The Forward Thinking CFO – Episode 3 – Sahil Rishi

In today’s episode, we speak to Sahil Rishi, CFO at Sedgwick International UK, the leading provider of insurance and company benefits solutions to businesses all over the world.

Unlike many who know that Finance is the career for them from the time they go to university, Sahil’s journey was rather different. He was set on making it in the world of entertainment before a chance call from a recruiter which led him down a different path.

After training with Moore Stephens, Sahil jumped out into industry with MF Global. Finding himself in the middle of a high-profile chapter 11 bankruptcy and the liquidation of the now defunct fund manager.

Not one to shy away from a challenge, he then moved to The Cambian Group, playing an instrumental role in the IPO and subsequent restructure and formation of the finance function that followed.

Sahil knew that he wanted to climb to the top in finance and following his success at Cambian, went on to become UK Finance Director for Egon Zehnder before landing his first CFO role, at Sedgwick International.

For many Finance professionals, a chapter 11 bankruptcy or an IPO is a career defining event. Something that happens ‘once in a lifetime’. Sahil’s been through both and much more on top of that.

With such an eventful career to date, it was great to have a chance to speak to him for the podcast and dig deep into his career and advice for finance professionals like you, looking to make it to the top. We cover a whole host of topics, including:

• Sahil’s candid insights on major bankruptcy and a large-scale IPO and his advice for you if you’re managing a major financial event for your company, good or bad.
• What challenges he faced when he took on his first CFO role at Sedgwick and how Covid-19 has affected both, his plans for the Finance function and his role throughout 2020.
• And his advice to aspiring CFOs, why you need to be seen as a ‘driver of change’ and the skills you need to focus on as you progress through your Finance career.

We really enjoyed this conversation with Sahil. His first-hand experience working on some notable finance events was truly fascinating and this conversation is packed full of advice to help you.

Whether you’re currently working on an IPO or you’re wanting to know what you need to do to take the next step up in your career, we know you’re going to enjoy this interview.

We’re keen to hear your thoughts on this episode, so please do get in touch at ku.oc.satiremun@ofni

If you want to find out more about Sahil, check out his LinkedIn profile – www.linkedin.com/in/sahil-rishi-1922b649/

If you want to learn more about Sedgwick, have a look at their website at – www.sedgwick.com/

If you’ve enjoyed the podcast series so far, please pass it on to colleagues and friends who might be interested.