International Women's Day Interview with Natalie Sykes, CFO of Camm & Hooper

Please can you tell me about your career and your role at Camm & Hooper? What do you enjoy about your work? What obstacles have you had to overcome to get where you are today?

“Although I studied Biomedical Science and then a Masters in Genetics at University, I actually followed my dad’s footsteps into finance, and trained as a chartered accountant in a top accountancy firm, before entering the world of commerce.

Prior to joining Camm & Hooper, I held several exciting industry positions – from my first financial role with FTSE listed business, Compass Group, through to my first commercial Financial Director role at contract caterer, CH&CO, where I worked closely with Nick Thomas, an exceptional Group FD on an exciting acquisition strategy. It was actually here that I first met Derick Martin – now the CEO of Camm & Hooper – whose enthusiasm is just electric and always makes me believe that the almost impossible is possible.

Therefore, when Derick asked me to join him in driving the post-COVID turnaround of Camm & Hooper in 2021, it was a no brainer. I have since relished in the opportunity to join forces with him and hospitality investors, Imbiba, to take Camm & Hooper by the horns and to truly transform the business.

For me, I thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to ‘fix’ something, so despite the hurdles faced as part of a turnaround in an industry in recovery, I find my role incredibly rewarding. However, like many individuals working in hospitality, COVID was a career low for me but equally it was the year I learned the most.

I found out I was pregnant a few weeks before lockdown. The impact of the pandemic on my industry was appalling and the stress that ensued as we tried to recover a business that had overnight lost over 90% of its revenue was considerable. That combined with redundancy processes, and pregnancy took its toll. I was left thinking I couldn’t go back to that stress after having my baby, I thought I was ready to slow down. Within months of having my daughter my drive sparked back up and I was in a completely different place, determined to jump into something challenging where I could help people in hospitality who had lost so much during the pandemic.

I wanted to be part of a recovery story which I could be proud of and would hopefully make my daughter proud one day. Over the last two years, we have completed three acquisitions, doubling the portfolio we inherited and achieved over 250% growth in normalised annual revenue and it feels like we are only just getting started.

It is no secret that it has been a tough few years for the events industry, but where there is struggle there is opportunity and there will be winners – and we want to be one of them!”

 

According to the 2022 Cranfield Female FTSE Board Report, there were 19 women in FTSE 100 CFO or Finance Director roles in 2022 – that’s up from only three in 2005. Why do you think progress has been so slow?

“First and foremost, I can’t quite believe how little progress has been made in that 17-year timeframe but equally I am not surprised – particularly as recent data from Harvard Business School revealed that among senior roles in venture capital and private equity, women held just 9% and 6% of the positions, respectively.

I think historically financial leadership-based roles have primarily been male dominated, but although there has been little change, there is certainly room to drive it and with more and more initiatives encouraging female leadership – such as the Oxford Women’s Leadership Development Programme – I am hopeful that we will see these stats start to shift in the coming years.”

 

The theme for International Women’s Day 2024 is “Inspire Inclusion”. How can companies, especially in the hospitality industry, inspire more women to strive for senior leadership roles such as that of CFO?

“I think one of the main things organisations can do to inspire inclusion and to support more women into senior leadership roles is to establish clear mentorship programs and initiatives, designed solely to support women with their career goals and ambitions.

For example, I am fortunate enough to have worked for and to have been mentored by a wonderful Audit Partner a RSM, Karen Tasker. I was looking at all these FD roles thinking I tick all these boxes, but the jump in salary compared to what I was on made me think there was no way I was worthy of the role. Karen put me right and I didn’t look back.

Imposter syndrome is not something I suffer so much now. Derick has been fundamental in that, he reminds me that it’s ok not to be an expert in everything or to have gaps in skillsets, those gaps can be filled by the people we surround ourselves with. Mentorship has been key to my success, and I genuinely believe that if more women had access to supportive and inspiring mentors, they would have the self-belief, guidance, and confidence to achieve so much more.”

 

Does Camm & Hooper do anything specific to support women achieve management or senior leadership positions? 

“Camm & Hooper is an incredibly inclusive organisation and one that I am very proud to be part of and help lead. We have worked hard to build a diverse and creative team, who all bring their own unique skillset and ideas to the table, affirming our position as true curators of exceptional events and experiences for our clients.

As part of this, we are big believers of all ideas being good ideas, we never shut anyone down and do all we can to support individuals in achieving their professional goals. Furthermore, as a scaling business, we regularly communicate the opportunity for personal progression and, as such, I am proud to report that 40% of our senior leadership and management team are female.”

 

Reflecting on your career, is there anything you would change or do differently?

“I think everyone can reflect and pick out things they would change, but ultimately each role I have had has come with its unique set of challenges and lessons and I wouldn’t be where I am today without them.

I try to keep a positive outlook on life as I absolutely believe in the power of positive energy and the poisonous nature of negative thoughts. I see so many people drowning in their own victim mentality and it is really sad to see. People need to take responsibility for themselves and their thoughts. Bad things happen but we are surrounded by inspirational people who show us how they used these challenges to grow stronger. I always remember in tough times that I have survived everything thrown at me to date, why would this new issue be any different.

Ultimately, I am grateful for everyone who has been part of my growth, from the inspirational managers to the bullies who screamed in my face as a young auditor, they have had equal value in my development.”

 

What advice would you give a young woman who would like to achieve her career goal of becoming a CFO?

“I take my main inspiration from two people – my dad and my grandmother – who both taught me invaluable lessons which I think every aspiring female leader should take on board in pursuit of their goals.

My Dad was an accountant turned entrepreneur, who co-founded an auction business which, like many small businesses, has hit many highs and lows over the past 25 years and had to keep adapting with the times to survive. He has taught me perseverance, ownership, a sense of responsibility for your team and how to keep smiling through adversity. I am so proud of my dad and so grateful that I grew up seeing the realities of what an SME entrepreneur goes through.

My Grandma secured a place at university in the 1940s when 1% or less of students were women. Not only that, but she showed up pregnant and unmarried in her first year, which was quite scandalous for the time. She was a formidable woman, a single mother of three by 40 and she had a tough life, but she had a brilliant energy about her and her naughty streak was incredibly loveable. She had a thirst for knowledge and devoured books like no one I have ever known. She was always a supporter of the underdog and could often be seen speaking up for those who could not speak for themselves. She taught me to not care too much about what other people thought, to be unapologetically myself and to be propelled forward by people who doubt your abilities.

… And finally in pursuit of being a CFO, the role has transformed from being predominantly about the numbers to being the person who can balance the numbers with judgement, commercial experience and just the right amount of risk appetite to make good decisions that add value. CFOs need to be comfortable working across almost every function from HR and payroll to sales, operations, procurement and legal. Integrity and authenticity is really key to building trust within the wider team.”

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