Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Websites
Key Capabilities
EDUCATION
Timeline
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Alison Alexander

Alison Alexander

Birmingham Gardens,Australia

Summary

Chartered Accountant and accomplished CFO with 20+ years’ senior finance and leadership experience across global, national, and growth-stage businesses. Expertise spans financial control, governance, compliance, commercial contract review, international tax, and ERP systems. Proven ability to strengthen financial integrity, embed process improvements, and provide clear commercial insight to executive teams. Values-driven leader who builds trust, mentors teams, and delivers strategic outcomes across diverse industries.

Overview

26
26
years of professional experience

Work History

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Audience Precision
06.2018 - Current
  • Company Overview: Audience Precision is an independent start-up media, insights and strategy business. With a Head Office in Sydney and a recent expansion to New York and London. Revenues of over A$3m pa and staff of 15.
  • Partnered with CEO and Board on strategic and operational matters across international offices.
  • Oversaw all finance, HR, and legal functions including payroll, contracts, compliance and global reporting.
  • Reviewed, drafted, and negotiated client/supplier contracts across AU, US, and UK, engaging directly with external lawyers.
  • Established US entities including tax, payroll, legal, and compliance frameworks.
  • Delivered monthly forecasting, budgeting and financial reporting to executives within 5 working days.
  • Implemented internal controls, policies and ISO-compliant IT/security frameworks.
  • Managed international payroll, taxation (FBT, BAS, corporate), and statutory lodgements.
  • Mentored and developed managers, embedding accountability and capability.
  • Key achievements include:
  • Wrote, and liaised with employment lawyers for Roadrules for the business. With implementing these across the team, you could see the staffs understanding of the business grow and saw the business grow from a start-up to an established entity. The benefit of the Roadrules meant as we expand our offices globally, we could show we were a company to be taken seriously and knew what we were doing.
  • After outsourcing an IT company, I lead the redesigned of the companies systems, to bring the company in line with the Clients contract. Ensure the highest level of security and assisted in writing the Internet Security Policy. This ensured we complied with our clients’ contract, and any further clients requiring ISO compliance.
  • Set up an American entity, ensure compliance both legally and payroll, accounting. Negotiated with various accountants and lawyers to ensure the fit for working with our company. This allowed Audience Precision, to be able to hire staff in America, and one of the first steps to obtaining a visa.
  • Achieved 100% application success rate, in 3 visa applications. This allowed our company to secondor two executives to the USA, and then one later to the UK. This was necessary for our next global contract.
  • Invented business pitch sheets, showing costings of the business and forecast design for pitches, ensure clients would be successful and lead to growth. Lead to us to win the pitch with our Global client.
  • Designed and developed forecasting/cashflow sheets, speeding up month end, allowing the business to see daily where its position was, allowing to successfully survival of the business through an extended delay in client contract;
  • Led successful applications for Export Market Development Grants (EMDG) and Research & Development (R&D) Grants each year since 2021, securing over $274K in EMDG funding and more than $3M in R&D funding to date, strengthening cash flow and enabling continued business growth;
  • Implemented digital expenses application, changing the process from a painful physical one to digital, resulted in staff happiness, and compliance of up to date expenses;
  • Lead partner in negotiation for 2 offices leases (one temporary), supervised the office moves, allowing and ensuring smooth sailing, as 100% uptime for all staff, limiting any impact to the business.
  • Implemented and launched a PO system into the business. This was able to track the progress of the company, obtained the ability to stop errors, and overspends.
  • Designed and implemented/maintain of internal Sharepoint intranet, allowing one place for the business to keep all important documentation and information, and allow for the global team to feel involved in the business.

