Books To The Boardroom

Today’s guest is Guy Griffiths, CFO of PVH Brands Australia. Today’s conversation is an interesting insight into someone who has spent much of their career in retail, and working up to becoming a CEO. We talk about how Guy: Flew in and Flew out for over 9 years. Used Chartered Accounting as a passport to work around the world.  What his sabbaticals were like early on in his career. What the benefi...

Today’s guest is Rhydian James, CFO of Discova.  Working in the tourism industry Rhydian was one of those people affected by Covid and we cover what that looked like in detail. We also discuss: How Rhydian managed to work remotely and get up at 3am each morning.  How hard it is when your revenue goes from something to nothing. His entrepreneurial endeavours during high school. Why Rhydian respects...

In this episode, we are speaking to Jeremy Stewart, CEO and Managing Director at Trade Tools. Jeremy is a very committed individual and has spent most of his working life at Trade Tools. As you know that is quite rare to see these days.  We cover: His stint in Film and Television and why he stopped pursuing that. How an unfortunate incident prevented him from entering the airforce. The way his lea...

On this episode we are speaking to Duncan McHugh, Head of Finance at Nutrition Warehouse, and Co-Founder of One More Rep. Duncan’s story is one of loyalty. Having a Dad who worked as a CFO for the theme parks on the Gold Coast for 25 years, Duncan is someone who didn’t find it strange to stay in roles for 10 years.  We also talk about: How he spent time in a remote town in Northern Queensland earl...

Today we are talking to Kylie Sheather, Director of Finance Business Partnering at Technology One.  Kylie’s story is one of trusting your gut, going your own way, and making decisions for yourself.  She didn’t go to London like most people on the podcast have done before and doesn’t have an audit background but has still become a highly competent professional in her field. We talk about: - How she...

Today our guest is Tanya Cain, CFO of Youi Insurance.  Tanya is an accomplished professional who shares plenty of advice. We talk about: What it is like working for such an iconic brand. How the timeliness of information is more important than accuracy. Knowing when it’s time to move on. How her Dad would take her to business dinners when she was young and how that sparked her interest in business...

Today’s guest is Keith Bailey of Blueprint Business Solutions. Keith is a veteran of Finance, Accounting, and Management. In this episode we discuss: What it is like to have a Portfolio Career. What he learned about converting clients faster when he worked as a consultant.  How he started his first business at 9 years old Why he believes diversifying throughout life is important.  His leadership p...

Today’s guest is Pierre De Villiers, Partner at CFO on Call, and CEO of Your Profit Xpert. In this episode, we discuss Pierre’s career which included living in South Africa, New Zealand, and now Australia.  It is intriguing to hear his perspective on how you can transfer skills across countries, his observations around different cultures, and what stays the same no matter what country you are in. ...

Today we are speaking to Kerri Siggs, CFO of Carter and Spencer Group.  Carter and Spencer is an unusual CFO role that Kerri likens to a live trading market. This is due to working with Fresh Produce, and Kerri details some of the challenges surrounding that.  Kerri also speaks about empowering women as an activator of SheEO, a global community of women helping other women to succeed.  From a youn...

Today we are talking to Brent Charlton, Director of Altitude Advisors We talk about how he navigated the GFC in his business, and as an individual. Growing up with 2 parents as business owners, it seems Brent was always destined to become an owner himself and became a director in his late 20’s. For an Accountant, Brent had a very unique university experience by engaging with the process in a way t...

Today we are talking to Brad Sheahon, Head Of Finance at Cromwell Property Group.  Hailing from New Zealand, he had nomadic parents and went to many different schools when he was young. It was interesting to hear how this set a foundation for the rest of his career. He shares stories around navigating the GFC in London, where the effects were felt even heavier than in Australia.  We talk about the...

Today’s podcast guest is Ian Judson of JudsonKoman.  What an interesting story Ian has. We spoke about so many different aspects of Ian’s life and career. He has life-defining overseas experiences, spent time as a musician, and built himself into a skilled finance professional and business owner. We discussed Stoicism which has never been explored on the podcast before, and Ian speaks about how he...

