The Value in Completing Unpopular Tasks

The “great resignation” that dominated headlines this past year shows we are in a time where professionals are focused on their career development more than ever. Employees want to know if they are headed down a career path that best suits their needs and skills, and employers are struggling to give them the tools they need to determine the career progression that works best for them.

This series aims to share the stories and wisdom of successful shared services practitioners. We will explore how they found their way into the space, the key career decisions they had to make, and some lessons they would like to impart to younger generations. If you have any career questions you would like answered, please reach out to Sally via email (sally.fletcher@ssonetwork.com) or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Helen Emmitt, CFO of Global Finance Services at Experian, is about as knowledgeable as they come in the shared services landscape, and her career and accolades back that up. Helen is not only the first female CFO but the first CFO outright of Global Finance Services reflecting the growth and transformation of GFS at Experian. In the third episode of GBS Career Corner with Sally Fletcher, Helen shared her thoughts on GBS careers such as what she looks for when hiring a GBS professional, how she got interested in GBS and much more. 
 
Helen began her career as an accountant before becoming a management consultant at PWC where she specialized in process improvement and budgeting. For the past seventeen years, Helen has moved up the ranks at Experian, beginning as a Financial Planning Manager, to becoming head of the UK and EMEA Finance shared service center and eventually leading Global Finance Services in her role as CFO. 
 
During her conversation with Sally, Helen shared insights in the following areas:

Raise your hand

When Helen joined Experian, it was a transformational time in the business. In her role as head of the UK and EMEA shared services center, she saw the center go from managing 30% of Experian's finances in the region to 60%. This growth took a lot of work, but Helen’s willingness to embrace it and the challenges that came with it helped her grow her career.

When Sally asked how Helen leveraged these transformations to help her own career Helen responded by saying, “that’s been what’s helped me move my career forward. I’ve enjoyed getting involved in big projects and I’m a big fan of putting my hand up.” Emmett said.

As the leaders of change for most businesses, shared services professionals need to be comfortable with large-scale projects with several moving parts. They need to be willing to participate and engage with other leaders, and above all, they must truly enjoy doing so. Helen added that it might not seem like there is ever a good time to accept a new role or responsibility, but by accepting risk and taking a chance you can show others how reliable you are.

GBS leaders such as Helen get excited by transformation while many others might see it as burdensome, and in order to excel in a shared services career young professionals must have that same energy. This segues well into our next point, which is don’t shy away from taking on the unpopular task.

It’s okay to be uncomfortable

Helen’s ability to take on unwanted challenges is one of her strongest characteristics, and something she is well aware of having played a role in accelerating her career growth. 

“Something that has defined my career has been identifying something that has got to change, or something people don’t want to do, and going ‘actually I can do that, I can show I can lead.’” Helen said.

For example, Helen’s first role out of university was as a Graduate Trainee for Boots, a UK pharmacy and beauty product retailer. When she and the other trainees were asked who would like to work on budgeting, Helen was the only person who offered to take on the process. She was aware budgeting wasn’t well-liked, but she took the knowledge she gained from the experience and leveraged it throughout the rest of her career.

Helen added that the willingness to take on unpopular tasks lends itself to another important attribute of shared services practitioners, continuous improvement. Many times, people are hesitant to take on a task because they do not feel knowledgeable about the topic, but what they fail to realize is they are passing up a meaningful learning opportunity. By taking on these challenges people can develop their skills and knowledge which results in more career doors opening up for them.

Tips for a killer CV

In the shared services realm, it is commonplace for practitioners to work all across the world, and Helen’s last bit of advice focused on how to get ahead when applying for a position outside the country you currently live in.

The fact is, applying outside the country will take a lot more work than applying in. Applicants need to do more research about the brands they want to work for because there are countless they could be interested in but have never heard of. They also need to include more detail in their cover letter and resume. Global businesses might not be familiar with where you currently work, or the school you attended, which is why it is important you include more detail about your background and areas of training and expertise.

If you like the audio medium and would like to hear a detailed interview that dives much further into Helen Emmett’s career advice, please listen to Careers Corner with Sally Fletcher on Spotify or Apple Music.