From bookkeeping to… bookkeeping

Once upon a time

From a young age, Laurence harbored a keen interest in finance. “Ever since I was 16, finance, and particularly bookkeeping, has captivated me.” Despite her profound enthusiasm for bookkeeping, she opted to pursue a Master’s in Business Management to explore the various roles within finance. “When I discovered TriFinance through a family connection, I realized that consultancy offered the ideal avenue to delve deeper into those roles, and especially bookkeeping.”

Exploring possibilities

Imagine starting your first project one day, only to find yourself three years later having tackled three different roles within the same company. It resembles the beginning of a captivating fairytale, and mark my words, it truly is one.

Laurence embarked her career at a large company specializing in the delivery of both food and non-food essentials to various retail outlets, alongside operating its own retail establishments. “That first project significantly shaped my career trajectory. As a Young Graduate, the start of your professional career can often feel daunting, but I earned considerable trust from the CFO and steadily got more responsibilities along the way.”

Exploring various finance roles was a prominent aspect of this project. “I began as a Credit Controller, primarily managing accounts receivable. Due to inadequate documentation and switches within the team, there was a backlog in follow-up on client payments. I took proactive measures by sending regular reminders, establishing payment schedules, reconciling accounts, and holding meetings with commercial directors.”

It was Laurence’s first experience in this domain, but as she saw the improvements that could be implemented, she got more confident.

Back to where it started

After eight months in the role of Credit Controller, Laurence sensed the call to return to her first passion: bookkeeping. “The bookkeeping department at the client was going to implement a new AP invoicing system, which meant that the Chief Accountant would allocate 50% of their time to this project, necessitating the addition of another person to manage their current tasks. Enter: me and my new role as bookkeeper.” It surely was a win-win situation, as Laurence already knew the company and their ERP-system, from working on a project as Credit Controller.

“I took on tasks such as monthly closings, registering of the investments, preparing the VAT returns, managing and booking the doubtful debts and much more. Since the client already trusted me, I enlarged my scope by booking the financial journals and preparing the payments.” Moreover, while they were planning an implementation of the new AP invoicing system, there also was a need to retrace the whole Purchase to Pay process. “I took charge of the documentation of this process by interviewing various colleagues about their role in the process. This enabled me to have a complete view of the process and make correct and complete documentation.”

From bookkeeping to … bookkeeping

Along the way, Laurence was also introduced to some new tasks such as the annual closing, treasury and G/L accounts and she was ready to start a new role as Business Controller. “During my project at the client, I seized the chance to transition into the role of Business Controller. In this role, I familiarized myself with the responsibilities, honed my Excel skills and delivered several reports to both the board of directors and employees.”

Laurence dipped her toes into Credit and Business Controlling, and although she really liked the challenge, something just didn’t quite click. “I realized that crunching numbers, performing monthly closings, and balancing accounts are the things I really love to do. After having had a taste of Controlling, I decided to return to my first love: bookkeeping. That’s the beauty of consultancy: it offers the flexibility to explore diverse roles, to have a taste and decide after that which flavor you prefer. For me, it's bookkeeping: it’s a perfect fit for me, and that’s why I’m committed to further developing my skills in bookkeeping through ongoing projects in the field. Becoming an expert in this specific role is one of my main goals.”

Future horizons

“What I’m most proud of throughout my career path until now? Undoubtedly, it’s when I embraced the challenge of stepping into the role of Project Manager despite lacking any prior project management skills. And that’s precisely what makes being a Finance Project Consultant at TriFinance so interesting. The fact that you get the opportunity to dive into different roles and acquire new skills when you least expect it.”

It’s good to have dreams and think ahead. Laurence envisions herself growing towards the position of Chief Bookkeeper. However, for the time being, her primary objective is to continue learning in her role as a bookkeeper and eventually being responsible for an entity.

“All of these accomplishments wouldn’t have been possible without the support of TriFinance. When I think about TriFinance, one word stands out: humanity. It’s about receiving the right opportunities, enjoying a healthy work-life balance, being listened to, having the freedom to make decisions, and charting your own career path. And that’s exactly the support I get from TriFinance.”