R A Hills - Personal Profile

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+ richardhills@iib.ws
Richard Allan Hills
FCCA, AMBA
Personal Profile Qualified accountant & MBA with extensive project management, consultancy and line management experience obtained primarily within blue chip Financial Service organisations and SMEs in various sectors
Experience
iPEC
Currently training to be a business & life coach through an accredited coach training programme
Prince2
Project Management
MBA*
Master Business Administration, Ashridge Management College - 12 months full time sponsored programme
FCCA
Fellow of Chartered Institute of Certified Accountants
DipM
Postgraduate diploma in marketing with the Chartered Institute of Marketing - 5 weeks intensive course
* Obtained distinction for dissertation on “Competitive advantage through Service Quality”
Key Achievements
Professional Qualifications
Client Acquisition
Signed up 36 SME clients to business improvement programmes generating monthly fee income. Over 75% conversion ratio on sales appointments.
Income Generation
Generated £0.22m fee income through account and project management of delivery of consultancy services to 45 SME clients.
Finance Transformation
Delivered £1m p.a. cost saving and improved financial reporting at Barclays leasing subsidiary through project managing implementation of new Finance organisational redesign. Line management responsibility for 8 direct, 50 indirect staff.
25% productivity saving (60 staff) and improved outputs of central finance team at Barclays through project managing development & delivery of an organisation redesign.
Strategy into Action
Successfully implemented a mechanism to deliver a new business strategy at Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society. As Business Change Manager project managed the development and implementation of an integrated business / financial planning, measurement (via Balanced Business Scorecard) and performance management process. Facilitated implementation through involvement of all levels of management and staff.
Strategy development
Developed a new business strategy for Liverpool Victoria Financial Society as a member of special projects team.
Developed and secured agreement for a new strategy for Halifax Insurance (Personal Lines insurer) to deliver competitive advantage in a crowded market. Set up & facilitated supporting change programmes to ensure employees could keep ahead of the needs of both the Company and the Markets.
Profit Improvement
Delivered £0.75m savings through project managing cost reduction initiatives at Abbey Life Assurance & Frizzell Financial Services.
Business Performance
Risk & Control
S166 Compliance Review
Achieved project management deliverables & multiple stakeholder expectations for s166 review for Sanlam Wealth Planning. Commissioned by FCA the project entailed a file review of over 200 cases to check if clients had been fairly treated & redress payment where this was not the case.
Sarbanes-Oxley (SOx) compliance
Achieved project deliverables for SOx s404 compliance for Group Support Functions at Barclays headquarters (Finance, HR, Treasury, Tax, Risk, etc). Highly complex project entailing continually changing scope & tight deadlines.
Financial Control
Secured agreement and facilitated successful implementation of a new financial control framework at Frizzell Financial Services.
Decision Support
Developed and successfully delivered new management information at Abbey Life Assurance & Chase Manhatten Bank improving control of the business.
Consultancy
Selling, account & project management of delivery of consultative services to SME clients across all sectors, principally in Construction
Internal consultancy within Financial Services
Interim Management
Line and project management to deliver cost saving, process improvements & regulatory compliance in Financial Services
Project Management
Stand alone and part of group wide Finance orientated programmes to deliver cost, process and compliance benefits in Financial Services
Strategy Development
Development and implementation of strategies in Financial Services
Business Analyst
Process re-engineering to deliver cost, efficiency, effectiveness & compliance benefits in Financial Services
Financial Management
Line management of accounting teams in Financial Services
Accountancy & Audit
Practitioner in all aspects of financial / management accounting and auditing in FMCG, pharmaceutical and timber companies

( 07917 691264
Richard Allan Hills
FCCA, AMBA
Background
Set up my own practice in Nov 07 providing business advice and support to SMEs (typical profile between £0.25 to £5m turnover, 5-20 staff). Initially operated independently acquiring own clients and delivering services by myself. Subsequently established a working relationship with another organisation providing similar services to the SME market focused on the Construction sector. This relationship provided an opportunity for increasing my portfolio of clients more quickly than if I operated independently. The result is I now have skills and experience to effectively sell and deliver the following services to clients in different sectors and achieve consistent successful results:
Achievements
Testimonials
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Planning for Success
Valuing a business and defining actions how to increase this
Preparing and communicating business plans, budgets and forecasts to bring focus to where the business is heading or needs to go
Improving cash flow by knowing how to work out future liquidity needs, monitoring and maximising the availability of cash in the business
Maximising shareholder value by protecting capital, succession planning & planning for exit Improving Business Performance
Installing and running financial processes to effectively plan and control the business
Installing and running marketing processes and systems to generate new business and improve customer retention, including:
•Preparing content for web sites including case studies
•Preparing content for brochures, leaflets and prospecting literature
•Installing and building a CRN database
•Demonstrating or doing telemarketing either independently or via a Call Centre
•Demonstrating techniques for effectively closing a sale e.g. DISC profiling
Installing and running HR processes to ensure everybody is clear and focused on where the company is going and motivated to achieve success
Cost reduction and management
Mentoring and coaching business owners in how to get the best from their people and resources and to maximise their potential Reaping the Rewards
Obtaining external recognition that the business has adopted best practices through preparing for and obtaining Investors in People accreditation
Preparing Information Memorandum to market and sell a business
Marketing and selling a business for the best price
I am happy to recommend Richard Hills of Countess Associates to any one in business who is mired down with the same old problems and with a narrow view about their business as I was with McConnell Travel. Richard was able to take an objective view and made me focus on the weaknesses that I knew existed but simply chose to ignore. With this fresh outlook I was encourages to relocate premises, at a considerable saving, re-mortgage, at a considerable saving, and, make the important decision to sell the travel side of McConnell Travel Ltd which was going nowhere but which was draining resources from other income streams. There is no doubt that had I not been acquainted with Richard I would still be very much worse off.
