This month we meet two CFOs charting very different courses. Having worked his way up the finance ladder at Jotun, Dubai-based Ibrahim AlShami FCCA is now regional FD at the Norwegian paint manufacturer, whose products protect such landmarks as the Burj Khalifa. He talks about looking to the long term, corporate culture and communication.
We also meet award-winning Azam Ahamed FCCA, CFO of Biyaq Oilfield Services in Oman. Not only did the pandemic break out just as he moved to Muscat from Sri Lanka, but a cyber attack wiped out three years of the business’s financial data. Having dug deep into his professional reserves to deal with the repercussions of these events, he is now excited by the ‘opportunities for those who are interested in contributing to a sustainable future’ in the energy sector.
In celebration of World Earth Day on 22 April, we look at how to value what makes life possible. While natural capital assets such as land have always been recognised on balance sheets using traditional accounting concepts, the emergence of new ecosystem services makes valuation of assets as well as liabilities more challenging. And as extreme weather events become more frequent, we look at why organisations need to embed climate risk management into their business continuity planning.
Returning to work after a career break is a daunting prospect for many women given the likely changes to work environment, teams and processes during their absence. Our article looks at the support and resources that can help them re-establish a successful career.
Anyone looking for a new career challenge would be well advised to understand how AI is being used in the recruitment process. One trend fast gaining ground is skills-based hiring, with recruiters focusing on candidates’ specific skills rather than education and experience. This used to be a time-consuming task, with candidate skills manually mapped against job descriptions – not any more, as AI can do the matching in a flash. Find out in what other ways the technology is changing the hiring process.
