Knowing the ACA would set her in good stead got Eleanor Lothian through her ACA exams. Now a manager at Price Bailey, having longer-term views has helped her develop her career.
What attracted you to a degree and a career in accounting?
My interest started after I did some work experience in an accountancy firm while at school. I enjoyed the work and meeting clients, and decided that was the path to follow. I was keen to get a good foundation, so I undertook a degree in accountancy and finance at the University of Lincoln. As part of my degree, I had a placement year at PwC working on a range of audit assignments. My degree cemented my thoughts about going down the ACA route. Once I graduated, I joined Price Bailey in Cambridge.
Why Price Bailey?
Prior to joining, the people at Price Bailey had been very welcoming – I could see myself fitting in. I particularly liked the rotation offered in its graduate programme. When I joined in August 2015, I spent one year in the corporate team doing audit and a second year in the business team, on accounts preparation and tax returns. That provided a good grounding in the basics, although I had always found corporate finance interesting. I had previously attended an insight day and took part in an M&A exercise. I enjoyed the team aspect of working together to solve problems.
How tough was the ACA?
In my placement year at PwC, I started on the same path as the graduates, so I had some experience of the work already. But working while studying does put demands on your time. It’s important to be disciplined and yet also to keep things in perspective. It took three years, but it helped to know it would stand me in good stead for the future. As the ACA covers both audit and financial accounting and reporting, it was helpful to have spent time in different departments and seen how the things I was learning related to the day-to-day work.
The ACA encouraged me to draw on knowledge from different areas and use that to provide the right advice. I now do that on a daily basis, with the additional benefit of practical experience behind me and colleagues to support. The more advanced papers were naturally more advisory in nature, which gave me another small insight into corporate finance work.
What is your current role?
Having had a short placement in corporate finance, I transferred to the team full time in spring 2018 and was promoted to manager in April 2022. My main focus is on preparing company valuations, advising on Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) transactions and undertaking forensic accounting assignments. There is a wide variety of reasons for valuation and I like that variety.
With EOTs, businesses are helped through a transitionary period and projects tend to be longer – months rather than weeks for a typical valuation. It’s a chance to really get to know the clients and help them to navigate the various aspects of the project. That can include initial considerations around value and affordability, structuring and repayment terms, and presentations to staff on what an EOT will mean to them. It’s a friendlier and less deadline-driven transaction than a trade sale.
What deal has stood out?
I worked on the majority sale of Cambridgeshire-based PAC Electrical Services to an EOT. The clients had initially wanted a trade sale, but as a result of COVID-19 they had rethought their options. An EOT fitted well with the culture of the business. It was unique in that the founders retained a minority shareholding, but also combined the EOT with an MBO. It was great to see the interaction between those two elements. I led on the valuation aspect, worked on different scenario planning around financial modelling and gave presentations to staff. I was also involved with day-to-day communications, including with senior management when gauging interest about the MBO. It completed in May 2021.
What are your future ambitions?
I’d like to continue progressing within corporate finance. We now have a wider team with around 25 people and part of my role involves training. It’s rewarding to pass on advice and help others to progress. I want to lead and develop on best practice, particularly on EOTs and forensic accounting assignments, where fewer people have experience. Maybe one day I’ll be a partner, but there’s a long way to go. At the moment, I’m just focusing on doing a good job.