Tim McConnell - Travel Agent
Richard doggedly helped us to make the time to sit down as a management team and take a long hard look at our business - where we've been, where we are and where we want to be. Richard then assisted greatly in the production of a plan to adjust what we are doing now & where we want to be in the future. Philip Warr - Property & Construction Surveying practice
Signed up 36 clients with a conversion ratio of greater than 75% on sales appointments
£0.07m fee income from grant funded activity for 19 clients
£0.15m fee income from non grant funded activity for 28 clients
Average retention / fee income of 7.5 months / £750 p.m. respectively for activity for non grant funded clients
Achieved Investors in People accreditation for 6 clients
Improved bottom line performance through:
•Co-ordinating various cost reduction projects including finance outsourcing, office relocation and staff reduction initiatives
•Development and implementation of marketing processes and systems generating new business enquiries and customer acquisition
Improved personal effectiveness of SME business owners through one to one coaching and mentoring in business and financial management
Client Acquisition and Income Generation Provision of business advice, practical help & support to Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs)

( 07917 691264
Richard Allan Hills
FCCA, AMBA
Finance Transformation Business Change Management of a large Organisation Design & SAP implementation at a Barclays subsidiary
Background
Challenges
In 1999 the Barclays leasing subsidiary undertook a redesign of its business model, covering all areas of its business. The Finance team was organised in a fragmented manner including a mix of accounting & administration activity. A radical new Finance design was developed & communicated to staff reflecting the following features:
Achievements
Sponsor Feedback
Aggressive headcount targets
The aggressive reduction targets were set in stone and we did not deviate from this plan. This was reinforced by the Executive. Temporary resource was used for limited periods to provide additional support, where required.
Transition to “End State” design whilst meeting Business -As - Usual (BAU) requirements
This was the most complex and difficult challenge requiring a 40% churn of staff. We needed to recruit a number of new lower skilled recruits, and complete handovers before releasing displaced staff. I decided that the most sensible way to do this was to handover existing processes to new staff before changing to new processes. This delayed realising the full benefits of the new structure for c6 months, and placed a lot of pressure on key members of staff, but was less risky than a big bang approach.
Managing complex & diverse stakeholder expectations
Whilst I was implementing the new OD, a new Finance target model was being planned for the Group, based around a new shared service centre, business partnering, & the roll- out of SAP across the Group. My challenge was to ensure our OD was supportive of this new target model, whilst not delaying realising the benefits required by local management. This was achieved through my regular contact with the Group Finance Change Programme and local Executive & ongoing review & alignment of our plans, where required. I also needed to keep our auditors, governance bodies & external regulators regularly briefed on progress and developments. Throughout the project positive feedback was received from stakeholders.
Meet tight timetable for migration to SAP
We were one of the last Barclays sites to be migrated to SAP. The new OD had been implemented ahead of this migration, where the benefits of the new technology were required to support the planned resource savings. These problems aside, I identified & seconded 4 BAU resource to work full-time on the SAP migration & backfilled these key positions. These BAU staff ensured our interests were effectively represented, supported staff training and they acted as implementation champions. The migration to SAP was achieved within eight months and the required benefits realised.
