial Zone Round-up of the main stories in the world of finance, in the UK and abroad 9 | Building Bridges Chris Southworth, Secretary General at the ICC UK, on why the government needs to provide the country with the infrastructure to do business 12 | Trading Places Lesley Batchelor OBE, Director General of the Institute of Export & International Trade, on the challenges of globalisation 16 | Glories of Goodwood Exclusive interview with Alex Williamson, chief executive of Goodwood, a diverse £100m business in West Sussex 26 | Expert Insight Professor John Colley on why fund managers need to up their game if they are going to beat the robots 28 | Crisis? What Crisis? Communications expert Andy Berry on how to protect your reputation when the balloon goes up 30 | After Davos Policy analyst Kimberley Botwright and entrepreneur Daniel Shakhani look at what we learnt in the Swiss mountains 34 | Economic Outlook Andrew Vaughan on the challenges faced by companies with defined benefit pension schemes 38 | Hitting the High Notes Will the Lifetime ISA be a hit or a miss? Tony Lloyd voices his concerns 42 | Opportunity Knocks Some may see AI as a threat to the accountancy profession but Lee Murphy argues it is a real opportunity both for individuals and businesses 44 | Cyber Sense Robert Rutherford on why the C-level must take full responsibility for a security breach rather than placing the blame on the IT team Where tradition meets ambition U ntil Theresa May stepped outside No 10 to fire the starting gun for a June 8 General Election, I had planned to focus my comments here on the day I spent in West Sussex at the Goodwood Estate, a diverse business run with style, charm and panache by CEO Alex Williamson and his 650-strong team. But, as Mrs May has been in charge for less than 300 days and there are cedar trees at Goodwood that are more than 300 years old, the PM will have to wait her turn. As you drive up to Goodwood House, all is serene and calm; there might be the odd thwack of a golf ball or the hum of a lawnmower but you imagine the view would not have changed much if you went back 100 years or more. But looks can be deceiving. Like the proverbial swan paddling underneath as she glides along, Goodwood is nothing if not a modern, technological, driven business with everything you would expect from a high-intensity 21st century enterprise. Back in 2008, when Alex moved in as Finance Director, the turnover was a completely acceptable £49m a year. Today, less than ten years later, that has virtually doubled to £100m. To find out how, read our in-depth interview with Alex later in this edition, but let me tell you one tale out of school to emphasise what is at the heart of this exceptional story. All new staff have an induction day and are shown around by either Alex or Lord March, who took over the running of the estate from his father in the mid-1990s. At the end of the induction, all new employees end up enjoying afternoon tea with either Alex or Lord March in one of the fine dining rooms in Goodwood House. Now if that isn’t employee engagement at its best, I don’t know what is. Employer-employee relations, so to speak, were no doubt one of the reasons our Prime Minister decided to go to the country for an election which experts say – and certainly the markets agreed the last time I checked – will lead to a softer Brexit than might have been expected. This certainly fits in with Deutsche Bank’s analysis, who feel the election is “a game-changer” for Brexit negotiations. It means the 2019 deadline for delivering a clean Brexit will be less demanding as there will now be no election in 2020; the predicted bigger Tory majority will mean hardliners will have less impact and, finally, the UK can fit into the “Divorce bill first, negotiate the Brexit details later” timetable preferred by the EU. As Deutsche argues: “This sequenced approach materially reduces the ‘crash risk’ of Brexit negotiations as well as strengthening the Prime Minister’s hand in pursuing an orderly (and very lengthy) withdrawal.” Sounds a persuasive argument but – as we found out two years ago – pollsters have been known to be wrong. Daniel Evans Editor, Director of Finance dofonline.co.uk 46 | Wake Up! Spring 2017 | £4.95 Dr Guy Meadows, sleep physiologist, on why sleep and stress are more connected than you think 48 | My Working Life Saj Manzoor is CFO at McCann London, one of the UK’s largest advertising agencies. Here, he tells Director of Finance about his working week dofonline.co.uk The Ringmaster of Goodwood Exclusive interview with CEO Alex Williamson Inside Expert Insight Professor John Colley on why fund managers need to up their game if they are going to beat the robots Trading Places Lesley Batchelor OBE, from the Institute of Export, on the challenges globalisation brings to the economy Crisis? What Crisis? Communications expert Andy Berry on how to protect your business reputation when the balloon goes up After Davos Policy analyst Kimberley Botwright and entrepreneur Daniel Shakhani analyse what we learnt at the summit Designed & Published by Publications UK Limited Advertising: Tel: [phone] Email: [email protected] Managing Director: Stewart Lee Editor: Daniel Evans Tel: [phone] | [email protected] [email protected] Design: Hitesh Chauhan Production: Angela Brown & Emily Turner Whilst every care has been taken in compiling this publication, and the statements contained herein are believed to be correct, the publishers and the promoters will not accept responsibility for any inaccuracies. Reproduction of any part of this publication without permission is strictly forbidden. ©Publications UK Limited 2017. The publishers make no recommendation in respect of any of the advertisers, and no recommendation may be implied by way of the presence of their advertisements. DIRECTOR OF FINANCE 3