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I joined Boult as a Finance Management Assistant and, having progressed my career within our finance functions, I now serve as the firm’s Finance Director. I’d always envisaged a career in finance from my days in academia and my first foray into the commercial world as part of a gap year during my studies. Having the opportunity to build a career I love with Boult has been a real pleasure.
Fundamentally, I am responsible for the financial activities of the firm, and advise on all financial decisions the company is required to make. My team (now of 14 people) and I ensure the smooth operation of the firm’s financial infrastructure. Our work covers financial accounts, credit control and billing, as well as the broader longer term financial strategy. Client requirements around billing can be varied, and one of the key aims of my team is to accommodate their requests wherever possible. That could incorporate preparing bills in a particular way, such as e-billing, or ensuring requests are sent to the preferred recipients in the client’s firm, at the right time and date. Flexibility is key in ensuring client relationships are maintained to the highest standard and I take a real sense of satisfaction in seeing positive results from our work.
I sit as part of the firm’s commercial committee which serves as a forum for our commercial direction and strategy. I’ve always found it easy to voice my ideas for innovations and improvements during my time at Boult. It’s something I encourage whether from my peers on the commercial committee, or across my team. A fantastic client service needs new innovation and improvement to systems, approaches and methods to continue to deliver. In relation to finance, I am always pushing to find new ways to improve our efficiency as a team.
I’ve also held a position on our diversity and inclusion committee for several years, something very close to my heart and that I really believe in. I’m proud of the culture we have here at Boult – it’s an important factor as to why I’ve been so happy here for over a decade – and believe it really does set us apart. We have a great balance between a professional and familial culture in the firm. Moreover, I really believe the diversity of our teams is one of our core strengths. I certainly feel empowered to be myself at the firm and I am proud to say that’s something I see reflected in my own team and our wider practice areas and business services.
I also regularly attend the IP Inclusive Women in IP industry events. I was a panellist at the last in-person conference on the topic of The Authority Gap: Why women are still taken less seriously than men, and what we can do about it. I find sharing ideas and experience with other leaders in the industry to be really inspiring.