Microsoft SA finance director Paul Marten has been nominated for a CFO Award in 2017. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.
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- Robert Katz (Peregrine) has been nominated for the 2017 CFO Awards.
Hailing from Chichester, England, Paul began his career with Microsoft in the UK in 2005 and went on to link up with the global tech giant's South African division in December 2013. He is tasked with leading Microsoft's finance organisation in South Africa, including business planning, revenue insights, profitability and resource analysis, compliance and people development. Founded in 1975, Microsoft brought in a net revenue of $85,32 billion in 2016 and employs more than 114 000 people across the globe.
Paul previously held various financial and business analyst roles at Equant and HP in the UK and holds an honours degree in business studies from De Montfort University and is a chartered management accountant.
In an interview in January, Paul said he relied on open communication as cornerstone of success:
"Feedback is a powerful thing. People should tell me when they want to run with something. When I ask questions, it is not to catch them out but to understand what is going on. It takes time for this to bed in and it doesn't come automatically. For me as a CFO, being comfortable with uncomfortableness is hard. You don't always knowing what is coming. There will be things that surprise you. That causes stress. You need to be mature enough to realise this is the norm."
