Michael Pay ACA
Tel: 07958 414956
Email: michael.pay@emcltd.co.uk
Michael is a qualified accountant who applies his professional skills in a commercial environment as part of the EMC team. He has been a main board director of EMC since 1999 and works out of our Brighton and London offices. He acts as an interim finance director and non-executive director and is a lead member of EMC's Corporate Finance team as well as taking on one-off business advisory projects. Michael has worked in and advised fully-listed, AIM-listed, private equity-backed and privately owned companies from start-ups through to £100m turnover businesses.
Specialist Disciplines
- Finance Director
- Corporate Finance
- Financial Planning
- Business Strategy
- Turnaround and Recovery
Sector Experience
- IT Software Design and Consultancy
- Internet Retailing & Technology
- Private Hospitals & Healthcare
- Permanent and Contract Recruitment
- Marketing, Public Relations and Events
- Manufacturing/Engineering
- Printing and Publishing
- Freight Forwarding and Logistics
- Pharmaceuticals
Assignments have included a high level of overseas work, as CFO for a US subsidiary of a UK business, as a board member of a UK business’s Japanese subsidiary and as interim European finance director for the UK-listed Laird Plc working in France, Germany, Sweden, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
Michael is a commercial finance director, advising Boards and working with them to develop and achieve the businesses’ objectives. This includes acting as part-time finance director for RDF Group Plc, an AIM-listed technology services business, and as part-time CFO for a Sunday Times Fast Track-nominated retail technology business.
Typical of Michael’s work was his appointment as interim finance director for a company involved in the design, manufacture and sale of components for the electronic and defence industries. The company, backed by venture capital, needed an experienced part-time FD to oversee the acquisition and integration of two businesses in the UK and Japan, which resulted in the doubling of the businesses' sales within a period of eight weeks. Michael worked closely with the CEO to ensure that the necessary post-acquisition cost savings were driven through. When the business was later sold, Michael was retained by the new owners to head up the post-acquisition integration and was appointed European finance director.
Michael is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants' Finance & Management Faculty and Valuations Faculty.
Prior to EMC
After leaving Brighton University, Michael joined a medium tier accountancy practice in 1992 and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1996. During his time there, he concentrated almost exclusively on corporate advisory roles, working on international taxation, corporate recovery and mergers and acquisitions.
Projects included assisting with the disposal of a property company for £20 million and advising as part of a team on the hostile takeover of a £60m turnover Plc by a private limited company.
After qualifying, Michael was asked by EMC to join the team, having crossed paths on a variety of assignments and successfully demonstrating his commercial input to the projects.
Recent assignments
- Finance Director for an AIM-quoted IT group
- Non-executive director for a telecoms recruitment company
- Non-executive director for a search engine optimisation company
- Finance director for a marketing company
- European finance director for Laird Technologies, part of The Laird Group Plc
General Background
Michael was born and educated in Sussex and enjoys rugby, cricket, golf, climbing and all forms of motorsport.
