I have always loved figures and I also studied languages as my very first trade. Accounting is a language: a business language. After completing my studies at the London School of Economics, the choice of consulting or accounting was natural for me and I joined Arthur Andersen in 1995.
After Andersen, I went to work in industry – in financial institutions, transportation companies, manufacturers and fashion. I worked across a variety of countries and capacities, from internal audit to CFO and even CEO. I also took roles at EY and Deloitte.
Having the ACCA Qualification helps in widening your outlook when analysing issues and making decisions. Those tools and methods, which we study for ACCA, are very much alive.
I love dealing with people and finding creative ways to sort out difficult problems
Different industries vary in key success factors, the structures of their balance sheets and how they earn money. However, in finance and accounting, we all face similar challenges that vary in terms of their importance or extent, but not in terms of their character.
My initial desire to work in industry was driven by a desire to help. Even though adding value was a great way to help enterprises, it was still insufficient to enact the changes needed. In Russia in the 1990s, you needed to be inside to get things moving.
Were I to face this decision today, I would probably stay in practice. I enjoyed the variety and atmosphere of audit firms.
If I had law-making powers, I’d seek limited government and minimum interventions. This is something I have always believed in.
What I enjoy most about my job is figures. I love Excel spreadsheets, business presentations and accounting software. I also love dealing with people and finding creative ways to sort out difficult problems.
My biggest achievement is becoming a CEO of a medium-size manufacturing enterprise, which had faced severe difficulties for a decade. I turned that business around and found ways to start making money again, despite a difficult economic environment.
If I weren’t an accountant, I think I’d have been a writer, a researcher or a consultant. I would still work with figures – so I would have eventually become an accountant!
I love reading, especially politics, religion, economics and history. I walk at least 10km every day, and I enjoy swimming, too. I really enjoy theatre, music and watching films on Netflix.