Today we are talking to Stuart Dempster, co-founder of Changealytics. AI Stuart has a fascinating story and was a great guest.  He speaks about: - Giving bad news to Richard Branson.  - Raising millions of dollars for a business he owned. - Good and Bad examples of leadership AND his personal leadership philosophy.  - Floating a UK company when something goes wrong. And - His passion for Not For P...

Today we are speaking to Craig Kurkowski, Finance and Accounting Lead of Helimods. We talk about how he started his career in hospitality and how that led him to cook for the queen. We discuss Craig's unconventional methods for tracking staff health and he shares an interesting metaphor around what fishing and leadership have in common.  As is becoming a trend on the podcast, Craig has some v...

Today we have another great guest on the show, Chris Mitchell, the CFO of Canstar. You have probably heard of Canstar. But it wasn’t always so well known.  After being with the company for 13 years, Chris talks to us about how 20% of people recognised the brand when he first started, to now over 70%. A great achievement that is fitting for such an iconic brand. Growing up in rural Australia, Chris...

Today we are talking to Rod Facey, CFO of REIQ. Rod talks us through his career and life and how he handled all the challenges that came at him with integrity. A natural leader, Rod got a chance at leadership at an age much younger than most.  He talks about how he handled a redundancy with dignity, how he determined what type of work he wanted to pursue, and what it was life to be in charge of a...

Today we have another great guest, David Muir.  David is currently the MD of DS Energy.  However his career has been varied and not without challenges. He speaks about interesting events in his life such as breaking his neck, what happens when you love rugby but also work in it, and the strange world of solar which he refers to as the ‘solarcoaster.’ One particular story of interest was when David...

Today we are talking to Petra Corcoran, Director of Finance & Corporate Services at Emesent. Petra is an accomplished professional with a fascinating background.  Strong in her conviction from a young age, we speak about the importance of sticking to your ethical principles, toxic cultures, and what it takes to build a harmonious finance department. We talk about the importance of being patien...

We have another great guest on the podcast today, Andrew Job, the CEO of PlotLogic.  A veteran of the mining industry, Andrew is an accomplished professional, and now a high growth business owner. Andrew talks us through his career in which he got into leadership positions at an age much younger than most. A humble talented individual, Andrew is one of the first guests we have spoken to who has re...

Today we speak to Andrew Gray, Finance Director of Qtectic. He describes himself as the Accidental Accountant. Starting his career in Audit, he has worked in Mining, Rail, and various infrastructure related companies. Having worked across a number of industries, Andrew is a wealth of knowledge. A sharp business mind, he speaks about how he is always willing to try a new challenge and believes stro...

Today’s guest is Thomas Sparks, CEO of Infinity 22. It was a pleasure to hear how Thomas built such a successful business at a young age. Having worked locally and overseas in Hong Kong, Thomas’s experience covers many disciplines and countries. Now as he focuses on helping E-Commerce businesses, Thomas speaks about the decision to move his company in that direction, as well as his thoughts on lea...

Our guest on today's episode is Jag Olak, MD of Allevi8HQ. With a strong background in Finance and CFO positions, Jag was a wealth of knowledge. He has run his own pizza businesses and introduced us to the concept of a Chief Restructuring Officer. As always, leadership was a popular topic of discussion. Jack Ferguson co-hosted this episode.  Thanks for tuning in to Books to the Boardroom ! If...

Today our guest is Gary Oliver, a Veteran of Finance. We were fortunate to speak to Gary on the day he retired at the end of a 45-year career.  Gary takes us through his career that involved working in mining, large corporates, and even discuss what it was like writing a strategic paper with no typewriter and no computer. A gifted storyteller, Gary talks about the challenges of being in the workfo...

In this episode we speak to Chris Lowndes, Group CFO of HopgoodGanim Lawyers. What a story. This podcast was a lot of fun! Chris has had a varied career. He talks about working at companies such as Woolworths, Doughnut Time, and his current company, HopgoodGanim. We talk about good and bad leadership. Chris points out that he has learned a lot from poor leaders as well as great leaders. When Chris...

Our guest today is Richard Jacobitz, CFO of STG Global. Richard brought a unique perspective to the podcast around data and insight. Often we hear people talking about not having enough data, or enough insight. Richard actually discusses why he thinks too much data and insight is a bad thing and how that can create decision-making problems. A self-described extrovert, Richard talks about the consi...