Change in mindset to new ways of working
Initially staff (and some management) had difficulty relating to the new way of working required in a matrix environment. I tackled this through the performance management process supported by lots of coaching. There was no difficulty in convincing external trainers of the merits of the new approach and I arranged a number of staff training sessions to bring alive the new way of working. A number of communication events, organised by the staff, were held to celebrate success & reinforce the message of what we were trying to achieve. After twelve months staff had become comfortable with the new way of working and much preferred it, as evidenced by excellent staff survey results.
“Richard’s attitude to change and commitment to his role, and his behaviours have been exemplary. He has delivered a number of high priority projects for the business. The most challenging were the implementation of the new OD and SAP. Both contained enormous challenges and were business critical; both were delivered successfully.
Richard is an enthusiastic and competent change and project manager in addition to his accounting / management skills. He has proved himself to be comfortable with ambiguity and he can, and has had to rely on, his inner strength to maintain what has at times been a difficult momentum.”
Chris Boobyer - Finance Director, Barclays Asset Finance (Oct 2002)
I joined the company at the beginning of 2002 and my brief was to lead the department through the change process & deliver the benefits. This included accountability for eight direct reports and sixty staff.
•Focus on core finance rather than administration or transaction processing activities
•Spilt of activities between production and business partnering
•Multi-skilling - new roles defined offering more variety & flexibility, more scope for exposure to different work and different areas of the business
•Leverage benefits of migration to SAP technology
After two & a half years the following was achieved:
•Finance cost base reduced by £1m p.a. through overall headcount reduction, transfers, rebalancing of grade mix, and process efficiencies (25% efficiency saving)
•Successful migration of General Ledger & Accounts Payable to SAP
•Top Quartile Staff Survey results
•Positive feedback from external auditors
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( 07917 691264
Richard Allan Hills
FCCA, AMBA
Finance Transformation Project management of a major organisation design of a central Barclays finance team
Background
The Barclays Group Finance team, located at the Group Centre, comprised 60 staff. The team was responsible for group accounting policy, consolidation of the group’s results and external financial reporting, and the provision of group management accounts and decision support to the Group Executive. An organisation redesign was commissioned by the Director of Group Finance with the following objectives:
• Remove duplication in effort in external and internal report production
• Create a more business-facing structure with better career opportunities
Breaking the mould
The new model challenged current convention that management & financial accounting were two mutually discreet areas. Through process analysis & interviewing staff it was possible to demonstrate inefficiency through duplication of effort.
Managing difficult stakeholders
As with any OD there are winners and losers. Rather than impose one solution a number of options were developed and the preferred option agreed. Stakeholder buy-in was obtained through their participation & agreement in the design.
Change mindset to new way of working
The new model is based on a matrix, rather than a silo based working environment. This required a focus on different behaviours. Role models were identified & used to demonstrate the required behaviours. In addition, communication events were used to reinforce the message.
Minimise redundancies
Prior to the OD being finalised greater use was made of temporary resource. Following definition of new roles and job marching, redundancies were minimised through release of temporary resource.
Transition to End Sate
This is reality time when the good ideas on paper need to be put into practise. This was achieved through planned handovers and dry-runs, where the old & new arrangements ran side by side.
Challenges
I was appointed project manager in Oct 2002 to manage this activity, accountable to the Barclays Group Financial Controller.
Achievements
In consultation with stakeholders, I developed and obtained agreement to a new leading edge organisation design (OD), within 6 months of the project inception. This new design provided two separate but interrelated areas with the following features:
Group Financial Control
•A consolidated reporting function for statutory, management and regulatory reporting providing a single point of contact between the centre and the business. This integration resulted in a 25% resource saving.
•With the increasing regulatory environment (e.g. Sarbanes-Oxley, Basel II, IFRS) a focal point and source of dedicated expertise was provided on financial control, risk mitigation and accounting policy across the Group.
•A new Group Information Management team to provide fast track response to customers for non- standard information.
•A small finance systems capability to co-ordinate and prioritise systems enhancements and to proactively intervene to ensure maximum benefits are achieved from all existing and future system developments, particularly the group-wide investment in SAP.
