FT14 Apr 2015 07:50
Fly-past of the wingmen: Andrew Findlay is moving from Halfords to EasyJet to fill the gap created when Chris Kennedy leaves for Arm, after Tim Score retires. Stuart Bridges is quitting Hiscox for ICAP because Iain Torrens joined TalkTalk when Steve Makin stepped down. None of the moves involves a numbers ninja becoming a Chief Executive. Ambitious finance Directors may frown at this. In the eyes of many in the City, their breed occupies a position on boards second only to the big Boss. Typically, the CEO and FD are a double act at presentations. The stats brain answers tricky numerical questions but avoids butting in when the Chief is expounding on strategy. The current outbreak of do-si-dos suggests a different theme is playing, with finance Directors as career wingmen. Their specialism is more transferable than operations management, allowing established names to skip between sectors. That reflects risk aversion among boards, according to Mark Freebairn of recruiter Odgers Berndtson. The criticism may apply to FDs too. Those round pegs may never win plaudits as inspirational leaders, but they are less likely to be fired by the board too