Team Player

Alexandra Cain: How did your financial career kick off?

Paul Collins: I’m fortunate in having followed an unusual path to be where I am today, in that I had invaluable first-hand experience of what it takes to be part of a successful team. To be an Ireland rugby international was clearly an enormous honour – and a huge highlight of my life. But just as important as the memories and pride, is the lesson that period gave me in being part of a formidable team – and then being just one member of that team in action. Above all, it taught me the value of having a group of people around who you can rely on, have complete confidence in and trust. The lesson has stood the test of time and it is a cornerstone of how I like to work in understanding what true teamwork is all about.

How did this lead to your present role?

While the rugby career was certainly a highlight, it ran in tandem with my academic development at University College Cork, where I read commerce before joining PricewaterhouseCoopers in 1982 to begin training as a chartered accountant. From there it was on to Dublin and a fairly traditional accountancy office for further training, which lead to a role in internal auditing when I qualified. My first senior role in London came with my appointment as financial controller for Cargill, mainly working in their commodity broking division – it seemed to involve buying and selling a great deal of wheat. For me this period was unsettling and I was anxious to identify new challenges. It was around this time, in 1991 that I first met Ray O’Rourke. He was looking for a financial controller in the plant business Select, and I went for an interview at the corporate offices – a collection of Portakabins and a fair amount of chaos. The sense of energy and excitement was palpable though, and it was hugely attractive.

Since then I have been part of an extraordinary journey, with several key roles, including as part of the team driving the acquisition of the Laing business. I moved through commercial manager positions before my appointment as deputy finance director in the O’Rourke group. Later, I moved into something wider when I took on the role of managing director for Select Plant – Laing O’Rourke’s plant business.

This was a vibrant time with a great deal of activity, which led to my appointment as MD specialist trading. I have been in my current role as FD Europe for a couple of months now and I feel far better qualified to fulfil this role having been through a broad range of operational and business-leading roles.

What does your role encompass?

I have overall financial responsibility for European operations, principally construction and work winning, which is a vital part of planning for the group. Our managed revenue reached £3.24 billion last year – 76% of the group’s overall revenue, so there is an enormous dependence on the performance of the European hub, within our three-hub model of Europe, the Middle East and Asia, and Australasia. I sit as a member of the European executive team and the critical focus for us is one of clear leadership and reinforcing the importance of collaboration.

Why did you choose to take the position?

I saw this as a challenging opportunity: we have grown significantly in recent years – managed revenue in 2004 at £1.54 billion was less than half what it is now so the growth is rapid – and clearly there is a need to ensure we have appropriate structures and processes to manage continuing growth.

Equally important was that I saw it as a chance to work again with a burgeoning and highly talented finance team. With the current macroeconomic challenges in the marketplace, financial leadership is more important than ever. From a strategic perspective we have made some exciting appointments at high levels in the business, so this gives me a fantastic opportunity to work alongside sector-leading executive team colleagues. I’ve already mentioned collaboration and this translates into the relationship between finance and the business units, as well as the wider relationship with clients. There is always the opportunity to find greater effectiveness and efficiency in reporting processes through integrated delivery.

What are some of the biggest opportunities in the role?

Ensuring the role of finance is understood, in work winning, performance review or the overall business review process. Above all, i value the opportunity to develop my team to meet the opportunities the future holds.

What are the challenges?

There is a hunger and drive about the business and it is vital that finance matches that pace. The vision and ambition I first saw in Ray O’Rourke burns as fiercely now as it did 17 years ago. We have to ensure we are aligned and able to rise to the opportunities out there. From a daily perspective the challenges now are finding new financial controllers for two of our business units – Select and Scottish – while also ensuring we are able to integrate state-of-the-art systems with the other hubs.

Who has inspired you most in your career?

Ray O’Rourke has been a central inspiration, but from my rugby playing days I have retained a lasting admiration for the All Blacks’ loose forward Michael ‘The Iceman’ Jones – one of the most talented sportsmen I’ve seen, but an individual with great personal humility and an unwavering code of values.

If you had one piece of advice for aspiring FDs what would it be?

Read widely and continually educate yourself. Finance is just one sphere of business and if you are presented with new challenges, then be flexible in dealing with them. Opportunities in my career have come about largely on the back of being flexible in gaining hands-on experience in other roles.

Any interesting hobbies?

I am planning to cycle the length of Ireland next year for charity.

Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?

That’s a long way off and this is a very challenging role certainly with some very significant issues to deal with in the next two to three years – one thing is for certain and that is opportunities will always be there in this organisation.