Business Performance
•Performance Management - a central team of business aware finance professionals working closely with the business finance teams to establish, understand and interpret the consolidated group-wide business performance
•Financial Planning - a team of individuals working closely with Group Strategy & Planning on the financial aspects of the business planning process, as well as driving the annual budgeting process across the organisation
•Cost Management - a central team and investment expertise which sets policies & guidelines across the organisation, monitors financial & non-financial benefits delivered through the strategic investment portfolio and drive group-wide costing & Revenue initiatives
Sponsor Feedback
“Richard played a key role in delivering the new Group Finance organisational design to a tight timetable and involving a number of complex issues and processes… He showed tact and care in managing the needs of the key stakeholders which was very important in realising a successful conclusion. Overall a very good piece of work.” Jon Anderson - Barclays Group Financial Controller (May03)
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( 07917 691264
Richard Allan Hills FCCA, AMBA
Strategy into Action Project managed the development of an integrated measurement, planning and performance management framework, fully aligned to a new company strategy at Liverpool Victoria
Background
Challenges
In 1996 Liverpool Victoria (LV) acquired Frizzell Financial Services (Frizzell) and established new corporate objectives & business strategy for the Group. These new objectives needed to be translated into a set of measures and targets and aligned with the planning and reward mechanisms. Accountable to the HR & Change Director, I was commissioned in mid 1997 to develop and implement new processes that would provide a clear line of sight from company strategy to business and individual performance, and rewarded performance for appropriate behaviours based upon the company’s values. In addition, staff awareness & understanding of the new company strategy needed to be increased. This was a major business programme that took 18 months to complete. Some parts were led by external consultants, other parts I led directly myself.
Need to break the mold & obtain buy-in
The existing measurement & planning processes in LV were focused on financial measures. There was no clear link between strategy, activity and financial performance. The current measurement processes were inappropriate and were designed to reward behaviours that were now inconsistent with the strategy and company’s values.
A radical overhaul of the measurement, planning and reward processes was required. There was a danger however that this would be perceived to be another corporate fad, another new initiative that would fall by the wayside.
To address this, participation at all levels was encouraged in the design, development and implementation of the new processes.
I personally became a role model for the new behaviours and demonstrated these at all appropriate opportunities.
Linking performance to reward
The new framework required a significant cultural shift. The old command / control mentality needed to be replaced with a new participative style of management focused on coaching & support. New ways of working were required based around team working, open communications and quality outcomes. The challenge was to establish a suitable reward mechanism to achieve this.
I participated in a review of available performance management frameworks on the market. A new model was selected that combined the “What” (business outcomes) with the “How” (required behaviours). This model provided a clear link back to business activity plans and company values.
Raising strategic awareness & understanding
There was a lack of awareness of the new company strategy and how it applied to day-to-day operations. To address this I organised and run a number of communication events to raise awareness of the new company strategy and to provide the context for the new planning & performance management process. These events were designed to be interactive to promote buy-in and encourage staff participation in the translation of the strategy into action. Communication champions were identified from these events and they were trained to run similar ones within their own business areas.
An Executive balanced scorecard was developed combining financial and non financial measures that supported the business strategy. I facilitated the cascade of this into functional scorecards and established the MI requirements to support these.
I facilitated the development of a new planning process that focused on business activity required to support the new strategy. These activity plans then provided the basis for the budgeting & forecasting processes.
I managed the roll-out of a multi-level training programme across the company (c3000 staff) for the new performance management process. This was achieved by the use of communication champions who were trained to run a 2-day training session. Top management were invited to host these sessions to provide business context and to demonstrate their commitment.
Positive confirmation from management and staff of increased awareness and understanding of the company strategy
I successfully handed over the new processes to Business-As-Usual operations.
Achievements
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Strategy Development Development & implementation of a service strategy and change programmes at Halifax Insurance
Background
Challenges
In the early 1990s the Halifax Insurance Board agreed that improved service quality would enable the company to differentiate itself from its competitors..
I was appointed as in internal consultant and change manager to develop and implement a new service strategy to support this aim.
The strategy took 12 months to develop and agree and was completed as my MBA dissertation at Ashridge Management College. It entailed a thorough review of all aspects of the company’s service operation. This covered tangible elements such as its people and systems and intangible elements such as the company’s culture.
The implementation of the strategy took a further 12 months. This required commissioning and progressing various large change programmes.
Achievements
Managing Sponsor’s expectations
At the start of the project, the sponsor anticipated that the service strategy would work within a structured framework of preparing the company for formal quality accreditation. It soon became clear to me that developing a service culture was the company’s most important priority. After completing an evaluation of the implications for obtaining a service quality award, and seeking expert opinion, I was able to build a convincing argument that going a for a quality award was not the best way forward.
Build trust & confidence of the Board
I was operating at Board level but was not a member of the Board. I therefore needed the support of the Board without making them feel disenfranchised or threatened by my presence. This was addressed this in a variety of ways. Firstly, through maintaining regular contact with the Board members, both individually & collectively, they were kept updated on progress and developments and discuss issues. Secondly, through requesting the Board’s input in the design, development and implementation of the new strategy through 1-2-1 sessions, participation in workshops, hosting staff communication events, etc.
