Customer Story: Anderman Ceramics
We spoke with our client Anderman Ceramics and their part-time Finance Director from The Finance People, Ray Harrison, to discuss how The Finance People helped save money, time and resource.
Why did Anderman Ceramics need a part-time Finance Director?
Anderman Ceramics had previously had a full-time Finance Director that had given notice. Upon receiving the list of duties in the former employee’s handover, they realised they didn’t necessarily need a full-time FD, but instead a part-time FD with an Accounting Assistant at a more junior level. This ultimately would create savings within the business while still enabling the business to progress.
What was the aim of working with The Finance People?
The primary objective of The Finance People’s service was to provide the right-fit Finance Director to Anderman Ceramics, who could fulfil the list of tasks efficiently and effectively on a part-time basis.
When Anderman Ceramics were looking for the part-time FD to suit their organisation, it could be considered that finding the right fit would not be easy. Hiring Finance for Manufacturing is quite specific and Anderman Ceramics needed someone who was experienced and comfortable with handling overseas elements, such as dealing with different currencies and managing costings for WIP projects internationally. Similarly, they needed an organisation that was able to understand the complexities of hiring in this industry, and what was required for the role.
What was the process like when working with The Finance People?
After reaching out to The Finance People, Anderman Ceramics provided a clear overview of their situation and objectives via a consultation call. Within a timeframe of 2 weeks, The Finance People had narrowed the potential individuals down to just 3 specific Financial Directors. From here, The Finance People did ‘The BBQ test’ and used intuition, culture understanding and personality to align Anderman Ceramics with the part-time FD in mind.
An informal ‘Getting to Know You’ Zoom consultation was set up between the three parties – The Finance People, Anderman Ceramics and the part-time FD. It was decided that Ray was a suitable fit.
“The partnership with Ray Harrison and The Finance People has worked well – we are both on the same wavelength and thought pattern which is truly beneficial for our business. Trust has been established and also a drive for change has been started and continues today. The goal has been to simplify the complex accounting procedures that had built up over time, and we are well underway towards our goal, with the help of our part-time Finance Director.”
What was the end result working with The Finance People?
The Finance People were able to provide an efficient and pragmatic hiring process for an SME with a specific need. Anderman Ceramics replaced a full-time FD with a part-time experienced Finance Director with many other skills.
Understanding the Part-Time FD model
At The Finance People, we give SMEs access to Finance Experts to help their business grow. Whether you need a part-time Finance Director, Finance Manager/Controller or simply to complete outsourced tasks/projects, we align you with your perfect fit Finance professional and ensure your goals are achieved.
For Anderman Ceramics, we understood that they needed a part-time individual. At The Finance People, we have several experienced FDs who work for us, each with a portfolio of 3-5 organisations like Anderman Ceramics, dependent on how many days-per-week they wish to work.
For Anderman Ceramics, the newly-hired Finance Director can achieve his tasks within 2 days, and therefore works for 2 other businesses for the remainder of the working week. This benefits both Anderman Ceramics and the Finance Director, as Anderman Ceramics are able to get access to an experienced Finance Director for a fraction of the cost, while the Finance Director gets the flexibility of working for multiple SMEs
“We’ve been able to drive change in the company and simplify financial procedures, whilst managing an extremely challenging cashflow situation created by the pandemic and previous trading issues.”
Can you relate to Anderman Ceramics?
If you are looking to find the perfect-fit Finance Professional for your organisation, but you’re not sure how many days you need or whether you need a full-time individual at all, you’ve come to the right place. Get in touch with us today to get started on identifying your requirements and getting access to an expert for your business.