Rutherford Cross’ Will Dodds looks back on a successful night at the latest instalment of the ‘Future Finance Leaders Network’ event series, which was held in partnership with RSM.
The Future Finance Leaders Network event series is targeted at connecting the senior finance community in Edinburgh, who are all aspiring to sit in a senior seat as they continue to progress within their careers. At our latest event, we were delighted to welcome David Gammie, CFO at Beer52 who talked us through his career to date, the challenges along the way and what it is like to work for a growing start-up.
The format of the evening was a relaxed networking structure where the guests enjoyed a ‘fireside’ chat with David, hosted by RSM Partner, Alex Tait in RSM’s offices in Edinburgh. During the conversation, David raised many interesting points regarding his journey to his current position as CFO. In his earlier career, David began his career by obtaining his CA qualification, starting in Audit at a Big 4 firm before moving into the Transaction Services team at the same business. As he was enjoying the deals environment, David then joined BGF, a private equity business as an Investor working with a range of companies while deploying capital across the Central Belt and Northern Ireland. He now works for Beer52 as CFO, where he leads the finance function for one of the UK’s fastest-growing private companies, while also getting involved in the continued strategic direction of the company including HR, IT and other key areas of the business.
We have highlighted below several great takeaways from the discussion.
1. Lessons Learnt – The importance of taking the knowledge from previous experiences into new endeavours and adapting to changing environments while trusting your existing skills. Lessons learnt from David varied, although they broadly focused on the following when reflecting on his experiences that have led to success:
- Being open-minded
- Push yourself outside your comfort zone
- Be conscious of your decisions
- Challenge yourself on the future – what will you be doing in 3-5 years?
- Be proactive and sell yourself
2. Building a Team – It’s important to work with the right people, therefore bringing in passionate people who want to make the business a success is hugely valuable. Putting your trust in others enables you to progress in the right direction. For David in particular, this meant bringing in a great Financial Controller who could own the numbers day to day. It’s also important not to force something but to allow others to take on tasks which play to their strengths.
3. How to Make the Most of Your Role – David explained that the fine details are important to him, so when choosing a company like Beer52, it was key that he could surround himself with people who drive passion, such as Beer52’s Founders. He also explained the importance of understanding what makes a business tick, not resting on your laurels or taking things for granted, as well as remaining consistent with personal and business growth to help you challenge the market and ensure everyone is aligned, working towards a common goal.
The final few questions during the event focused on some key achievements for David across his career spanning his CA Qualification, first deal at BGF and stepping into his current role, while also feeling ambitious for what the future holds.
These questions were followed by more networking to allow attendees to meet like-minded individuals in the Edinburgh senior finance community, as well as the chance to enjoy some of Beer52 & Wine52’s delicious products.
If you would like to hear more about the events we run across Edinburgh and Glasgow or to be a key speaker at future events, please do not hesitate to get in touch: [email protected].