Build trust & confidence of management & staff
In addition to the Board, I needed to build trust and confidence across all levels of the organisation. I achieved this by not aligning myself with any specific group to maintain my independence. I ensured that the purpose of all requests was explained and understood. I fed back the results of any discussions to avoid misinterpretation or misstatement of what was said. I encouraged openness and honesty by others and ensured confidentiality was maintained, where appropriate. Finally, I presented things as they are rather than how others would like these to be perceived.
How to be effective outside of my comfort zone
I was expected to be an expert on all areas of the business. My previous background was financial and I was now getting into other areas of the business that I had limited exposure to. I addressed this by utilising my network of business contacts to discuss developments, critique material (e.g. interventions, surveys, reports, presentations) and seek advice on the robustness of proposals before presenting these to the client.
Conflict of priorities
The demands of the MBA were high & had to balanced against the needs of the Client. Effective time management was critical to maintain focus on a variable and demanding workload. This was achieved through detailed planning and organising to ensure that best use was made of available time. I applied my other assignments on the MBA to the development of the service strategy. This ensured that I maintained focus and made best use of my available time.
Development and agreement of new service strategy. Obtained distinction for strategy as main dissertation for Ashridge Executive MBA.
Planned and progressed change programmes to deliver the service strategy, including:
- Multi-level management development to tackle cultural blockages and improve individual performance
-Improved use of technology [e.g. Electronic Data Interface (EDI) with intermediaries (brokers) to replace paper based processes].
-Business Process Redesign (BPR) of underwriting and claims processing
Successful hand-over of implementation plan to deliver strategy to Business-As-Usual operations
Obtained positive Client feedback to consultancy and change management support provided
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( 07917 691264
Richard Allan Hills
FCCA, AMBA
Profit Improvement Project & change management of various cost reduction & process improvement initiatives at Abbey & Frizzell
Background
Challenges
Achievements
£350k p.a. agreed cost reduction savings from review of Computer Network Services & Facilities departments (Frizzell)
£250k p.a (30%) agreed cost reduction savings from redesign & reorganisation of Customer Accounts department (Frizzell)
£150k p.a. (30%) agreed cost reduction savings from redesign of Management Accounting department (Abbey)
Build trust & confidence
How to overcome resistance when jobs & livelihood are threatened. Open communications is the technique that has worked most effectively for me. Explain clearly the purpose of the exercise and emphasise the benefits. Keep people regularly posted and be open & honest. Seek staff input and involvement rather than assuming that there is only one answer and you know what it is. Finally, be prepared to sacrifice your own position if that is consistent with the principles that you are applying to others.
Manage difficult stakeholders
Cost reduction is not a topic that everyone is supportive of. The technique that I use is to seek the involvement of difficult stakeholders rather than keeping them at a distance or removed from the process. They may have valid concerns and they are a useful resource to help resolve these. As a general observation there is much higher likelihood of buy-in if people feel they have contributed to the outcome.
Aggressive targets
Stakeholders often have demanding expectations that need managing. A useful technique is to look for quick wins. Establishing a track record of early delivery goes a long way to raising stakeholder confidence.
Establish a reliable fact base
It is important to have reliable data and evidence to support cost reduction proposals, rather than relying on intuition and assumptions. These should be documented and verified with the source. Workshops are a useful way of getting group input and buy-in and stimulating ideas for further investigation.
Abbey Life Assurance Co. (Abbey)
In the early 1990s Abbey identified the need to significantly reduce its operating expenses to improve its profitability. To this end it commissioned a firm of consultants to carry out a major review of its Head Office expenses. I managed the review of my department and developed recommendations for cost reductions in line with the required methodology. The savings were agreed and my position became redundant as part of the required restructuring to realise the benefits.
Frizzell Financial Services (Frizzell)
In the period between 1993 & 1996 Frizzell commissioned various initiatives to reduce its operating expenses and improve process efficiency. In respect of these:
-I was appointed project manager by the FD to agree cost reduction savings for the Computer Network Services & Facilities departments
-I was appointed business change manager by the FD to deliver required benefits from the redesign of the Customer Accounts departments, as part of a company wide Business Process Reengineering (BPR) initiative. This entailed leading a team of 40 staff for 18 months through a change process. This team was involved in Treasury, Accounting and Credit Control activity.
