30 November 2006
At a glittering ceremony, held at The Riverbank Park Plaza, London, on 29 November, CIMA members, students and suppliers from as far afield as Cincinnati, Colombo, Dublin and Warsaw were recognised for their achievements in driving success in business.
The CIMA Financial Management Awards, in association with the FT, is an annual event which celebrates the key players in the sector and honours those who have been instrumental in developing the finance profession and the organisations that operate within it. This includes the people, the teams and the organisations who through their determination and dedication deliver results that promote and develop the management accountancy profession.
The award ceremony was hosted by the television and radio broadcaster, Jeremy Vine.
Charles Tilley, Chief Executive, CIMA, said:
“I would like to congratulate all of the award winners. Through their efforts, the profile and influence of CIMA and management accounting has continued to develop and it was inspiring to see such a high standard of nominations in each category this year. It was also encouraging to receive nominations from many individuals and organisations who continue to rise above the normal as well as a number of first-time entries. CIMA members and students are employed across a diverse range of challenging and high profile environments and the variety of the nominations we received this year reflects this.”
The following awards were presented:
Winner - Francis Hanlon, formerly of Capmark Bank, Dublin, Ireland
This award was presented to the CIMA student who gained the highest score in all TOPCIMA exams between November 2005 and October 2006. The test of professional competence in management accounting is the final exam for CIMA students on their journey to becoming Chartered Management Accountants.
Winner - Gajendra Liyanaarachchi, The Virtual Business School, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Successful students are usually a product of successful tutors and this award celebrates those who go out of their way to inspire and guide the next generation of management accountants. The judges were looking for that rare mix of best practice training programmes for CIMA students, excellent results and positive student testimonials.
Gajendra impressed the judges with the innovative approach he took to exam study. Combining an effective mix of multimedia tools, book learning and face-to-face training, he spurred his students to achieve eighty percent pass rates at strategic level as well as several world and local prize winners. A supportive mentor, he held extra classes during public holidays to help students meet their deadlines.
Highly commended - Wojciech Krynski, BPP Professional Education, Warsaw, Poland
The judges were impressed by the high pass rates he has achieved despite the challenges presented by a developing market like Poland. Students praised his professionalism, preparation and the sense of humour he employs to help them achieve extremely high pass rates, including a joint third place in the world in the Financial Accounting and Tax Principles paper last November.
Winner - Chris Chambers, Emea Financial Solutions - Collections Leader, Procter & Gamble, Newcastle upon Tyne
This award recognises tomorrow’s business leaders; those who have achieved excellent results and demonstrated creativity, sound financial skills and good planning and management.
Chris managed an international cash management re-engineering programme that resulted in approximately thirty full-time equivalent reductions and a Net Present Value of ten million dollars. The judges commented on the demonstration of leadership skills and innovation in his work and the way he effectively managed relationships with key stakeholders to ensure the project’s success.
Winner - Ealing Council, London
This is the opportunity to recognize the achievements of a team of management accountants, whether large or small, in the public sector. The judges were looking for demonstrations of the improvements the team made to the organisation’s services and how solid teamwork and financial management could create value for stakeholders.
Ealing Council provided an impressive story of the role a finance team can play in turning an organisation back into profit from a position of inadequate cash balances and a culture of overspending. By setting a very clear vision of the future for the organisation, the team achieved a complete culture change. They transformed a low morale, financially challenged organisation into one where employees throughout have risen to the challenge to achieve efficiency savings.
Winner - Northgate Information Solutions plc, Hemel Hempstead
The judges were impressed by some of the spectacular stories that came through in this category as organisations demonstrated how effective teamwork can overcome severe obstacles and provide remarkable benefits for both internal and external stakeholders.
The judges felt Northgate Information Systems had a real ‘wow’ factor with their display of strength and determination in the face of great adversity. Following the virtual demolition of the company’s head office in a high scale explosion, the finance team worked to ensure that all systems were up and running as quickly as possible with minimal disruption to customers. The judges felt this was a great example of how a finance team can work together to overcome an extreme challenge, bringing into play the wide range of skills so important for today’s management accountants. They were also interested in a testimonial from the company’s external auditors who praised the ability of the finance function to cope with the disruption.
Highly commended - Standard Life Investments, Edinburgh
The company undertook a startling transformation journey that culminated in their entry to the FTSE 100. A finance change programme saw the team develop from an initially reactive function to one that is open, innovative and proactive. The team has worked to balance commercialism with governance, providing a strong business focus to lead the organisation through a period of historic corporate change.
Winner - Hays Accountancy & Finance
In this category, the judges recognised the important role that agencies play in understanding the relevance of the CIMA qualification to business by helping to put the right people in the right place to the benefit of both candidates and employers.
Hays Accountancy & Finance placed CIMA’s business objectives firmly at the centre of their own. They worked hard to promote CIMA’s international opportunities and are achieving high placement results with innovative and successful concepts such as a free careers audit, refer-a-friend scheme, the ‘year of CIMA’ and a working-overseas seminar model.
Highly commended - Robert Half Finance & Accounting
They have demonstrated strong support for CIMA through their innovative selection and recruitment policies. They have also developed intellectual capital that reveals their understanding of the issues impacting the accounting and finance sector.
