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Email: clientcare@efm.uk.com
Martin Allen
FCCA
Remote, NW England, SW England, West Midlands, Wales
Business management supporting SMEs to embed commercial excellence and financial clarity
A career spanning property, construction and banking sectors, Martin operated primarily in a CFO/COO capacity. He has gained significant experience in dealing with the challenges that both rapid growth and organisational change pose to an organisation whilst maintaining a focused commercial mindset.
A qualified FCCA by profession, Martin has worked internationally and has significant experience in driving efficiencies through a company’s operations. Driving a highly commercial approach to supply chain management and client contractual negotiations is are key skill.
Currently Non-Exec Director for 2 Asian charities.
Experience
Martin is a qualified FCCA, qualifying in the UK. After spending 8 years in the UK at the head office of a leading firm of Construction Cost consultants, he was seconded to Hong Kong, where he set up and headed the Finance function for their fledgling operations. Martin was part of a management team that drove a number of acquisitions during the early 2000`s and together with significant organic growth, the business (Arcadis) was transformed into a market leader in the region.
A move to a leading property/workplace outsourcing business with CBRE was followed by moving client side within HSBC`s regional corporate real estate team. During his time in Asia, Martin was a member of the British Chamber of Commerce Angel Investors, where he advised many start-ups and early-stage SME`s on a wide array of business management issues and growth strategies.
He is flexible and a resilient self-starter, working well either alone or as an effective team player.
Throughout his career, he has been active with:
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Business Planning– Led both short operational and longer-term strategic planning processes for a leading UK Bank covering a 17m sq foot property portfolio in an environment of extreme cost pressure.
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New business set up – Worked with a fashion re-seller of second-hand designer wear in Hong Kong. Initial business set up together with evaluation of cash flow needs and funding solutions.
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Treasury & Cash-flow management– 3 and 5 year rolling cash flow projections driven off growth projections and capex requirements, enabling business decisions to be made with confidence
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Due Diligence – (for acquirers and vendors) Management of the DD process from both a seller and buyer perspective, involving all discussions from early stage desktop DD to full final stage commercial negotiations and legal closure
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Finance Transformation– Initial business case/ impact analysis and scenario planning around organisational transformation, including full stakeholder management
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Buy/ Sell Business – Early stage advice (buyer side) as to issues to consider/overcome leading to information memorandum preparation. On the seller side, full management of the sale process through data room preparation through to negotiation and deal closure.
Skills
- Business plans
- Due diligence
- System implementation
- System selection
- Treasury
- Banking
- Business Analysis
- Business Process Improvement
- Business Strategies
- Financial Modelling
- Project Management
- Stakeholder Management
- KPIs
- Financial Planning and Analysis
Sectors
- Property
- Construction
- Banking
- Retail
- Environmental
“Martin and I worked together at both CBRE and HSBC between 2015 and 2020. Martin is a value-adding combination of commercially orientated business solutioning delivered off a strong base knowledge of finance and accounting. He is particularly good at navigating through complex business and finance issues involving multiple stakeholders , always with an outcome based mindset. Positive, full of drive to deliver and get things done”
Marcus Bowen (Regional Head of Operations , Corporate Real Estate – HSBC Asia Pacific)
Martin’s work in action
Construction Brand Stepping into the Breach as Finance Director
Martin Allen’s broad experience as not only a Finance professional but also as a business manager stood him in good stead when he was brought in from EFM at short notice to replace the part-time Finance Director (FD) of a respected UK construction materials business, on that FD’s recommendation.
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