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Regulatory Compliance - Sarbanes-Oxley Project management of the preparation of Barclays group central support functions (Finance, HR, Treasury, Tax, Risk, etc) for s404 compliance
Background
Challenges
In 2003 Barclays commenced preparation for a live SOX implementation at the beginning of 2004. Following a deferral of the implementation date by 12 months by the SEC, Barclays decided to press ahead and use 2004 as a dry-run. There has now been a subsequent deferment of the implementation date by the SEC for a further 12 months to Jan 2006. I joined the programme in Oct 2003, initially to assist the mobilisation of the new Group central programme team. This included standard Prince 2 start-up activities, and setting up a new Programme Management Office (PMO). In Jan 2004 I was appointed SOX Project Manager for a key business area - Group Central Functions (GCF). GCF comprises all the group central support functions (Finance, HR, Treasury, Tax, Risk, etc). Having successfully completed the dry-run the ongoing GCF SOX requirements has now been handed over to Business-As-Usual (BAU) operations.
Achievements
Evolving & subjective requirements
The s404 requirements were evolving & open to interpretation during the project. It was also a case of “one size doesn’t fit all” for application across the Bank and there was no “right answer”. For GCF I addressed these issues by managing a cross discipline team of financial control, risk & project practitioners. This team met regularly to monitor progress and to provide direction to the functions.
Conflict with other regulatory initiatives
Barclays, along with other Financial Services organisations, is now faced with meeting a large number of complex new regulatory requirements, including SOX, Basel II, Turnbull, Corporate Governance and IFRS, to name a few. I recognised that these are all playing in the same space, albeit with its own individual focus & requirements. To address this, I adopted an approach for SOX whereby existing documentation was utilised, where possible and the outputs shared with other initiatives.
I formed a Steering Group that included representation of all GCF Function Heads impacted by the requirements. It would be true to say that not all stakeholders embraced meeting these as readily as others! I maintained regular contact with difficult stakeholders to reinforce the message and obtain buy-in. I also ensured that compliance with SOX requirements became an integral part of the performance management process. I provided monthly progress updates to the Steering Group and briefed the Accountable Executive briefed, identifying where his specific intervention was required. The outcome has been that SOX is now firmly on the management agenda and positive feedback has been received on stakeholder management.
There was a problem with some areas being ill equipped and lacking the appropriate skills & understanding to meet the SOX requirements. This required tact & care in managing the needs of these stakeholders whilst maintaining the focus on the key delivery dates. Help was provided by myself, and support requested from other areas of expertise, as appropriate.
Increasing complexity
The volume of work grew exponentially during the year due to the sheer complexity of what was involved. This included the impact of remediation and integration, the latter being the agreement of all process hand-offs across the Bank. I needed to recruit additional high skilled resource and obtain agreement to extend the dry-run by three months to the end of March 2005.
•All key risks & supporting key control activities (c200) of material financial processes (25) documented to an auditable standard.
•Entity level controls & General Computer Controls identified and documented.
•Audit plan in place to test all controls prior to go-live date and substantially completed.
•New remediation process in place to address all items in a timely manner to ensure s404 compliance.
•New Target Operating Model developed, agreed and handed over to BAU operations to ensure ongoing compliance with s404 requirements.
•All project close-down criteria achieved and agreed with central programme team.
Sponsor Feedback
“…Throughout the year, Richard has always endeavoured to do what is right for Barclays and has put in many long days without complaint. He has also provided much needed help and support to those areas that were overwhelmed by what was required. His attitude has been one of the consummate professional that has been noted by those around him. Richard has been a driving force within the GCF / Central Support team to ensure that we are SOX compliant going forward.” Jo Fraser - GCF Change Portfolio Director (Feb 2005)
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Improved Financial Control Project management of the development of a new Financial Control framework to support a company wide Business Process Re-engineering initiative at Frizzell
Background
Challenges
In the mid 1990s Frizzell Financial Services (Frizzell) decided to carry out a major Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) of its legacy systems covering its personal lines business activity. As a result of this initiative a lot of the financial controls previously applied by the Finance division were to be either automated, or responsibility transferred to the business, to improve service response times. A complete rethink was required of how financial control needed to operate in this new automated environment. I was commissioned by the Finance Director to develop a new financial control framework and to manage the implementation of the new controls.
Achievements
Obtain business support
The business did not welcome accommodating additional financial control requirements, when its focus was on saving cost and improving customer service. The trick was to keep it simple and ensure focus was maintained on the key areas. To achieve this I adopted a risk based approach. I facilitated a number of cross-functional workshops to agree the financial risks attached to each new process. Key controls were defined for each risk and circulated to the business for review & challenge. After an iterative process, sign-off was obtained from the business to the new controls.
Financial Control expertise
The development of a financial control framework ideally required input from the auditing as well as the business community. The auditors were reluctant to assist with the definition of the controls as this would compromise their independence. I addressed this problem by using my accountancy & internal auditing knowledge to draft proposed controls, & obtained audit feedback on its appropriateness.
