Great finance directors need a great team

But to be truly great, they need to have a great team behind them.

These are the words of Jo Cowl, finance director at luxury holiday group Park Leisure and one of the winners at last year’s Yorkshire Finance Director Awards.

The search is now on for talented candidates for this year’s awards.

Speaking to The Yorkshire Post, Ms Cowl said: “For me, winning was a fantastic recognition of the hard work that goes into the role of finance director.

“The awards ceremony was a great opportunity for us all to revel in our achievements within our businesses.”

Ms Cowl joined Park Leisure nearly three years ago. During that time, profits have more than doubled at the £60m-turnover company, which owns a portfolio of 12 luxury holiday parks in locations from Northumberland to Cornwall.

Ms Cowl added: “What inspires me about business is making a difference every single day, helping to build something bigger and better and being a success.

“My advice to people taking part in this year’s process is to throw yourself into the panel interviews and don’t be afraid to sell yourself and celebrate your achievements.

“Yorkshire finance directors are a great group of people and we should be proud of what we have achieved.”

Ms Cowl won the award for best finance director of a limited company (up to £50m).

Last year, Darren Bryant, chief financial officer at listed retail chain Card Factory, won the category for best finance director at a public limited company.

He said: “Having joined Card Factory in 2009, the last seven years have been tremendously exciting and busy – particularly for me as CFO.

“As well as growing our store estate from 400 stores to more than 800 and our profits close to £100m, we have completed a sale for the founding family, an MBO, two acquisitions, four debt refinancings and an IPO – all of which have been tremendously successful transactions.

“The award currently has pride of place in my home study and is a nice reminder of all that we have achieved together at Card Factory over many years – it has been a real team effort, all driven from our headquarters here in Wakefield.”

John Higgins, finance director at Wakefield-based building sustainability specialist Stroma, won the private equity category.

He said: “I was very pleased to receive the award, which was a nice recognition both for myself and more importantly for the team at Stroma.

“The awards are very closely watched by private equity firms and other businesses in the region and winning an award has certainly helped raise our profile.”

Mr Higgins added: “I think we all aspire to leave some form of legacy in business and want to look back and be proud of what we have achieved.

“In our case, Stroma has managed to achieve a market-leading position in the three key markets in which we operate, as well as double our turnover and profits in the two years since LDC supported the management buyout of the business.

“Our aim is to provide the best service in the market and to attract and retain the best quality staff to help us achieve this.”

Last year’s overall winner was Victoria Woodings of Principle Group, the Huddersfield-based global brand implementation specialist.

The Yorkshire Post has launched the Yorkshire Finance Director Awards 2016 in partnership with accountancy and business advisory firm BDO LLP, insurance brokerage Lockton Companies, recruitment specialist Sewell Business Group, and law firm Walker Morris.

To enter or nominate, please visit www.fdawards.co.uk and follow the simple instructions.