Our People

A first-hand example of the development opportunities available.

Corporate Services Director

I joined Hazlewoods in 1997 after completing a degree in maths at Brasenose College, Oxford. Despite most of my university friends jumping on the London bandwagon, the appeal of living in a beautiful part of the world and working for a medium-sized firm always appealed to me and I decided to go with my instincts. Looking back now, I am absolutely sure that I made the right decision.

The three years of training for my ACA were hard work but great fun – Hazlewoods takes on around 20 students a year, and this means that you make some very close friends as you see your colleagues at work, at college and socially. Whilst some of my friends from this period have moved on to other things, we all still keep in touch.

Since qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 2000, I have moved on from senior, to manager, to senior manager and now to director (with a move to partner hopefully not too far on the horizon). My promotions were based on my own personal achievement rather than the firm looking to fill gaps at certain levels.

I am now responsible for a large client base, as well as having overall control of a growing department of 15 people. My experience has generally been in the larger end of the corporate market, providing audit and financial reporting services. I have experience in fully listed, AIM listed and private companies, and have covered many different industries including manufacturing, tourism, construction, IT, distribution and not-for-profit.

Overall I have found my career at Hazlewoods so far a rewarding and interesting experience. The size of the firm means that it has the expertise to be able to deal with most situations and take on interesting work, but is also small enough to allow you to build valuable relationships with your clients and colleagues.