Pressure on delivery dates & to reduce costs
Due to the scale and complexity of the BPR programme there was pressure to descope financial control requirements or defer to a later release. This required care and tact to resist compromising financial control requirements. I addressed this through highlighting to the key stakeholders the risks and impact of any descoping proposals. I requested the Finance Director’s support to reinforce areas of concern, where appropriate.
The new way of working required the business to be more aware of the need for financial control. I obtained this awareness through involving key representatives from the business in the development and agreement of the financial control framework. After I had defined the framework I assigned responsibility for its implementation and ongoing operation to the business. I subsequently monitored the quality of the implementation.
Managing diverse stakeholder expectations
I needed to manage a variety of stakeholders who each had their own specific interest in developments. I achieved this through one-to-one meetings, engagement of stakeholders in workshops, regular project updates to the Finance Director (Sponsor) & to the Programme Executive, and communication bulletins to staff.
•A new Financial Control framework, developed, agreed and implemented covering all aspects of customer and supplier interactions. This framework was documented in a Controls manual, showing detailing the key financial controls for each business process. For each key control the following information was provided: Control objective; key risk being addressed; description, responsibility & frequency of control. The business used this policy framework to set-up & implement supporting working practices and procedures.
•Responsibility for the execution of the controls was successfully handed to Business-As-Usual operations. The Finance Director was responsible and accountable for the overall financial control framework.
•Positive feedback received from sponsor & key stakeholders
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( 07917 691264
S166 Compliance Review Project management of client review to establish where best advice had not been provided & redress payments where this was not the case
Background
Challenges
Following a complaint to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) a s166 review was undertaken of the company’s file. This review highlighted a number of risks relating to the company’s approach to replacement business. A further s166 review was requested focused on Pension & Investment switching from a 3rd party fund sponsored by the company that was closed. I was recruited to project manage this review in conjunction with a Skilled Person appointed by the FCA. The purpose of the review was to assess if the company’s clients were treated fairly following the withdrawal of the 3rd party fund in which their funds were invested. Should the review find that any client was not fairly treated & led to financial detriment then appropriate redress was to be made. The scope of the review was approximately 210 contract.
Achievements
Project Management expectations
This project is viewed as being high profile so proper project management disciplines are expected. To this end the project has being organised and run on Prince 2 standards
The project has involved managing the expectations of the Regulator whilst being sensitive to the low enthusiasm by the client for the review. This has been achieved by maintaining clear, effective communication with all stakeholders throughout the process.
Maintaining effective record of results of review
Set up & maintained PC spreadsheet recording the key results of the review, workflow and quality checking status. This spreadsheet has grown into a large database that is shared by a number of users for inputting and interrogation purposes
Focus on quality
A s166 review is serious so the results of the review need to stand up to close scrutiny by the Regulator (via its appointed Skilled Person). This has been provided by implementing effective quality management involving quality control & quality assurance, with support for technical issues arising.
•File review completed on schedule & graded to standards required by Skilled Person appointed by Regulator
•Client contact & redress currently in progress in accordance with approach agreed with Regulator
Richard quickly got to grips with what needed to be done to meet the requirement for a s166 compliance review commissioned by the FCA. He turned this complexity into a clear plan of action that was signed-off by the internal executive & the FCA without amendment. He then effectively managed and gelled internally seconded and external recruited contract resource into a motivated team that met all that was required from them. Importantly he provided confidence to a variety of senior internal and external stakeholders that the project was being effectively managed and under control. This took the pressure off myself enabling me to focus on other business priorities requiring my attention. I would have no hesitation recommending Richard for a project or change management role where planning & organising, communication, people skills are required & credibility at a senior level is essential.
Nick Scarrett - Head of Distribution Compliance, Sanlam Wealth (Nov 2014)
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Richard Allan Hills
FCCA, AMBA
Improved Management Information Managed the successful development of financial reporting processes at Abbey & Chase to deliver improved information & decision support to management
Background
Challenges
Achievements
Improved distributor reporting system providing better and more timely information on distributor’s sales & costs in respect of Shulton’s products. (Shulton)
Identified and implemented a significant cost saving opportunity that resulted in less less tax being paid to the authorities on imported goods. (Shulton)
Improved cost control through development & implementation of cost control systems that was perceived to be of value to Marketing as well as Finance. (Playtex)
Refocusing performance reporting to a forward rather than a backward looking perspective. This was successfully achieved through the development of a forecasting capability and focus on activity drivers, rather than focusing on actual versus budget comparisons. (Chase)
I successfully convinced the sponsor of developing a PC based rather than a mainframe costing solution. By keeping it simple I was able to design & deliver a solution on time that successfully met all the stakeholder expectations. (Abbey)
A summary of highlights of my early career achievements during the mid to late 1980s.
