I became an accountant because the role is crucial in formulating company strategy. I have a natural curiosity – I like finding out what, how, why, what if, etc.
After I graduated from university, I worked for six years as an assistant finance manager in Fossil Group. Fossil is a global company based in Hong Kong that sells fashion watches, jewellery, handbags and leather goods. I was eventually assigned to the project team transforming the ERP system. It involved workflow transformation, plus lots of collaboration with stakeholders. The whole project took two years, and left me with a great sense of pride in working with amazing team leaders – I wanted to be one of them.
One of my bosses inspired me to ‘think big’ and ‘outside of the box’. I made finance director in 10 years
I enjoy working with people collaboratively. Connection, communication, change and collaboration are my four Cs. I like exchanging ideas and knowledge with people who trust, care for and respect each other on company objectives.
It was at Fossil that I started my ACCA journey. I got some of the top marks for the corporate reporting paper and was invited by the principal at HKCA Learning Media, where I was studying for ACCA, to be a part-time tutor for the financial reporting paper in Shanghai and Hong Kong. I did that for two years.
After Fossil, I moved to the operational finance team of Techtronic Industries, a manufacturer of cordless tech. Part of my role included working on the standardisation and digitalisation of reporting processes. One of my bosses inspired me to ‘think big’ and ‘outside of the box’ on supply chain automation and transformation projects. I made finance director in 10 years.
My family decided to leave Hong Kong three years ago, and my career path continues in London. I am working as a financial controller at startup online watch retailer Watch Pilot. My priorities are managing a healthy financial position and maintaining sufficient cashflow to support company growth. We opened our first bricks-and-mortar store in Richmond, London, at the end of last year.
‘If you think you can, you can’ is now my motto
Until moving to London, I had lived in Hong Kong all my life. Though I had done lots of travelling, I had never been away from my home town for more than a month. England was the first European country we visited. It is our home now. Moving abroad has taught me that there are more solutions than there are problems. ‘If you think you can, you can’ is now my motto.
In the corporate world there are opportunities to grow with the company. The better the company development, the better the career development. Alongside the preparation of quality financial statements, insightful interpretation and financial advice are the critical success factors. The key aspects of my current role are integrity, trustworthiness, discipline and a forward-looking mindset.
My biggest achievement, apart from becoming an FCCA, is gaining a master’s in global supply chain management. The subject extends my career scope to supply chain finance. As an accountant, I can not only manage the financial position but also analyse operational performance throughout supply chain activities.
Outside work, I like travelling. I plan to travel around the UK and at least five other European countries over the next three years. To relax, I build miniature doll’s houses, using them to decorate my home or as gifts for friends.
