35 under 35 2021: 15 – 6 revealed!

35 under 35 2021: 15 - 6 revealed!

Showcasing the industry's rising talent, the third instalment of our 35 under 35 rankings highlights 10 young UK professionals who are making great contributions to both their firms and fields

35 under 35 2021: 15 – 6 revealed!

The Accountancy Age 35 under 35 rankings seek to highlight the rising stars of the accountancy profession, featuring those who have made great professional contributions to the field and their individual firms.

Each Monday in September, we will be releasing another batch of 35 under 35 winners, culminating in the top five being announced on 27 September, 2021.

Today, we present the third round of noteworthy professionals who made the Accountancy Age 35 under 35 rankings.

The full 35 under 35 rankings will be unveiled on 4 October, 2021.

15. Tom Warner, Senior Manager, Smith & Williamson

Warner has rapidly risen through the ranks at Smith & Williamson being promoted to senior manager in early 2020. He is a member of the firm’s Landed Estates sub-committee tasked with growing this area of the business. He also invited to become part of the tax planning committee for the firm in 2020. In July 2019, Warner received the prestigious ‘tax employee of the year award’ as testament to his client service, friendly and approachable demeanour, and commitment to development of fellow staff.

Outside of his day job, Tom takes an active role in developing the accountancy industry by teaching AAT Level 4 at the local college in Salisbury, assisting the ICAEW following his 2019 entry in the Chartered Star competition and visiting his secondary school on an annual basis to speak about the industry and Smith & Williamson to Year 12 and Year 13 students.

His 2019 Chartered Star entry discussed the fourth industrial revolution and its position within the UK accountancy industry. Warner firmly believes that there will still be a human role to fulfil and ensuring strength of ability and character in the next generation of accountants is crucial.

14. Harry Briggs, Director, KPMG

Briggs leads KPMG‘s Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) services in Jersey, working within the firm’s global IMPACT network and dedicating his time to promoting the benefits ESG. To promote matters related to ESG, Briggs is a regular writer and speaker at events and has launched a successful podcast series “Insights into ESG”.

To further his objective of transforming non-financial reporting he has pursued and successfully secured his appointment (on a secondment basis) to lead a non-financial reporting project with the Princes’ Accounting for Sustainability organisation. Accounting for Sustainability was established by HRH Prince Charles as part of the Prince of Wales’s Charitable Foundation to transform how industries approach ESG reporting globally.

Briggs’ role is to ultimately develop a detailed implementation guide for companies seeking to create a non-financial reporting function, including digital innovations which may act as enablers. To develop the guide, he is engaging directly with a network of Fortune 250 CFOs who are grappling with the challenges of non-financial reporting. He is also engaging globally with regulators and accounting bodies to help further the development of reporting standards and requirements.

13. Christopher Cork, Partner, Haysmacintyre

Having joined haysmacintyre as a trainee in 2010, Cork was promoted to director in 2019 before progressing to partnership in April 2020. He acts as both audit and transaction services partner and plays a key role in the firm’s training and development initiatives.

As a prominent member of the firm’s transaction support team he led his first reporting accountant role for a successful admission to AIM – completed in July 2021, with further IPO work ongoing. He plays an integral role in the firm’s international alliance, MSI Global Alliance, representing haysmacintyre in its M&A and audit Special Interest Groups.

Recognising the increasingly important role private capital plays in the growth business segment, he spearheads haysmacintyre’s partnership with the Global Family Office Community and was a keynote speaker at its NextGen event during 2020. Being one of the firm’s youngest partners, Cork is a mentor to junior staff members, advising on ways to develop their technical and professional skills.

12. Kerry O’Reilly, Partner, Ellacotts

O’Reilly joined the Ellacotts agriculture and property department in November 2010 after making the decision to train and learn as part of an accountancy practice in a practical environment rather than studying towards an accountancy degree. The decision paid off, with O’Reilly undertaking all her AAT and ICAEW training with Ellacotts while at home on the family farm and still able to start her accounting career in an industry close to her heart. She took the ‘fast track’ route to qualification with the ICAEW and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in December 2015. O’Reilly then quickly progressed through the ranks at Ellacotts to become a partner of the firm in June this year.

As a partner, O’Reilly looks after a wide range of farming and landowning clients, including sole traders, family partnerships and landed estates. Coming from a farming family, she relates to the issues faced within the sector and is very personal with her approach. Away from the office, O’Reilly can be found on the family farm playing an active role, especially when it comes to calving time with her family’s Aberdeen Angus herd.

11. David Herd, Group Partner, Champion Accountants

Herd joined Champion Accountants in 2010 and become a beacon of inspiration thanks to his unwavering determination to spot growth opportunities. Most recently, he transformed the delivery of management accounts through enhanced digitisation, which will deliver 30 percent revenue growth without any additional admin to the firm.

