Nick Thompson

Finance Manager

How long have you been at Port Otago?
Since April 2011. We made the move from the UK as a family, flying into Christchurch just two days after the February earthquake.

What does your role involve?
Responsibility for all accounting related activities of the port operations. I lead a team of three reporting to the CFO, with duties across accounting, audits, taxes, budgets and regulatory compliance. My priority is ensuring Port Otago has the best financial controls. As well as reports for external stakeholders, I supply weekly – building into monthly – reports to the Leadership Team and Board. The aim is always to provide good financial information to help them make better-informed decisions. Over the year, as systems around Business Intelligence keep improving, the objective is to ensure financial information becomes more relevant, timely and complete. The better the financial and management information we can provide to the Leadership Team, the better the decisions they are able to make.

What’s the best part of your job?
Knowing that you’re providing something that’s meaningful and informative and, ultimately, contributing to good decision making. The role is most rewarding when you feel that, while reporting on past success, your work is also contributing to the future success of Port Otago.

What did you do before you came to Port Otago?
For more than 13 years, I worked for small independent record labels out of Sheffield and London. It was a finance role involving all aspects of the music business – from album cover design to releases, signing artists and negotiating licensing deals. After that, I worked for Geneva Health for a few years and LifeCare Residences, before moving to New Zealand.