Phil Withers, Manager at RSM UK

Last Word

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Name: Phil Withers

Job Title: Manager

Name of the business: RSM UK

Describe your job in a nutshell:

Working within RSM UK’s Marketing Team in Yorkshire and the Humber I am the outward facing business development manager. My role is to engage with businesspeople from the mid-market and determine what issues they are facing and offer solutions from the 43 different service lines RSM offers, whether that is the general tax and accountancy services or some of the more specialised services like Environmental Social Governance (ESG), Family business Advisory or some of our employer advisory for internationally mobile employees, to name a few.

Where is it based:

RSM UK, a leading audit, tax and consulting firm, operates in over 120 countries with 32 offices throughout the UK. Our team in Hull offers a full-service business advisory.

What has been your biggest challenge in the last year:

The biggest challenge hasn’t been a business one. I was the principal organiser of the recent Humber Platinum Jubilee Flotilla and associated events including the raising of two union flags on the Humber Bridge. At 510 feet they were probably the highest on any structure in the North of England.

It was a great responsibility organising the region’s tribute to Her Majesty The Queen marking her 70-year reign. It was also great to have RSM supporting the event by chartering the famous Yorkshire Belle and inviting the business community to come on board and raising charitable donations of £9,000 in aid of the independent lifeboat service Humber Rescue and The Sailors Children’s Society, whose patron is HRH the Princess Royal.

What are you most looking forward to in the next three months:

Getting back to meeting existing and prospective clients as confidence returns in the context of what came before. Clearly we face some major challenges, but for everyone to return to a business-as-usual routine following the pandemic era will make a huge difference to everyday lives.

What news story has had the biggest impact recently:

There isn’t a single story. Ultimately though, it is about a culmination of global and domestic geopolitical factors that have had a rapid impact on prices of everyday essentials on people who were already on the breadline.

What is your biggest ambition:

My biggest ambition is to travel on the Argentinian Tren a las Nubes, or “Train to the Clouds,” and visit the Mendoza valley and sample some local wine.

Where will your next holiday be:

With the current travel upheaval, I am staying well away from air travel for a while (I hate queuing) so I’m going on a quintessential British holiday in August in my VW campervan to the Isle of Wight.

Phil Withers

What are your hobbies and which is your favourite pastime:

I love foreign language cinema and although I don’t speak any other languages, I find they are a window on other cultures and sometimes it’s good to get a different perspective of the world rather than the British one. My favourite pastime is cooking. I find it a really great way to relax and breaking bread with friends, and to coin a phrase from the late Keith Floyd “have a few slurps of beer or wine” to help conviviality along.

What are your plans for the weekend:

As I write this, I will be going to Knaresborough to be a spectator at the annual Knaresborough Bed Race and will be cheering on the various teams particularly the ones from the NHS.

T: 01482 214169 M: 07926 566220 E: darren@randdsecurityservicesukltd.co.uk E: accounts@randdsecurityservicesukltd.co.uk W: randdsecurityservicesukltd.co.uk