Halfords

The questions on everyone's lips

• There’s a lot of employers out there... What made you choose us?

  I was relocating from London to the Midlands and wanted to find a high profile, great company with a commercially focused Finance team in a fast-moving environment. Halfords fitted the bill and I immediately related to the Halfords colleagues I met at interview. The passion for the business (and the people in it) was really clear.

• Tell us a bit about your role…

  I lead the Retail Finance team in providing quality commercial finance support to all our stakeholders, ensuring delivery of appropriate information and insight to drive commercial decision-making across the business. My team plays a key role in shaping the financial outlook of the business and supporting Retail in hitting the numbers.

  I am fortunate that my role allows me to get involved in all aspects of retail at Halfords, alongside my responsibilities for driving the agenda for the Retail Finance team.

• What do you get up to on a typical day?

  My days vary massively across the week/year!

  Some days I might not be at my desk at all, perhaps in meetings reviewing trading performance, identifying risks and opportunities and supporting reactive decision making. Or, I could be contributing to the financial plans, looking at what our likely year end performance is going to be, or the shape of the P&L in five years time!

• What’s the best thing about working here?

  I love the family feel at Halfords, everyone’s dedication to doing the right thing for the customer and the business, supporting each other and having fun along the way.

• What challenges have you faced and how did you deal with them?

  The key challenges tend to centre around the changing external environment, i.e. issues impacting the finances of the business outside of internal control, how to assess the risk/opportunity and mitigate the impact. We work together as a business, ensuring the relevant expertise is utilised to determine the best route forward. 

• Tell us about the training and development...

  I am very proud of development in Finance! Alongside the great training and development programme set by our People team we have a Finance development programme which is accredited by CIMA, in recognition of the support we provide for students and members. CIMA recognise that we provide the framework for Continual Personal Development (CPD - a necessity for an Accounting qualification) through delivery of workshops based on knowledge, skills, and business.

• What's been your biggest achievement?

  My biggest achievement is being given the opportunity to lead the Retail Finance team. After working my way through various commercial finance roles during my time at Halfords (and having two little boys along the way), I was so proud to be given the chance to head up such a great team.

• What do you think makes someone successful at Halfords?

  Being successful at Halfords is a lot about having the right attitude – an enthusiastic, can do approach, and generally just getting stuck in!

• And, to anyone thinking about applying, what would you tell them?

  If you are after an exciting opportunity and enjoy a challenge then you’re looking in the right place. Halfords is a great company with great people. My first impressions from interview were spot on and I still feel the same passion across the business 12 years later!