Finance Manager

BMF Australia
08.2017 - 06.2018
  • Company Overview: BMF Australia is a creative advertising agency, with over 130 staff. Managing a team of 4, report directly to the CFO of BMF Australia, and liaise with the CFO of Enero (group head entity). A close relationship with department heads. Thru the need of being adaptive, able to assist keep OBDIA at 15% each month.
  • Managed finance team of 4, reporting to CFO.
  • Oversaw month-end reporting, forecasting, payroll, compliance, and external audit.
  • Reviewed client contracts and ensured job costings remained within budget.
  • Improved financial processes to provide proactive reporting and analysis.
  • Key achievements include:
  • Team lead of implementing the process for single touch payroll for talent. 1 talent payment could have 500+ new talent for a single advert. This ensures the company was compiling with the ATO requirements.
  • Provided enough structure and training to ensure staff were happy and content and achieved zero staff turnover. Unheard of previously in the finance team whos turn over in staff was particularity high.
  • Walked into an environment where Finance was not liked, had a high turn around of staff, able to change it to the place people came to for help, and started providing proactive information, ie Job Costings, Timesheet analysis etc. before the jobs blew out.
  • Through process improvement and streamlining tasks was able to help the group entity out and have my team take on more workload with the next company acquisition.
  • Achieved all of head companies deadlines, (ie. intercompany balances, lodgement of results into the system within 3-5 days of month end.) a result which previously was not able to be met, Allowing the group entity to achieve its goal, as saw myself become the trusted source to load and implement chart of account matching for the new budget process from Australia to Global Software system.

Finance Manager

Warner Music Australia
05.2011 - 06.2017
  • Company Overview: Warner Music Australia is part of the Warner Music Group, with offices in numerous states in Australia. Has over 60 staff and Revenue into the High millions. Managing a team of 4, report directly to the Finance Director of Australia, and liaise with the MD of Australia and CFO of Asia Pacific. A close relationship with department heads.
  • Work closely with the FD on all operational and strategic matters
  • Preparing weekly/monthly forecasts with Marketing/A&R/Sales department heads and yearly budgeting
  • Review and accrue monthly artist budgets
  • Preparing and managing month-end accounts, and lodgement to UK head office (5 working days) including commentary and the supplementary schedules
  • Overseeing internal controls and ensuring up to date policies/procedures.
  • Key achievements include:
  • Achieving Marketing managers wish with timely actual P&Ls on individual artists and driving and assisting IT with the automation of Artist profit and loss statements
  • Designed forecasting sheets with cross-divisional functionality, easing month-end forecasting for both marketing and finance improving the accuracy of the month-end actual and allowing Marketing directors to achieve better budgets.
  • Created the attitude of the business from seeing finance just as “back office”, instead we are now regarded as an important asset, and I am involved in all key meetings for forecasting around Christmas and other key selling periods, to ensure smooth sailing

Senior Financial Accountant

Gate Gourmet
04.2010 - 05.2011
  • Company Overview: Reported directly to the Finance Director of Australia, and liaised with the CEO of Australia and CFO of Asia Pacific
  • Managing and responsible for 9 staff and 5 companies (2 operating).
  • Working closely with the FD on all operational and strategic matter
  • Working closely with payroll, and provide backup
  • Preparing and managing month-end account, lodgement to the regional head office in Singapore (5 working days)
  • Preparing quarterly operating board presentations
  • Preparing financial statements, tax calculations, FBT and GST requirements
  • Key achievements included:
  • Streamlining month-end process and automating reconciliations, leading to a twenty working day a month job being reduced by 75%.
  • Redesigned the general ledger reconstruction: the business had an upstream reporting process, but no reporting down to core managers. With over 2000 general ledger accounts there was no easy way to see where improvements could be made operationally. This project resulted in more efficient reporting and delivered more clarity and operationally useful data to managers.
  • Managed simultaneous Tax and Internal audit from ATO.

Operating Finance Manager

Primary Health Care
07.2009 - 02.2010
  • Company Overview: Reported directly to the Financial Controller of Medical Centres., and liaised with the CFO and doctors Australia wide.
  • Management responsibility for 3 divisions: Accounts Receivable, Doctors Disbursement and Collections. Approx. 40 staff
  • Working closely with the FC on all operational and strategic matters
  • Manage and responsibility for fortnightly payroll of 40+ staff
  • Cashflow forecasting for the disbursements of doctors funds
  • Maintain relationship with doctors
  • Maintain relationship with medical centres (100+ Australia Wide)
  • Key achievements included:
  • Streamlined the finance process for, and then oversaw the conversion to SAP of, the doctors’ disbursements process. My changes reduced a five day a month job by 60%
  • Implemented a scanning/validating and processing system to ensure the maximum amount of money was received in the bank through the gap processing stream.
  • Streamlined the Accounts receivable banking process to achieve a 99% outcome each day, with billing delivered under 5 days (10 was recommended)
  • Achieved a 100% accuracy rate with the twice-monthly payment of the doctor’s disbursement.

