Rutherford Cross’ Jonathan Donnelly shares his thoughts following our most recent ‘Planning Your Career Journey’ event in conjunction with Whyte & Mackay.
Earlier this summer, Rutherford Cross held its latest Planning Your Career Journey event, featuring Kevin Meechan and David Turner, of Whyte & Mackay, and Andy Gemmell of The Drink Cabinet.
Both Kevin, Head of Commercial Finance, and David, Commercial Finance Analyst at Whyte and Mackay shared their experiences of building a career in finance within the drinks industry, sharing a number of useful tips with the audience.
Andy Gemmell, owner of creative consultancy to the drinks industry, the Drink Cabinet, gave our attendees an insight into the Whyte and Mackay drinks portfolio, as well as sharing insight into his own career journey from bartender to whisky advocate and marketer.
Kevin Meechan, Head of Commercial Finance at Whyte & Mackay, has built an impressive career that spans across BDO, Deloitte, Chespaeake, Damavo, AG Barr and Whyte & Mackay. Kevin trained with BDO before gaining invaluable international experience with Deloitte in Sydney. Since moving into industry, he has gained exposure to different roles across various sectors that has given him a wealth of transferable experience.
David joined Whyte & Mackay in 2016 after qualifying at Ernst & Young, and has been involved both in analysis of the UK domestic market, as well as North America.
Our speakers shared a wealth of career advice and experience on the night, however we have summarised some of the key points:
- Take pride in your work – be accountable for your own success
- Ensure you are continually developing – review the skills you have gained and seek opportunities to amass new talents
- Impress your boss and colleagues – the accountancy world is smaller than you may think so there’s every chance you may cross paths with ex-colleagues and former employers later in your career
- Step outside your comfort zone – challenging yourself to take on duties that you are not accustomed to will provide you with a wider skillset
- Accept mistakes and learn from them – some of the greatest lessons learned are those during periods when things do not go according to plan, these experiences will benefit you further down the line
- Consistently assess your circumstances – keep an open mind both regarding your current situation as well as additional opportunities
- Do something you are passionate about – enjoying what you do can significantly improve how you feel about your career
Whilst our speakers all work in the drinks industry, they had different paths in how they arrived there. Our speakers all agreed that taking pride in your work, ensuring that you leave a positive impression with those you work with and being passionate about your work will serve you will in advancing your career.
For more information about this and other Rutherford Cross Planning Your Career Journey events, contact [email protected]