Build trust & confidence (Shulton)
Finance had previously been excluded from commercial dealings with overseas distributors due to personality problems. A lot of careful stakeholder management was required to repair this relationship. This was achieved through my seeking opportunities where I could demonstrate that I could be of value. Once I had made a breakthrough, I was successfully integrated into the management team.
Managing stakeholder expectations (Playtex)
Whilst the need for cost control was understood Marketing needed a better way of recording costs, rather than in a format which was only of use to Finance. I successfully addressed this problem by seeking Marketing’s involvement in the design and development of a new cost reporting system that met both Marketing & Finance requirements.
Lack of experience of my team (Chase)
The Finance Director (FD) had a reputation of being a hard task master who often had unrealistic expectations. Care & tact was required in these expectations due to the lack of experience of the finance team. I addressed this through regular meetings, confirmation of understanding of requests and seeking the FD’s involvement in the development of solutions.
New approach to Reporting (Chase)
There was a perception that the performance reporting process kept score rather than providing useful decision support information for management. The challenge was to balance the demands for producing monthly reporting whilst developing and implementing improvements. Due to the inexperience of my team I undertook the development of improvements myself in consultation with interested stakeholders. I then involved my team in progressing these when they had capacity to do so.
Managing stakeholder expectations (Abbey)
I was faced with high expectations and a tight timeframe to deliver a solution. I persuaded the Sponsor that the best way forward was to develop a PC based solution, rather than the previously favoured, mainframe solution. I then formed a cross functional working party to participate in the development and implementation of this system. This obtained buy-in.
Shulton (toiletries)
The Overseas operation involved the management of distributors and agents in a number of markets, the largest being in Europe. The products were sourced from two locations in England and Holland.
I was appointed as Finance Manager with responsibility to provide an effective financial service to Overseas management, as well as ensuring proper financial control was maintained.
Playtex (lingerie)
The Finance division was based in Scotland whilst the sales & marketing team were based in the south of England. A new Finance Manager position was created to be based with the Sales & Marketing team. I was appointed into this position.
Chase Manhattan (Chase) - Financial Services
There had been a complete replacement of staff following the decision by the company to relocate its support services from London to Bournemouth. I joined the company at the time of this relocation.
Abbey Life (Abbey) - Financial Services
The business had a need for reliable costing information to support product costing, actuarial and embedded value reporting calculations A new FD had been appointed and this was his immediate top priority. I was commissioned to manage this project & had no previous costing experience.
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Agreed recommendations for correction of unsatisfactory conditions and to make improvements in operations. (Cyanamid)
Improved financial controls at subsidiary (Montague Meyer)
Miscellaneous Achievements Project & line management of various initiatives during the late 70s & early 80s
Background
Achievements
Challenges
Steep learning curve (Cyanamid / Montague Meyer)
In both cases I was diving in at the deep end where I had not yet learnt to swim. I addressed this lack of experience & need to get up to speed quickly by consulting others for guidance & support, where required, as well as accessing my own learning material.
I adopted a style of applied learning and was happy to experiment with new ideas and learn by my mistakes. I regularly sought feedback and did not wait for it to be given.
Finally, I was prepared to put in whatever effort was required to get a result.
Build trust & confidence (Montague Meyer)
I addressed my lack of experience by projecting a calm image to staff whilst buying time to decide out how best to solve problems. I would not expect staff to do something that I was not prepared to do myself. Through demonstrating that I knew what I was talking about, and projecting a calm image, I was able to quickly build trust & confidence.
Cultural differences (Cyanamid)
We were often dealing with people from a different culture & background to our own. I adopted a consultative, non confrontational style where through the frequent use of open questions I was able to collect a lot of data quickly. This enabled me to decide on appropriate coping strategies and how best to build relationships.
Cyanamid (Pharmaceuticals)
A new internal operations audit department had been established in the UK with responsibility for Europe, Middle East & Africa. I joined as a junior auditor with no previous audit experience. Assignments were mostly in Europe, where not everybody spoke English. I was viewed as being the German expert on the strength of having studied German at school.
I progressed to senior auditor where I took charge of my own audits.
Montague Meyer (Timber)
There had been a deterioration in the collection of sales ledger, settlement of accounts payable balances, and wages control resulting from the introduction of new systems and staff turnover. In addition the General Ledger was incomplete and not up-to-date.
Having just completed my accountancy studies I had no experience of managing an accounts office. I saw this as an opportunity & volunteered to take on the vacant role of Divisional Accountant & sort out the problems. My request was accepted and I fulfilled the role for two years.
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