Winner - Radio Taxis Group, London
This is an area of business that is growing in profile as organisations work to demonstrate how their business practices produce an overall positive impact on their business as well as on society.
This was a close category as the judges were impressed by the diversity of the applications and the examples of good practice they all demonstrated.
Radio Taxis Group demonstrated a good mix of social and corporate responsibility and is therefore a great example to all future applicants.; Working in an industry that has perhaps not had a good track record in this area, Radio Taxis Group has adopted an ambitious project to offset their carbon emissions and in doing so, has become the world’s first carbon neutral company in their industry. They have demonstrated a clear business performance link to this strategy by calculating the value of their media coverage and the amount of new business won through their raised profile.
Highly commended - National Grid plc, London
National Grid has developed a matrix to integrate human rights into their Group-level risk management and business development. The judges were excited by this concept and would love to see it put forward for an award in the future when there is more evidence of its impact.
Highly commended - Capital One, Nottingham
The focus of Capital One’s support is children and young people at risk in and around the company’s areas of operation. The judges commended the tangible results that the organisation has achieved through this targeted effort.
Winner - Lloydspharmacy, Coventry
Nominees in this category needed to highlight the design, implementation and use of a significant innovation in the practice of management accounting and demonstrate the benefits it has had on their business.
Lloydspharmacy provided an innovative approach to the application of balanced scorecard theory, successfully linking financial and non-financial reporting to corporate objectives and tactical activities. They developed an imaginative approach to information delivery with effective reporting through the use of graphics and click through drill-ability to interrogate further. This means that performance information is now accessible throughout the business. The judges were impressed by the clear link to corporate strategy and the way the project improved business engagement throughout the organisation by relating financial information clearly to day-to-day activities.
Highly commended - Punch Taverns, Burton upon Trent
An expansion in the Punch Taverns portfolio of pubs provided the finance function with an opportunity to identify further sales opportunities through multivariate analysis to benchmark sales of their range of products in tied pubs against free houses. They were then proactive in ensuring the potential they had identified was realised by the line managers. The judges thought this was a good example of a finance function providing "business partnering" in the form of analysis and insights and then using these to challenge the business to improve performance.
This award looks at the skills, leadership and ability of CIMA members to make significant differences to the success of their organisation. The judges were looking for a display of commitment and the delivery of both strategic and financial achievement.
Responsible for the business of two point five billion pounds in sales across fifteen different business units, Robert demonstrated the ability to work across multi-functional teams, lead people and projects and keep the company at the forefront of the management accounting discipline. Following a major acquisition, he combined the services of two finance teams, ensuring a fit between processes, culture and systems. This was an extremely high-profile acquisition representing significant change for every person in the organisation and the winner played a key role in this transition. Robert is currently based in Cincinnati, Ohio. having been located in the UK until September 2006. He has worked for P&G in the UK, Belgium, Switzerland and the USA.
Winner - BSkyB Group plc
This is the opportunity to recognise the support and commitment of employers to their CIMA trainees.
BSkyB Group plc has built up a hugely successful CIMA finance graduate scheme over the last ten years. Their exam results have consistently been among the top in the country with a ninety-six percent pass rate in the most recent diet. The judges were also pleased to note a commitment to training that went well beyond the initial exams. The company’s focus on CPD, the development of less technical ‘soft skills’ and a superb support structure all proved to demonstrate that the commitment to CIMA is present throughout the company from top to bottom.
The judges were so impressed by the quality of the shortlist that they highlighted a few other nominations for a special mention.
Highly commended - Goldman Sachs
The judges praised the global emphasis of their CIMA scheme which provides a relevant fit with the international element of the qualification. The judges were also impressed to note how they share the elements of their CIMA programme with other investment banks in best practice meetings to ensure the support they provide to students remains competitive.
The judges commended Ford Motor Company and Everest Limited who have both demonstrated how CIMA members are central in driving their business.
Winner - Tony Isaac, Chief Executive of BOC, part of the Linde group
In making this award, the judges were looking for someone who understands the benefits that management accountancy can bring to their organisation and who has made a visible difference to the bottom line.
Tony has demonstrated sustained success as a business leader in a high profile organisation. During his time at BOC, the company's relationship with CIMA has strengthened and they became a Quality Training Partner in 2000. Tony Isaac joined BOC, the gases group, as finance director in 1994. Having served as an executive director for five years he was promoted to chief executive in 1999. Tony led the Group with great skill and vigour and established BOC on a path of growth and financial performance. He has provided great leadership in contributing to the group's strategy, delivering growth and excellent returns to shareholders. He also saw the organisation through a challenging period of change in recent years.
BOC was among the world's top three producers of industrial and specialty gases until this year, when rival gas producer Linde acquired it and leapt to the top spot.
ENDS
Photographs available
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Claire Grewer
Press Officer, CIMA
+44 (0) 20 8849 2300
Claire.Grewer@cimaglobal.com
Katie Scott
Senior Press Officer, CIMA
+44 (0) 20 8849 2347
Katie.scott@cimaglobal.com
