The Team

Partner: Barbara J Spurrier (FCCA)

Barbara is a qualified certified accountant (FCCA) with more than 25 years experience in financial and accountancy roles. From her accountancy training with Kidsons in London, she has progressed through accounting and fund management roles, on to chief financial officer (CFO) within PLCs and a range of entrepreneurial companies. She has held several non executive director positions.

 

She achieved her first finance director role in 1985 during the growth phase of a chilled food business company where she secured venture capital finance for the expansion of production facilities, successfully applied for EEC grant aid and successfully sold a subsidiary to Geest PLC. As CFO of a life science business, she established a US subsidiary, outsourced manufacturing, and prepared financial statements under IFRS.

 

She has experience as CFO and Company Secretary of a PLUS quoted PLC in the life science sector and as part time Finance Director for 2 AIM listed PLCs in the technology sector. She has successfully secured funding, undertaken M & A and MBO projects and has stepped into the CEO/COO role on an interim basis when circumstances have required.

 

As an experienced CFO, Barbara focuses on achieving corporate and social objectives and delivering shareholder value through the implementation of profit-centred strategic plans.  Her focus is on financial and cash management, profit optimisation, and implementation of long-term strategic objectives. A key influencer within the board and management team, she identifies areas of underperformance and finds solutions to enhance profit and business growth.

 

 

Partner: Kim Clark (ACA)

Kim is a qualified Chartered Accountant with more than 10 years experience in financial and accountancy roles. She trained and qualified with Lewis Golden & Co, a firm of chartered accountants in London whose clients range from listed companies to high net worth individuals and sole traders. In 2000 she was awarded the Chris Reay Memorial Prize by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in London for the highest placed candidate in the chartered accountancy exams in a small partner firm in London.

 

Kim has held the position of management accountant with London based marketing company, a subsidiary of Tesco plc, with turnover of £30m (2002) and 250 employees in both London and the US.

 

Kim has experience of working overseas in a variety of financial roles including commercial accountant/finance manager reporting to the CFO of a large listed multinational life insurance company in Melbourne, Australia. As well as managing the financial accounting department Kim was the finance trouble-shooter and assisted in highlighting and correcting procedural and system inefficiencies. Among her achievements she project managed the set up of a trading subsidiary company, was the finance representative on various internal systems enhancement projects and developed new financial reports.

 

 

Partner: Jamie Murray

Jamie’s early career was spent at Ernst & Young and Baring Asset Management, where he gained the experience and expertise that has led to a series of increasingly senior positions, including finance director and company secretary for Sangenic International Limited and financial systems manager for PPD Global Limited.

 

Recently, he has been providing consultancy to start-ups and SMEs - with a focus on business integration, margin improvement, systems and operations management, fund raising processes and corporate governance.

 

Throughout his career, Jamie has developed particular expertise in the creation of internal control systems in manufacturing, logistics and finance, as well as in harnessing the potential of Information Technology to assist in strategic planning and informed financial decision making.

 

Jamie is a confident project leader and an analytical thinker - with a proven ability to develop practical solutions to complex operational, financial and commercial issues.

 

At Cambridge Financial Partners Jamie focuses on assisting companies in streamlining their dataflow and reporting structures to provide accurate, timely and relevant information to facilitate decision making.

 

He has a BA Honours in Classics, and is Secretary of the Cambridge Enterprise & Technology Club – a networking forum set-up as part of a DTI-backed initiative, which explores cutting edge technologies and their commercial applications.

 

 

Partner: Helen Rae

Helen is a qualified Chartered Accountant, who has worked with a leading international accounting firm and two public companies.

 

After starting her career with a leading retailer, Helen joined Deloitte's Cambridge practice. During her time at Deloitte she worked with businesses at all stage, from owner-managed and start-up companies to constituents of the FTSE250, and SEC registrants. Helen lead audits and projects at companies reporting under US GAAP, IFRS and UK GAAP. She also worked on a range of capital market transactions, including IPOs and demergers.

 

Helen was Group Financial Accountant at a FTSE 250 hi-tech manufacturing business, where she undertook internal audit, tax, forecasting and financial reporting responsibilities, as well as working closely with operational management. Prior to joining Cambridge Financial Partners LLP she was also the Senior Treasury and Financial Accountant at a leading listed technology business in Cambridge.

 

Helen's experience means that she is used to delivering comprehensive advice in complicated situations, and working with colleagues and clients to find practical solutions in a range of environments. Her specific areas of expertise include:

• International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS);
• Technical accounting matters;
• Management accounting;
• Tax and treasury; and
• Internal audit.

Helen leads on CFPLLP's technical matters. She has a BA in Law with French from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and a Diploma in French Law from the Universite de Lyon.

 

 

Chairman: Valerie Holt

Valerie Holt acts as a mentor and Non-executive director for start-up and growing companies. As CEO, she profitably built PSINet UK from turnover of less than £1m to over £40m during the Internet boom and also built the London Hosting Centre to introduce innovative and creative hosting products. She started her business career at merchant banker Hill Samuel and went on to work, first at JWT and then Burson Marstellar as an advisor on financial PR. While in these roles she worked with Blue chip companies in the UK, USA and the Far East on corporate change, including acquisitions and mergers. She also prepared documents for lobbying on a variety of proposed legislation.

 

Valerie studied Natural Sciences at Trinity College Dublin and after graduation went on to work for the University of Zambia building the Extra-Mural Department in Kitwe and collaborating with the ILO advisor to create an educational learniing programme for the Zambian Congress of Trade Unions.

 

She is a member of the UK Board of UNIFEM, a trustee of the Cambridge Preservation Society and a keen follower of Internet developments. She lives in Cambridge.