Nev is a commercially minded Chartered Accountant. Prior to joining the FD Centre Nev was CFO and Deputy CEO of a not-for-profit technology business, serving clients ranging from small charities to central government departments across over 50 countries. Nev’s commercial experience includes working in the aerospace, food, business process outsourcing, and technology sectors. Nev qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Coopers and Lybrand and has a BA in Economics from The University of Nottingham.
Paul Dodd, Group Risk Advisor
Paul became a Regional Director of the FD Centre in 2008 where he started and ran a very successful business in the East of England until transitioning out of the role in 2018. Before the FD Centre, he was group finance director for ANT plc, playing a key role in the very successful AIM IPO in 2005. Following a degree in law and qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 1983, Paul’s early career was in taxation (Arthur Andersen, Schlumberger, Plessey plc and Parmentier-Arthur) before joining Ernst & Young’s Cambridge office in 1990, becoming a partner in 1994 and leading EY’s tax practice in the East of England until 2003.
Andy is a Chartered Accountant who moved into industry shortly after qualification. After working with several fast growing Yorkshire based companies, in 2002, Andy took the decision to move into a portfolio career, specialising in steering SME businesses through their various challenges and issues.
Utilising his extensive and wide ranging part time FD experience, Andy now works with the team in the North of England to develop both new business opportunities and to develop relationships with potential new clients.
In addition Andy provides non-executive and mentoring guidance to companies’ chief executives who can benefit from his contacts and knowledge.
Based on his own experience, Andy feels that all ambitious SME companies would benefit instantly from the input of an experienced FD who knows how to steer a course through the “growth minefield”.
Julie Mills, Group Director – The FD Centre – UK
Julie Mills is Group Director at the FD Centre. As wife of our founder, Julie has overseen the development of all office and secretarial functions within the business over the past 10 years. Julie’s earlier career started in secretarial and then legal secretarial work. After bringing up four boys, Julie returned to the workplace and started up and ran a small and very successful property development business, before joining Colin at the FD Centre, with the vision “that someday all mid sized businesses would have a part time finance director”.
Julie continues in the business today, keeping the office in good shape, and is famed for her gourmet lunches!
Jamie Mills started his career as a Professional Football Player with Swindon Town FC. After leaving football, he trained and qualified as an engineer and began his entrepreneurial career by starting a luxury bespoke bathroom installations business for high net worth clients.
Over a 10 year period he developed this business successfully through a number of installation teams. Jamie, focusing on the Sales, Marketing and business planning for this successful business, with an emphasis on developing client referral systems and client retention.
Although Jamie has been exposed to The FD Centre culture since its inception in 2001, when his father started the business, it wasn’t until 2015 that Jamie joined The FD Centre to help develop the marketing systems and infrastructure in The FD Centre UK and across The CFO Centre Global Group, utilising his entrepreneurial skills and marketing experience from his own business background.
Jamie strongly believes in The FD Centre ethos and team culture and looks forward to developing strong relationships across the business in the UK and globally.
Shirley Poole, Group Financial Controller – The FD Centre – UK
Shirley Poole (MAAT) joined Colin Mills our Founder in 2006 sharing his office, which at that time was his dining room. Shirley was our very first staff member. She initially started in a part time book keeping capacity and then moved to a more full time role in 2008 as Finance Manager.
Shirley previously worked as an assistant Finance Manager for a group of companies that encompassed Homecare, Nursing Agencies and Nursing Homes. Before that Shirley also spent 5 years working for an event management company, involved in organising international and UK events and travelled widely. These included Camel Trophy, The Whitbread Round the World Boat Race, The Ford Overland Challenge and Mountain Bike Events in the UK.
Colin Mills – Founder & Chairman
Colin Mills is the Founder and Chairman of The FD Centre Limited, and has over 20 years of financial director experience in UK, USA and European businesses with turnovers of £2 million to £500 million. A member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and Institute Prize Winner, Colin also has an MBA from Henley. His industry experience covers construction, FMCG, retail, food, IT, contracting services, building products, paper, printing and property development. Before setting up the FD Centre in 2001, Colin worked for major organisations like the Mars Group (Global US owned), Benders (UK privately owned FMCG/ paper products group), The Scholes Group plc (now part of Hanson Industries), Clifford Foods plc (now part of Unigate), and The Bradley Group (now part of Aggregate Industries), in both FD and CEO roles. Colin has developed the following FD Centre programmes:
- Keeping Control in Fast Growth Companies
- Survival Solutions for Companies under Pressure
- Managing Business Change “Fast” – a specific FD Centre methodology developed originally
Sara Daw – Group CEO
Sara Daw is a strategically minded Chartered Accountant and MBA from the London Business School. Prior to joining The FD Centre Sara was a founder and director of a strategy management and executive development firm whose clients ranged from SME to blue chip. Within industry Sara’s commercial experience includes retail, banking, professional services, pharmaceuticals and not-for-profit. Sara is a qualified Chartered Accountant, specialising in corporate finance and has a BA in Chemistry from Oxford University.
Jeremy Walker, UK Director – The FD Centre – UK
Jeremy Walker qualified as a chartered accountant with Binder Hamlyn in 1980 and since then has held financial director roles in several SMEs of various sizes (T/O £2m to £30m) and in various sectors (import, distribution, retail, mail order, publishing, telecoms, financial services). Entrepreneurial by nature, Jeremy has founded two start up businesses from his own innovative ideas, has acquired and merged several businesses for companies and has sold his own business. He has experience of raising private equity, VC and commercial bank funding and was successful in completing an MBI/MBO deal raising £13m. Over his 25 year career Jeremy has acquired invaluable knowledge and experience of the problems facing SMEs in both operational and financial areas.
Having started his career as a food retail area manager Mike moved into franchising where he became the Sales and Marketing Director for the UK’s fastest ever growing franchise, thebestof, under the umbrella of the N5 Group.
Over a 3 year period we grew networks of over 1500 franchisees and Mike travelled regularly to the US to collaborate with internet marketers Dan Kennedy and Bill Glazer who helped us to design the marketing strategy for our UK business.
Mike joined the FD Centre in late 2010 to help redesign the marketing infrastructure to assist our FD Team throughout the UK with client acquisition.