Within the wider tax advisory team, he spearheaded growth in revenue from £20,000 per month to £60,000 per month. One stand-out example is helping a new client, a family with a successful YouTube channel, save £400,000 annually in tax, whilst identifying that they’d overpaid VAT by £1.1m. Tasked with recouping this, Herd agreed a commission on the value repaid by HMRC – delivering up to £55,000 in fees from a single project.

In 2020, Herd also launched Champion’s Crowdfunding service, offering start-ups looking to raise finance a range of support from bookkeeping and management accounts to completion support and full business advisory packages.

He has made an ongoing commitment to offer the next generation of accounting superstars the best opportunities by continuing to develop Champion’s Learning & Development resources and traineeship schemes. Most recently, Herd was promoted to the role of group partner – a landmark achieved ahead of his 30th birthday.

10. Bryn Reynolds, Tax Principal, Simmons & Simmons

Since 2018, Bryn has been central to the Simmons & Simmons growth, with him being a key individual on many large accounts and cases. He is known for is his clear and practical advice. He has a broad practice and advises across a range of indirect taxes. Bryn also has an interest in corporate and tax governance.

Pro bono also features highly on Bryn’s list of priorities. He’s recently given pro bono advice to a sports charity with indirect tax issues arising from the launch of their inaugural, televised awards. Bryn also lobbied HMRC for changes to the UK zero-rating provisions to benefit those who are blind or visually impaired.

He is also an advocate for shared parental leave and took three months’ leave after the birth of his first child. He recently spoke at the Women in Tax network about the topic. Outside of his tax practice, Bryn leads the firm’s running club and runs competitively. He’s previously taken part in a mixed-gender and men’s team to the final of the JP Morgan Corporate Challenge Championship in both Boston and New York.

9. Daniel Moon, Tax Partner, Williamson & Croft

At 25, Moon established Williamson & Croft with the objective of becoming a challenger firm ensuring quality and client service is at the forefront. Over the last few years, the business has organically grown from a standing start to have over 20 staff, with highly esteemed clients across both its Manchester and Liverpool offices.

Alongside working heavily on the firm’s growth strategy, Moon maintains key client relationships and his quality engagements have been key to the firm’s success to date. He is a specialist in the property sector, supporting businesses in North West with complex tax advisory services and transactions. This has seen him project Williamson & Croft into a reputable, challenger firm with record year-on-year growth which will be topped off this year with a move to a prestigious office space in central Manchester.

8. Matthew Boggis, Associate Director, Creaseys

In just nine years, Boggis has become one of Creaseys youngest leaders. He joined the firm in 2012 as a trainee, quickly progressing through the business and in March 2021 became an associate director in the leadership team at the age of 29. He is committed to professional development; becoming ACA qualified in 2016 and CTA qualified in 2019. Boggis sat three CTA finals in one sitting and scooped an impressive four exam prizes including the Chris Jones Prize and Croner-i Prize.

Whilst his technical knowledge is a key strength, he has shown his talents lie in building strong relationships with his clients. Boggis is on the tax technical team at Creaseys, sharing his knowledge and experience delivering training and producing articles and e-shots. He is also a team leader and is committed to supporting, coaching and challenging his colleagues. As part of his team leader and leadership team role, he is pivotal in driving key messages through the business, promoting understanding and engagement in our vision, and making Creaseys a great place to work.

7. David Green, Partner, Azets

Green joined Azets as a graduate from Cambridge University and has excelled. He was a prize winner in his professional exams. He continues to win the quality of clients that are at the top end of the clients Azets act for, and he manages his portfolio to achieve a recovery rate of 100 percent.

Green also supports and mentors staff and guides them through their training so they feel supported, as well as contributing enormously to the management of the office. Unsurprisingly, he is often referred to as a “superstar” by his peers and clients.

6. Joseph Brewer, Director, Saffery Champness

After joining as a graduate trainee in 2009 and working up through the firm, including secondments in Saffery Champness’ corporate finance team and Geneva office, Brewer now sits as a director in the Business Assurance and Advisory group based in the firm’s London office.

As an IFRS specialist he works closely with the firm’s AIM-listed client base, along with a range of large private groups across a range of sectors. Brewer is the author of the popular ‘IFRS Tip of the week’ on LinkedIn and sits on the ICAEW’s Technical Advisory Committee as well as the Audit Committee of the Association for Project Management.

With many of the firm’s IFRS-reporting clients operating around the globe, Brewer is a member of the firm’s International Practice Group and often works closely with colleagues in the Nexia International network to deliver solutions in complex global situations. The team deliver a high-quality technical solution using a pragmatic approach, designed to reflect the firm’s focus on client service.


 

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