Group Accountant

Hal Group
05.2006 - 07.2009
  • Company Overview: Reported directly to the CFO, and liaised with the CEO and Chairman and lead the Finance division.
  • Management responsibility for approx. 9 staff;
  • Working closely with the CEO and Chairman on all Group operational and strategic matters;
  • Working closely with the line management and senior management team to ensure the smooth operation of the business;
  • Ensuring KPI’s set by CFO were met to;
  • Maintain relationship with funders & bankers.
  • Key achievements included:
  • Reducing payroll from a five day a week job down to one day a week through efficiency improvements;
  • Successfully managing the finance stream of a project that implemented a new end-to-end leasing system, affecting every aspect of HAL’s financial processing. I had to understand how the new system would affect each division of the group, and produce a methodology on how to ensure efficient processing while maintaining accounting accuracy;
  • Promotion from Financial Accountant in charge of two staff, to Group Accountant in charge of approx 9 staff;
  • Completing “Hal Intensive Training” (HIT) leadership development program;
  • Assisting in the development of divisional strategic plans;

Senior Accountant

P P Atkins & Co
01.2003 - 01.2006

Tax Accountant

Millar Partners
01.2000 - 01.2003

Education

Chartered Accountant -

CA ANZ

Bachelor of Commerce - undefined

University of Wollongong
01.2004

Advanced Diploma of Accounting - undefined

TAFE NSW
01.2001

Skills

  • Strategic financial leadership, board reporting & executive advisory
  • Budgeting, forecasting & financial/cashflow modelling (domestic & international)
  • Governance, risk management, compliance & statutory reporting (AASB, IFRS)
  • Commercial contract negotiation, review & legal liaison (Australia, UK, USA)
  • International business expansion, tax & reporting (UK, US, Canada)
  • Payroll, BAS, FBT, payroll tax, VAT & global compliance oversight
  • ERP & financial systems: Oracle, SAP, Hyperion, Business Objects, Xero, Microsoft Dynamics (exposure)
  • Advanced Excel (modelling, macros, complex formulae) & Power BI (working knowledge)
  • Team leadership, mentoring & capacity building
  • Digital transformation, process/system improvement & SharePoint intranet builder

Key Capabilities

  • Forecasting & budgeting (global and domestic) including cashflow modelling
  • Financial statements & month-end reporting (AASB & IFRS compliance)
  • Mentoring, coaching & leading finance and executive staff
  • Board reporting & presenting complex insights in clear, practical language
  • Partnering with executives & department heads to achieve budgets/targets
  • Establishing overseas entities & managing global business expansion
  • Strategic planning & business development input
  • Overseeing Finance, HR & IT systems, policies, and internal controls
  • Recruitment, training & staff capacity building

EDUCATION

  • 2018- present - Monthly tax updates with ICAA
  • 2017 - Digital Marketing Circuit (General Assembly)
  • 2017 - Code in a Day (General Assembly)

Timeline

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Audience Precision
06.2018 - Current

Finance Manager

BMF Australia
08.2017 - 06.2018

Finance Manager

Warner Music Australia
05.2011 - 06.2017

Senior Financial Accountant

Gate Gourmet
04.2010 - 05.2011

Operating Finance Manager

Primary Health Care
07.2009 - 02.2010

Group Accountant

Hal Group
05.2006 - 07.2009

Senior Accountant

P P Atkins & Co
01.2003 - 01.2006

Tax Accountant

Millar Partners
01.2000 - 01.2003

Bachelor of Commerce - undefined

University of Wollongong

Advanced Diploma of Accounting - undefined

TAFE NSW

Chartered Accountant -

CA ANZ

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Alison Alexander