The Professional Speaks

Craig McKellar

The Professional Speaks with Craig McKellar provides insights from senior leaders in professional services. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. Jun 8

    David Jolliffe: Boardroom lessons: Mistakes I made as a CFO so you don’t have to

    David is the CFO for Novosound, which is an award-winning sensors company specialising in the design and manufacture of innovative ultrasound sensors.  He recently had his first short book published, titled 'Boardroom lessons: Mistakes I made as a CFO so you don’t have to.’ which covers lessons learnt through his experience as a finance professional over 40 years. The link to it on Amazon is below.  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Boardroom-Lessons-Mistakes-Made-Dont-ebook/dp/B0GX7F58GT/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2OULZNVPYJJ3Z&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.FFLSfByPw7_ZFIqxUySpmg.ltC28vwKzglUGWvkmju7BO3hSnS1dHA3pyPTdseIzfc&dib_tag=se&keywords=Boardroom+lessons%3A+Mistakes+I+made+as+a+CFO+so+you+don%E2%80%99t+have+to%2C+david+joliffe&qid=1780661863&sprefix=boardroom+lessons+mistakes+i+made+as+a+cfo+so+you+don+t+have+to+david+joliffe%2Caps%2C97&sr=8-1 This was a really interesting and insightful discussion, which I’m sure you will enjoy.  Outline of episode: 00:00-04:55: What Novosound does and the nature of a early stage technology business 04:55-06:19: Who is David? 06:20-08:45: Summary of his career journey and discussion on working in different sectors as a finance professional 08:46-10:20: Why did John write his recently published short book, titled, ‘Boardroom lessons: Mistakes I made as a CFO so you don’t have to.' 10:21-19:39: Insights on the rare uncovering of fraud as an Accountant, including when he was CFO at Rangers Football Club. 19:40-26:10: How important a Management teams' success is based on the sector the company is in.  26:11-30:21: Experiences of working for PE-backed and high growth businesses.  30:22-35:49: The impact from mentorship 35:50-37:13: Keep learning. How he hopes his book will encourage others.  37:14-END: Personal and professional goals Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    40 min

  2. May 25

    Carolyn Bowie: The journey and insights of a legal Partner

    Carolyn Bowie is a legal Partner specialising in immigration law for businesses and individuals at BTO, which is a full-service legal practice in Scotland.    Topics discussed include her different route to the legal world and partner, encouraging others to be confident and why imposter syndrome isn’t a bad thing. Outline of episode: 00-05:17: Carolyn’s background and non-traditional route to a career in Law 05:18-06:28: Why did she want to work in Law? 06:29-07:42: What does Carolyn do as an immigration lawyer? 07:43-09:21: Why did she move to BTO solicitors? 09:22-11:37: How did Carolyn manage the juggle of young kids, working full time, going through a divorce and changing career at the same time? 11:38-13:46: Discussion about having determination and confidence to achieve 13:47-18:21: Imposter syndrome, support at BTO and leading people by encouraging them to believe in their ability 18:22-24:47: Building a new service line from scratch  24:48-26:35: The importance of being authentic as a leader and leading by example  26:36-END: Personal and professional goals for the next 12 months  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    29 min

  3. May 11

    Ross Stupart: Leadership in times of crisis

    In this episode I am joined by Ross Stupart who is Regional Managing Partner for Scotland & Northern Ireland AND Regional Head of Tax at RSM - a global audit, tax and consulting professional services firm.   Topics discussed include what his steepest learning curves have been, what targets he set himself as a tax leader and what skills the senior tax leaders of tomorrow should have. Outline: 00:00-05:02: Intro and background 05:03- 07:20: His role as regional Managing Partner for Scotland and Northern Ireland at RSM 07:21-18:50: Career journey between professional services and industry 18:51-21:31: What is the most important skill a tax advisor should have? 21:32-31:15: Learning in times of crisis as a leader 31:16-39:00: Managing targets set by a firm and setting personal targets to further help clients, current and new 39:01-END: Personal and professional goals for the next 12 months Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    42 min

  4. Apr 13

    Lynne Walker: The life of a CEO: Leading one of the UK’s largest Accountancy LLP’s

    Lynne Walker is CEO of Johnston Carmichael, which is a UK Accountancy firm of just under 1,000 people. Unlike many CEOs of such a business, she lives in a town of 10,000 people in the north of Scotland. Topics discussed include how she manages work and life whilst leading and driving the business forward, how the role of CEO has evolved over the last 5 years and her advice on opening new doors whilst not closing doors behind you.  Timings of episode 00:00-02:23: Introduction and background 02:24-07:20: The journey from Partner to CEO 07:21-10:08: Understanding board-level decisions and challenges of being a CEO  10:09-12:29: How has the CEO role evolved over the last 5 years? 12:30-15:25: How does Lynne manage being the CEO of nearly 1,000 people across the UK when she lives in a small town in the north of Scotland?  15:26-18:57: Taking chances and being adaptable to fulfil ambition  18:58-21:53: 90 years of Johnston Carmichael 21:54-23:42: Professional and personal goals for the next 12 months  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    27 min

