eKourier July 2014

WHO’S WHO

10 Questions... With Sathish Gopinath - Financial Controller

when you first moved to Australia?

Kennards is one of the very few businesses that I have been a part of where a lot of what the business stands for; its values, culture, beliefs etc. are in perfect sync with mine. I feel very proud and privileged to be part of a very ethical business. Tell us about your recent role change within Accounts? I am thoroughly excited. From being responsible for the Financial Reporting of one(investment) portfolio with in the Kennards business, to playing a larger role in the overall Financial Reporting of the Self Storage portfolio. This has given me the opportunity to interact and work ‘with’ the wider business. In a dynamic business like ours, there is always the need to constantly review processes and systems to keep pace with the growth. I would like to think that it is more than a number crunching role that facilitates improving efficiency and performance rather than just measuring performance. As part of my new role within Finance, the focus is to deliver significant efficien- cies resulting in benefits across the Finance Team as well as consistent and better quality information to the wider business. On a macro level, I am passionate about working with the business to explore improvement and growth opportunities. The starting point for me is merchan- dise. There is a lot of untapped potential and it has the propensity to become a business in itself. I think this has been slightly neglected in the past. I am delighted to be a part of what we are doing in this area, enjoy the interac- tion with the Team Members and I am learning a lot. The job has just begun, a long way to go. I must say that this opportunity has helped me to ‘open up’ a lot in a short period of time, surprising myself (and others) at times. What is your main focus at the moment?

I was living outside of India (in Russia and UAE) for over five years before moving to Australia. Completely contrasting and unique social, political, climatic and professional environments to what we have here. Australia was ‘different’ and the change was refreshing. I Had to start life with a clean slate, it has been quite a challenge. I am here with my wife and five year old son. My parents are in India, both of them now retired. I have one younger sister who lives with her family in Canada. What hobbies or interests do you have? I was a voracious reader, not anymore, though I still enjoy reading varied topics. Enjoy playing and watching cricket and tennis. Played for my college cricket team before demanding academics took over. Love spending time with my family and playing with my son. I meditate and enjoy a nice quiet walk with my family. You have attended a number of training courses and team building exercises within KSS, have you found them beneficial and in what ways? My first PEP in Nov 2007 was life changing in a lot of ways, followed by LSI 2 in 2008 and 2010 that facilitated in incorporating feedback from fellow Team Members. I have learnt a lot about myself and continue to do so. For an introvert like me, the opportunity to open up and let go of emotions and make the most of it has been rewarding. I have not been part of any organisation that cares about professional and personal development as much as Kennards. Can you sum up Kennards in one word? Kennards truly lives up to what it stands for – FREEDOM. It makes a lot of differ- ence when people accept and respect you for what you are. Tell us about your family?

How long have you lived in Australia and what bought you here? I have been in Australia for 12 years now. Got my MBA admission in the U.S. but things didn’t go to plan. Then decided to apply for permanent residence in Australia and continue higher studies and the rest is history. This is home now. When did you first start with KSS and what were you doing? I started with KSS in July 2007 as a Financial Accountant for the KVSI Portfolio – the Joint Venture between Kennards and Valad Property Group for the Millers Acquisition. It was a ‘business within a business’ (back then). The structure was constantly changing with Kennards deciding to buy out Valad in June 2008 and investment increasing from 50% to 75% and to 100% by June 2010. With this came the additional statutory accounting and reporting requirements. The complexity of the structure and ownership was something that presented enormous challenges and opportunities for me to learn. The journey was very exciting (lonely at times), however I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of it. How do you find KSS compared to other places you have worked?

What changes did you experience

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Kennards Kourier July 2014