“You can do finance wherever you want to do finance, but it’s fantastic to work somewhere that has a net positive impact on society and the potential to save people’s lives.” - Danny Rose, Director of Finance at LIO (formerly Oxehealth)
Episode description:
This week, Topline Talks was joined by Danny Rose, Director of Finance at LIO, an Oxford University BioTech spinout, formerly known as Oxehealth. Danny shares his background from training in practice, to moving into industry, working in both multinational businesses and PE backed companies, before joining LIO and working his way up to the startup’s number one finance lead. Danny also covers…
? Multinationals vs startups. How different size organisations operate and the benefits of getting practical experience and learning ‘what good looks like’ from bigger teams.
? The best way to learn is by doing. You can learn more by making your own mistakes than by being told exactly how to do things the ‘right’ way.
? Developing an in-house finance function. When starting with little to no management reporting, you need to establish the routine of showing the board and leadership team how the business is performing financially - from capital management to cashflow. How to get a standard of rigour into financial reporting, build a team that can support that, and prepare for an audit.
? The spin out landscape. A balance needs to be struck between being proactive and reactive. You need to be proactive in the sense of knowing what you want to do and how you want to do it, and reactive in the sense of actioning it when the right opportunity arises.
? The path to profitability. When a company is backed by investors, getting to the point of being profitable gives the business more freedom to decide where they want to focus those investments. Conversations with investors become easier, too.
? Investing in networking. The importance of building and maintaining a network of professionals in similar roles to share best practice, learnings, experience and support.
? Launching into the US. Tax and compliance regulations vary across the US – having local partners to help navigate those can be hugely beneficial.
? The importance of culture can’t be overplayed. Meeting regularly as a team to talk about the direction of the business and knowing it is having a positive impact on people’s lives can really help to energise everyone working there.
*Since recording this episode, Oxehealth has rebranded to LIO
Season Two of Topline Talks focuses on conversations with the senior leaders from a range of industries, offering insights and learnings from their careers, and providing tips and advice on how to succeed as a leader.