  5. Mar 24

    Andrew Holloway: Growing a brand with no market presence in a particular region

    Andrew Holloway is a Tax Partner & Head of Equity Rewards & Venture Capital Schemes at Cooper Parry which is a UK-based advisory and accountancy firm, backed by US private equity firm, Lee Equity Partners. Interestingly, he was employee no.1 of the firm in Scotland (which at the time had over 2,000 employees based in England) but that was nearly a year after he had turned down an offer to join them. So, what changed for him? What changed for them? Why did he join with no other colleagues to work alongside in his region?  Tune in to hear so much more from this super interesting and honest chat with Andrew.  Timings of episode: 00:00-04:50: Introduction and background 04:50-: 07:35: Why tax? 07:35-15:46: Why did you want to specialise in reward tax and what is it? 15:47-20:45: Why did Andrew first turn down an offer from Cooper Parry and then why did he join as employee no.1 in Scotland for Cooper Parry? 20:46-27:00: How working for a firm with high growth mentality and high risk has been an enormous but fun learning curve.  27:01-31:58: Discussing the different environments of LLP, large mid-tier and PE-backed. 31:59-36:40: 'The Rebels of Accountancy’ - who would be a good fit? 36:41-38:12: Plans for Cooper Parry in Scotland over the next few years 38:13-45:10: What does his voluntary role with Patrick Thistle Football Club’s ‘The Jags Foundation' involve? 45:11-48:10: Personal and professional goals for the next 12 months Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    48 min

  6. Mar 2

    Melanie Clark and Tom Faichnie: Differentiating yourself as a new brand and adding value that AI can’t

    Melanie and Tom had been working together for years under different companies and then they decided to take their effective working relationship into their own hands and launch their own corporate finance business, Quantify Advisors. In their first year, Quantify advised on 14 completed deals with a cumulative deal value in excess of £150 million.  This episode discusses their evolving personal brand journey, the learning curve of being a business owner and how they create added value for their clients. Timings for episode 00:00-5:35: Introduction and how they met 5:36-7:56: The story so far of Quantify Advisors  7:57-9:11: The learning curve of being business owners and wearing lots of different hats 9:12-14:45: Differentiating as a new brand in a competitive market 14:46-21:29: Working to strengths and navigating personal branding 21:30-23:45: What are Tom and Melanie learning as leaders? 23:46-31:19: What AI can and can’t do to add value in corporate finance  31:20-34:29: Commentary on the corporate finance and private equity market in 2026 and deal flow for Quantify 34:30-36:06:Being consultative by building relationships with clients 36:07-40:15: Personal and professional goals for the next 12 months  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    40 min

  7. 06/23/2025

    Iain Wright: Claritas Tax: From solopreneur to the UK’s largest independent tax consultancy

    Iain Wright decided to launch his own tax consultancy rather than pursue the next career milestone in professional services as a Partner. He was questioned and faced doubters, but he backed himself and launched Claritas Tax in 2012 with a dream of growing it into a larger business. Regarded as the UK’s largest independent tax consultancy, it now has over 70 employees, which will increase after a recent acquisition.   This episode covers the journey so far, provides more information about the firm, its culture, and also discusses the importance of hiring and retaining talent for a growing firm.   TIMINGS OF EPISODE 00:00-03:31: Introduction and background 03:32- 06:10: Who are Claritas Tax? 06:11-11:06: Why did Iain set up Claritas rather than pursue Partnership for an already established firm? 11:07-17:49 The journey of Claritas Tax (the first 1-3 years) and why some of the early hires have been loyal till this day? 17:50-19:24: Executing the strategy of growing Claritas Tax in the early days 19:25-22:45: Iain’s approach to recruitment and how it has evolved 22:46-30:44: Building the culture at Claritas Tax and the process of hiring and retaining talent 30:45-32:47: What might surprise people about a boutique firm like Claritas compared to a large established firm?  32:48-END: Professional and personal goals for the next 12 months  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    44 min

  8. 06/02/2025

    Jamie Grant: Insights from growing Barclays Bank in Scotland over the past two decades

    Jamie Grant is Managing Director and Head of Corporate Banking for Scotland at Barclays Bank. He is also a Non-Executive Director (NED) for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games.   In this episode, we hear how Jamie took an opportunity to be part of growing Barclays in Scotland over 20 years ago, when it barely had a presence in comparison to having 7,000 employees now in Scotland. He discusses how working in professional services can develop you, how to gain clients in a competitive landscape and how he built successful teams.   We also touch on Jamie’s first NED role, including the differences between working as an executive versus as a non-executive and advice for others who are seeking their first NED role.   TIMINGS OF EPISODE 00:00-02:58: Introduction and background 02:59-06:55: From Ernst & Young’s mailroom to Trainee Accountant 06:56-08:45: Transferring to South Africa with EY to management consulting 08:46-10:22: How a career in Professional Services can develop you 10:23-17:44: Moving from Bank of Scotland to grow the Barclays brand in Scotland 17:45-22:50: How do you successfully gain clients in a competitive market 22:51-24:17: Discussion on soft skills and creating a great culture with people with different strengths 24:18-29:07: How Jamie built successful teams 29:08-34:15: More on his role as Non-Executive Director for the Commonwealth Games for 2026 and advice for those seeking their first NED role 34:16-37:12: Professional and personal goals for the next 12 months Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    39 min
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About

The Professional Speaks with Craig McKellar provides insights from senior leaders in professional services. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Craig McKellar
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    30
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Craig McKellar
  • Show Website
    The Professional Speaks

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