Rob Whiteman, CEO, CIPFA

Bio

Whiteman graduated with an honours degree in Economics and Government from the University of Essex, and began his management career with WH Smith before moving into the public sector.

He qualified as an accountant with CIPFA early in his career while working for the London Borough of Camden. He has since held multiple roles in local government, including director of resources at the London Borough of Lewisham and, from 2005 to 2010, he was CEO of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.

Whiteman then moved into senior civil service roles, first leading the Improvement and Development Agency and then the UK Border Agency. He then moved into his current role in September 2013 as chief executive of CIPFA.

As a well-known commentator and writer, Whiteman has focused on public service reform and modernisation in areas like leadership, partnership, working across government, and building community cohesion. The years 2007 and 2009 saw him carry out the Capability Reviews of the Department of Health for the Cabinet Office. In 2008, the Local Government Chronicle named him one of the ten most influential people in local government.

Why did he make the power list?

Whiteman has a big challenge ahead in 2018. With no CIPFA members holding a CIPFA awarded audit qualification, the Financial Reporting Council has revoked recognition of the association as an audit qualifying body. Whiteman will be hoping that the development doesn’t have a knock-on effect and that he can continue to build on the association’s 14,000-strong membership.

CIPFA

The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy is the only professional body in the world dedicated to public finance. It has 14,000 members who work throughout public services, in national audit agencies, in big accountancy firms, and in other bodies where public money needs to be managed efficiently.

See who made the Financial Power List 2017 and compare this to the Financial Power List 2016.