Jack Moore talks about about being a Partner at Page Kirk, and how he was invited into the partnership at the age of just 29.
Hi Jack, who are you and what do you do?
I am Jack Moore, currently a Partner of Page Kirk, based in Nottingham, and my area of oversight is the delivery of digital finance function services for small owner-managed businesses who want more than a traditional once-a-year client-accountant relationship.
What has your career journey been like to date?
I didn’t follow the ‘traditional’ university route into accountancy. I’m not even sure I’d call the university route the traditional route anymore. I’ve seen so many others follow the same path as me in recent years. I went into work at 18 years old for a small practice based in Nottingham. Fresh out of sixth-form after completing my A levels. I took the AAT-ACA route, and I quickly found myself a qualified ICAEW Chartered Accountant at a young age. I was exam-qualified at the age of 22 and I got my ACA letters at the age of just 23.
At this point, I decided that audit was the area that I wanted to specialise in. So I spent a number of years as an Audit Manager at Clayton & Brewill. Before leaving to pursue an opportunity at Deloitte. I learned a lot from Deloitte. In particular I honed my commercial thinking. And learned to focus more on the importance of service delivery and client experience. My time there reaffirmed that I wanted my wider career to be within a more close-knit practice. So I sought a move to Page Kirk after a while.
Joining Page Kirk as a Manager in 2018, I quickly progressed and was invited into the Partnership in 2021 at the age of just 29. The first year of being a Partner was a busy one for me, and I certainly worked harder than I ever have done before! I started building up my client base, and growing the delivery team at the same time, primarily focused on providing a finance function service for my small business clients – and we are still growing.
“One of the main challenges right now is handling and implementing the changeover of a lot of systems and processes so that they include tech and software at every turn.”
What do you enjoy about your area of the Accounting industry?
Delivering a full finance function service to small businesses is a really exciting area to work in. Myself and the team get to meet business owners who operate across a range of different industries. But what sets this experience apart is the fact that the service inherently requires you to build a deeper and more fundamental understanding of the businesses. This means that we have to understand the businesses which we work with. From an operational point of view, as well as simply a financial point of view. So that we can offer useful and constructive advice for our clients to help them make big business decisions.
What opportunities are there now in Accountancy?
We are rapidly entering a truly digital era of accountancy. If you’re an accountant, and you aren’t utilising tech and software to make tasks within your job more efficient. Then you’re ignoring a major movement – and you are missing huge opportunities to streamline. There are so many areas of accountancy, tax and audit which can be made more efficient by the implementation of the right technologies. Change can be difficult to embrace, and any major change needs to be considered and carefully implemented.
Smaller firms in particular tend to be headed up by accountants of an older demographic who haven’t grown up with technology playing a predominant part in their everyday lives. I have seen that this means there are huge opportunities for young people within the accountancy market to play a major role in reshaping the way that accountancy firms operate, and firms are already starting to get wise to this and are hiring people who are more tech-centric in their thinking.
What is the biggest challenge you’re facing right now?
Following on from the last question, one of the main challenges right now is handling and implementing the changeover of a lot of systems and processes so that they include tech and software at every turn. Reshaping the way that a firm operates so that it is pointing in the direction of travel of the future of the industry is no small task, and the hurdles to overcome are many and multifaceted, but the challenge of making this happen and seeing the benefits that come as a result is an exciting one.
I should also say that this challenge isn’t something to enjoy tackling alone – the team around me are amazing to work as a part of, and are always coming up with new ideas for ways of working, which makes us all feel as if we are all together part of something bigger!
Who or what inspires you?
I like to benchmark against myself, so making improvements on where I was at previously is always one of the main motivators for me. Whatever area that might be in. I draw inspiration from those small business owners who I work with. Particularly those who have built something completely from scratch. I can appreciate just how tough and how challenging that journey can be. So, seeing people around me make that success for themselves is an inspiration.
What advice would you give others looking to pursue a career in Accountancy?
More often than not we don’t know what we want from our careers in our early-twenties. Most of us find it along the way. If you think more broadly that you might want a career in a profession that is numbers and people-based. Then studying to become a Chartered Accountant is always going to be a positive move. Not one that you’ll ever regret. Becoming a qualified Chartered Accountant can open so many doors for you. It doesn’t mean that you can only work in an accounting practice for the rest of your career.
The practical experience you’ll gain in getting to qualified stage, helps you pick up so many key skills that are applicable to so many different jobs. So getting a few years’ of experience under your belt will stand you in really good stead. Whichever career path you find yourself walking.
What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?
“Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans”. John Lennon shared that wisdom with all of us back in his heyday. It is worth remembering and reflecting on exactly what that means every once in a while. In the fast-paced world that we live in today in which so many of us are influenced by the ‘happiness’ of others. We see on social media and other platforms, it’s easy to feel as though we are ‘behind’. It’s really grounding to get your head out of the rat race every once in a while. Sit back for a moment to take stock of what is really important to you and what it is that you have in your life right now that brings you happiness.
If you would like to apply to be shortlisted for next year’s 35 Under 35 list, please keep a look out for our updates in Summer 2023.
View the full list of 35 Under 35 Winners for 2022 here.
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