Yorkshire Accountancy Awards: Meet the Nominees for Finance Director of the Year!

​As we get closer to the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards 2024, our Director Kayley Haythornthwaite caught up with Zuzanna Kazimierczak, Financial Controller at Chadwick Lawrence LLP, who’s nominated for the Finance Director of the Year Award, about how her 2023 panned out and what she’s looking forward for as we head into 2024.

Hi Zuzanna! What’s been your biggest achievement in 2023?

I think my biggest achievement in 2023 was getting shortlisted at this year’s Yorkshire Accountancy Awards in the FD of the Year category. It is an amazing feeling to get recognition for the hard work I have put into my career development over the last few years.

And what were your 2023 highlights?

There were a lot of big achievements in 2023! I qualified as a Chartered Accountant in January, and then was promoted to Financial Controller at Chadwick Lawrence LLP in April.

I ran my first 10k as part of a fundraising event to support communities and individuals across Leeds in June, and finally took the plunge and stepped out of my comfort zone when I started attending various networking events in September.

In October, I was part of the team that developed our new Tailored Equity Partnership Scheme, and then in December I was shortlisted for this award! It’s been a really busy and rewarding year, both in a personal capacity and at work.

Is there anything would you do differently in 2024 compared to 2023?

2023 was definitely a very challenging year, but at the same time the most rewarding period in my career. Not everything went according to plan, I am aware I have made a few mistakes, but I would not be where I am in terms of my career if not for those learning curves.

What are you most excited about in 2024?

I have a feeling that 2024 will be a year of changes. I am working on some amazing projects that I am very excited about, and I have already started the process of expanding my team. Both will have a massive impact on business growth in 2024. I’m also looking forward to working on my personal growth and development to become a better leader in the future.

We're looking forward to sitting down with Zuzanna and everyone else at the Yorkshire Accountancy Awards in a few weeks, and seeing who wins Finance Director of the Year for 2024!