03 Nov Meet the team – Grant Sumpter
With a long career of helping businesses grow their profitability, Grant’s worked in industries as diverse as timber exports and healthcare – so he brings a wealth of expertise and passion to his role as Financial Controller here at Datum.
What’s your role and what does that entail?
I’m the Financial Controller at Datum Projects which has me managing all things financial to make sure we run the business cost effectively and profitably. Together with the accounts team I’m responsible for client invoicing and paying our staff and suppliers, producing monthly and annual financial reports and forecasts, job profitability reports and cashflow management.
How long have you worked with Datum and what was your career path to getting there?
I’ve been with Datum Projects for coming up 3 years. Prior to this role, I held financial management positions with a range of different businesses starting work in a chartered accounting firm before moving on to merchant banking, television production, public relations, timber exporting and healthcare.
What was your first paying job?
Mowing lawns round the neighbourhood when I was at school.
What would you like to achieve while you are at Datum?
Provide financial management support to the Datum Projects team to help us grow to be the first choice business in the industry.
What does the company – or you – do well?
We are known for reliably producing quality work on time for our clients – whatever it takes.
What gets you up in the morning? What makes coming to work enjoyable for you?
The friendly team and the great work that we do. It makes you proud to be a part of the business
What’s the funniest/weirdest thing to happen to you at work?
To have a life-sized cut out of me taken on a work fishing trip I desperately wanted to be on – how thoughtful of them to include me in their photos!
Not a life-size cutout!
If you could have a career in anything else, what would it be?
Lots of things, but how good would it be to be a successful professional golfer?
What do you like to do outside of work?
Play golf, go fishing and surf in the summer and marvel at what our three boys get up to in their lives.