Bill Hicks Email Address

Group Financial Controller

DS Smith is a European leading packaging company of customer-specific packaging and consumer goods.

EXPERIENCE Bill has 14 years experience in UK FTSE 100 public company finance functions leading on external and internal accounting. As Tate & Lyle's Financial Controller, he was responsible for the development and leadership of a best practice (as appropriate) finance function to establish well-controlled, high quality, accurate, insightful, comprehensive and timely financial reporting and forecasting. This took place during considerable change for the business, with reorganisation involving disposals and the introduction of a new go-to-market approach, against a backdrop of global uncertainty. He took the lead on complex accounting issues, including IAS 39 problems. Bill was the principal point of contact for the auditors, actuaries and external financial advisers. Prior to Tate & Lyle, Bill spent ten years with AstraZeneca in the group finance function, responsible for the integrity of the internal and external financial information. In that period, AZ became the fastest reporter in the FTSE 100. He was the principal contact with the auditors (on accounting, acquisition, disposal and debt transactions matters) and with the SEC and FRRP. He was also responsible for UK and US GAAP, with a leading role in the IFRS conversion, resulting in AZ being the first UK company to release restated information to the markets. He led on the accounting and asset valuation of the MedImmune acquisition, and had extensive involvement in the Sarbanes-Oxley project. Before industry, Bill spent 12 years in practice, including four years in the EY's Hong Kong Technical Department, and stints in medium and small-sized practices. SKILLS Bill has extensive IFRS, UK and US GAAP technical knowledge applied in arriving at practical solutions reflecting underlying business performance. He has experience in transaction documentation and negotiating, and cross-functional working. He places emphasis on team development responding to a wide range of aspirations and skills. Specialties: Bill sits on the UK Urgent Issues Task Force and chairs the CBI Financial Reporting Panel . He sits on the Hundred Group’s Financial Reporting Committee and is a founding member Global Preparers’ Forum, established to present preparers' views to the International Accounting Standards Board. He speaks regularly at conferences on accounting and financial reporting matters and writes, just occasionally, in the financial press.