Take a closer glimpse into the people at Saxton Bampfylde and our global partners with our regular team insight feature.
My role
After working in finance for 25 years, the last half of which I spent as CFO of various businesses, including in the education sector and for the Financial Times Publishing Group, I began a second career in executive search. I joined Saxton Bampfylde to run its finance practice, and have been here for the last eight years. Around half of the finance searches that we do are bursar roles for schools. We have done around 50 in my time with the firm. It works well combining deep sector knowledge from our schools practice with functional expertise from our finance practice.
Rainy day dreams
I guess this section has become post-lockdown dreams! I must confess that I love a good restaurant in an interesting location. We did a search for a school in Moscow last year, and it was wonderful to return to the amazing Georgian restaurants of that city which I had grown to love in the 2000s when doing business there. I now find myself fantasising about Georgian food and wine!
True passion
I love long distance walking amongst hills and mountains. We spend a lot of time in Andalusia, and there is a very deserted route there called the GR7 which I have walked a lot of over the years. My wife rides there and I can often be found leading her horse over rough terrain, always on the lookout for a spring where we can all find some cool water to refresh ourselves.
Dead or alive
In spite of his faults I believe Steve Jobs was one of the great business leaders of all time. He founded Apple; was fired from it (I did mention his faults); was invited back when Apple was on the brink of collapse; and he then went on to make it a brand worth $1 trillion at its peak, and with almost unrivalled global ubiquity. As a business leader that really is quite a feat.
Hot tip
Continuing on the Georgian theme above, I recommend an extraordinary book that came out late last year called The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischvili. It follows the fortunes of seven Georgian women during the 20th century and is genuinely inspirational.
What are people looking for in their Bursar at the current time?
We can’t recall a time when the contribution that the bursar makes has been as critical as it is at the moment. Many governing bodies and heads are looking to bursars to give them confidence in how the future financial performance of their school will be under a wide range of scenarios. They are also looking to them to think creatively about new ways of doing things and to sensitively and appropriately change the cost base. A good bursar will bring a wide range of stakeholders, ranging from the head, to the governing body, to teaching staff and to parents with them as they address these issues and implement changes. And a good bursar will provide a degree of reassurance and confidence that transcends the circumstances in which the school and its stakeholders find themselves.
Get in touch with David:
020 7227 0844
