MY NAME IS... // 02.08.2011
Every month, MERCEDES GP PETRONAS will introduce one of the team’s dedicated employees. Their work may be different but they all are driven by the passion of Formula One and the desire to achieve on-track success.
My name is: Elizabeth Joy
I am (age): 24
My job title is: Assistant Management Accountant
My hobbies are: Tennis, Films, Cookery
The team in 3 words: Determined, Driven, Dynamic
Q. Before working in Formula One, I studied…
Psychology and Business at Keele University. I am now working towards my CIMA qualification on a part-time basis.
Q. Before MERCEDES GP PETRONAS, I worked…
Unlike most people who work at the team, my background isn’t in motorsport or engineering. After graduating from university in 2007, I went to Sydney where I worked for a certification company. After a bit of travelling, I decided to improve my ski-ing by working in a chalet in the Alps for a season, followed by a stint at a publishing company in London. After that I settled into my first ‘proper’ job at an accountancy firm specialising in contractor accounts.
Q. My job, on a day-to-day basis, is…
I’m responsible for recording what is going in and out of the company’s bank accounts and ensuring that everything is recorded on our systems and on our cash flow forecast. These transactions could be anything from driver salaries to sponsorship income to staff payroll and national insurance. More recently I have become involved in the costing of development projects and upgrades so that they can be submitted for review by the management committee. This role includes monitoring project costs and looking at actual costs compared to budget.
It is vital that we always know the position of the company financially so that we know how much we can spend and can provide information to our shareholders. Now that we are fully owned by Daimler and Aabar, there is work to be done to bring us in line with their treasury systems, which means daily communication with the Daimler cash management team. Our return on investment is all about performance so working in the Finance team here is unusual in the sense that we manage a lot of outgoings but only a small amount of high-value incoming payments from our partners.
Q. What I like about working in Formula One is…
It gives me something to talk to my boyfriend about! Formula One is always something that has been on in the background when I was younger, but now it is great to see the company I work for on television. It makes watching the races a lot more exciting and interesting, although sometimes a bit painful as I am in the position of having to cost any damages! The Resource Restriction Agreement in Formula One gives the Finance function an opportunity to have a strategic impact on the decisions made by management. It is extremely important that we allocate and effectively use resources and this is helped by the work that Finance do to analyse costs. It would be harder to have such an impact in companies outside of Formula One.
Q. The best thing about working for MERCEDES GP PETRONAS is…
From a financial point of view, I get to work for a globally renowned, internationally trading, multi-million pound company. Coming from working at an accountancy firm, my priorities had always been about the client’s company, but now all of my focus is on the aims and motivations of the company that I work for. There is a great sense of being part of a team with everyone united by the same objectives and goals.
Q. The most challenging aspect of my work is…
Juggling a variety of tasks, maintaining a high standard of attention to detail, managing my studying around work, and getting used to all of the technical terminology.
Credit: Mercedes GP (www3.mercedes-gp.com)
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