The German subsidiaries of an international wind energy company had grown significantly over the years without the financial structures having kept pace. During the energy crisis in 2022, the company found itself in difficult waters and had to overcome additional challenges. In this situation, the company was looking for a new Finance Director. As this took longer than expected, the internationally experienced finance executive was appointed as Interim Finance Director. His task was to stabilize all financial activities and lay the foundations for a new direction.
Finance team stabilized and tasks redistributed
At the beginning of the assignment, the interim manager quickly realized that the company - despite being part of an international group - had more of a start-up culture. At the same time, the group's requirements and specifications regarding the standardization of systems, processes and reporting had continued to grow.
The finance team was inadequately positioned to meet these challenges. Only two team members had been with the company for more than two years. There were constant changes and half of the team was either employed on a temporary or interim basis. There were also further departures and changes during the mandate. A particular challenge was therefore to stabilize and efficiently organize the ten-strong finance team with accountants and controllers. The interim manager achieved this primarily through regular, individual discussions and coaching. He also redistributed responsibilities and adjusted reporting lines. Team-building activities also ensured that cooperation and the working atmosphere improved noticeably.
Crisis situation brings further challenges
Other unforeseen challenges included the unintentional deletion of data from the newly installed ERP system and its recovery, significant additional costs due to the need to replace wind turbine components, unclear political and legal regulations in connection with the energy crisis and the Ukraine conflict - with very uncertain financial planning options - as well as an external audit and global reorganization of the Group's corporate structure.
Concentration on annual financial statements and realignment of reporting
The interim manager met these challenges by initially focusing on fulfilling the basics after stabilizing the team. This included, for example, the correct and punctual submission of tax-relevant data, the finalization of HGB/IFRS annual financial statements in cooperation with tax consultants and auditors as well as the development of efficient and meaningful reporting in accordance with the group's specifications.
In order to avoid new problems with the reporting and the ERP system, he coached the team and thus guaranteed an adequate quality of the financial activities.
Mandate successfully completed and tasks handed over to new CFO
After ten months, the interim manager was able to successfully complete the mandate and hand over his tasks to the CFO who had been found in the meantime. The financial and reporting processes are at the level required by the parent company. Thanks to the mandate, the company is now better prepared for new "storms".
