Leaders of the Future Awards
On the 14 of April 2008 ten budding future leaders in the public finance sector were recognised at a CIPFA awards ceremony; the finance professionals were nominated by colleagues who had identified them as having great leadership potential.
The ‘Leaders of the Future’ competition was run by CIPFA, Public Finance Magazine and sponsored by Hays Accountancy and Finance. The winners were recognised for the following: leading by example, giving purpose and direction to the work of their team, getting the best from their colleagues, continuing to learn and improve upon their own skills set, and focusing on delivery and value.
Are you a potential future leader?
This new accolade will come as an inspiration to future accountants that want recognition for their leadership ability as well as their accountancy qualifications. Bridging the gap between a qualified accountant and a good leader is becoming all the more important and identifying the ways in which people are doing this successfully can only encourage those hoping to do the same.
The current shortage of professionals to fill leadership roles in the public sector goes a long way in demonstrating the case for recognition of these aspiring professionals. The vast majority of organisations have now embedded leadership values within personal development programs but there is still a long way to go. At a recent Hays Leadership in Finance Forum, only two of the 25 professionals in attendance could hold their hand up to having worked with a great leader at some point in their career.
Andy Robling, Hays Public Services Director, highlighted the need for more recognition of leadership: "There is an urgent need for dynamic individuals who will inspire their teams and manage change. It is important that we identify those with potential and develop the skills that will help them become a leader of the future. In recruitment, we are constantly looking for these skills in our candidates.
"We are driving the message of leadership across the business in order to promote its importance in today’s work force. Awards like this inspire consideration of these qualities amongst peers and by giving them recognition we can then take the next steps to ensure that we are doing everything we can to keep them on the right track".
Excellence in public sector finance jobs
CIPFA president, John Butler, said the Future Leaders could be an inspiration to all finance professionals working in the public services: "It’s sometimes easy in working life to become cynical. But when you read the tales of our Future Leaders, you realise why we are all doing the jobs we do – to help provide excellent public services effectively and efficiently.
"These are people who perform at a high level and can work with all parts of an organisation and beyond. They manage people by inspiring them, they know when to delegate and when to take the lead, and they understand the importance of teamwork and communication. Our ten Future Leaders are all people who have a passion for public services. They want to make a difference by supporting those who work on the front line – they see finance as a facilitator and not a barrier to making things happen".
The nominations were assessed by a judging panel chaired by Adrian Pulham, CIPFA’s education and training director, and comprising: Jonathan Causton, chair of CIPFA’s National Student Forum; Pam Dyson, national head of finance skills development for NHS England; Mike Robinson, director of government and public sector at PricewaterhouseCoopers; Andy Robling, director of public services for Hays Accountancy & Finance; and Mike Thatcher, editor, Public Finance.
The judges’ guiding principle was to look for people who could make it to the top jobs in the profession, as finance directors or chief executives. They should be congratulated for their perspicacity – as, since being selected, one of our Future Leaders has been promoted to the position of acting director of finance. Another has become deputy head of finance.
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