Experience

• 

  Self-Employed

  • Contract Accountant

    • Apr 1988 - Present

    The main job is tax returns (all of them starting with PAYE and finishing with annual income tax returns) but have done some much more interesting stuff. Set up the accounting framework using MYOB and help the business transition from cash accounting (using paper based systems) to accrual and inventory accounting.Preparing strategic plans and then more detailed management budgets that are used in monthly financial accounts to check progress and as a feedback into strategic planning.

• 

  Treasure Island Limited

  • Nadi Fiji

  • CFO

    • Feb 2008 - Mar 2009
    • Nadi Fiji

    This was a bigger job than I had imagined. Prior to starting the Financial Controller was dismissed due to financial impropriety and I stepped into the office awash with paperwork. The business used Quick Books but the data file they were using was poorly set up and after a review I decided to start again with opening balances from the 2007 annual accounts. Balance sheet items did not tied up to schedules and the business was effectively running cash accounts.Job one: Set up new data file, enter opening balances and bring the bank account balance forward and reconciling the bank account to the general ledger.Job two: Tidy up the paperwork. Paper was everywhere. Basically cleaned up the office and threw lost of paper out and archived the remaining.Job three: Get accounts payable balances reconciling to supplier statements. A much harder job than expected as the quality of the accounts from suppliers were poor. Much had to written off or written on and at the end of the exercise the amount of outstanding creditors was much higher than anticipated.Job four: prepare monthly accounts. The balance sheet was unreliable as accounts payable struggled to reconcile to supplier statements. The allocation of expenses across divisions was a concern. Only towards the end of the contract was I able to provide timely accounts the showed a true and fair view.Job five: Cash flows and budgets.Job six: Set up an effective purchasing system, inwards goods and stock control. This was a real challenge. Very difficult to get staff focused on systems. The cost of goods sold was high. Menu costing returned food cost of 28% but actual costs were much higher. I could not get to the bottom of the issue but I knew I was looking in the right places because people were getting nervous.Job seven: This should have been job three. Staff did a lot of ticking of boxes but I had issues with the accounting of commissions and collection of debtors.

• 

  Self Employed

  • Auckland, New Zealand

  • Proprietor

    • Dec 1985 - Mar 1988
    • Auckland, New Zealand

    Brought a Video Library with a partner.Very successful business. Brought a computer with two input terminals (early example of a network) and wrote my own library application that tracked the rental and return of the videos.Fell out with the partner and purchased a printing business. Learnt how to print using small offset printing press and purchase an Apple Mac to do page layout and typesetting.Not so successful and when the building where the business was situated caught fire and the roof burnt off I lost heart and eventually sold out and moved on.

• 

  Milton Bradley Limited

  • Auckland, New Zealand

  • Financial Accountant

    • Mar 1983 - Nov 1985
    • Auckland, New Zealand

    The company was called World Games when I started and was taken over by Milton Bradley. Milton Bradley was taken over by Hasbro Bradley.The work was financial accounting and assisting with the introduction of a new computer system when the company moved premises.I was in charge of accounts payable, accounts receivable and inventory clerks.I was sent to the new Sydney office in Australia for some month which was challenging. The new computer system had issues which took some time to sort out.

• 

  Tasman Pulp & Paper Limited

  • Kawerau

  • Assistant Financial Accountant

    • Mar 1980 - Jan 1983
    • Kawerau

    Foreign currency receipts and payments, forward exchange contracts and managing foreign bank accounts. Monthly financial reporting for board reports, consolidating financial reports and when TPP became a subsidiary of Fletcher Challenge Limited providing financial information to be incorporated in the consolidated board report for Fletcher Challenge.Lots of reconciliations, checking payments, checking ledger account allocations and oversea travel advances.Most interesting work was helping with the change over of computer systems.

• 

  Office of the Auditor-General, New Zealand

  • Whangarei

  • Assistant Auditor

    • Nov 1976 - Feb 1980
    • Whangarei

    Assisting in the audits of local authorities, ad hoc authorities and government departments.