There’s a certain type of finance career Becky Smith knew she didn’t want. The safe, linear climb through the Big Four, which undoubtedly offer the comfort of predictability but also little opportunity for thrills.
Instead, she’s spent her career gravitating towards businesses that are a little pacier, and where the consequences are visible – which is how she found herself at the heart of Wonderhood Studios.
Smith trained at KPMG and qualified as an ACA before making an early move into industry, joining Informa’s Group Finance team. This offered a proper corporate education: global consolidations, listed-company reporting, and the professional standards required at scale. But it wasn’t where she wanted to sit indefinitely.
That search for variety and impact took her into agencies, joining Publicis Sapient and moving through financial controller roles across the UK and APAC before stepping into financial planning and analysis (FP&A). It was a crash course in how fast-growing professional services businesses really operate – and how central finance becomes when growth, complexity and ambition collide.
When the opportunity at Wonderhood came along, Smith wasn’t fixed on staying in advertising. What drew her in was the proposition: a young business spanning brand and broadcast, and a leadership team with a clear point of view on how differently things could be done.
She joined two years after launch, when the business was still small enough to build relationships quickly and when finance could embed itself at the centre of the operation. Hot-desking alongside teams, staying close to leadership, and understanding the very different commercial dynamics of advertising and television has shaped how she works.
In an industry that still underestimates the strategic role of finance, Smith offers a counterpoint. She talks to us about her role and career.
How did you get started in your career and what brought you to a role in advertising?
I trained at KPMG but realised that a career progressing through one of the Big Four wasn’t going to be for me. So after completing my ACA, I looked for a role in industry and joined Informa, a FTSE 100 international events, publishing and business intelligence business. I worked in the Group Finance team and learnt a lot about global consolidations, financial reporting and the professional standards required at a large corporate. It was a great start to my career, but I still wanted to work somewhere more dynamic and where I could make more of an impact.
That led me to join Publicis Sapient, a network agency where I worked as Financial Controller for the UK market, then APAC before moving into the FP&A team.
When I was ready for my next move I wasn’t wedded to a career in media. Although I initially looked at roles in other network agencies I was open to other industries too. Then the opportunity at Wonderhood crossed my path. I was excited about the idea of working in a new up and coming company that was trying to do things differently. After I meeting Sachin Dosani (COO) and David Abraham (CEO) and seeing their passion I was sold. It’s not always been easy but luckily I enjoy a challenge!
How do you effectively maintain contact and work with the CEO/leadership team in the agency?
The key part is making sure that I interact regularly with the senior leadership across the business and set aside specific time to catch ups on a regular basis.
This has been relatively easy though as I joined Wonderhood two years after its launch when the business was still relatively small and I was able to build relationships with the founding team straightaway.
The fact that finance is a central function within the business also means I have been involved in various projects and changes and developments over the years which have involved senior management and the board.
We hot desk at our office and unlike in a lot of companies the finance team sit amongst everyone else. Being around the teams means you are aware of what is going on and able to anticipate and react to any issues so we are in fairly constant contact with many people across the business.
Luckily everyone is easy to work with!
What do you enjoy most about working in a creative agency that is different from elsewhere?
You are surrounded by a range of people from hyper organised account handlers (in advertising) and production managers (in television) to brainy Strats and well, creative Creatives (right across the business). Everybody is passionate about the work they are making and that work is tangible. It’s great to be able to see the work on television screens or the side of buses.
At Wonderhood as we operate in both Brand and Broadcast worlds there is a lot of variety (and challenges) to my role. At times you feel like you are being pulled in multiple directions but generally it keeps things interesting. Understanding each sector’s risks and opportunities helps to forecast and strategise at a bigger picture level.
What do you think is the greatest misconception around the FD role?
That we only care about numbers, spreadsheets and margins.
What’s been the biggest surprise for you about working in the ad sector?
The biggest surprise at Wonderhood is how differently television and advertising are to each other. From the budgets to the timelines to the way the people think and operate. The business models are actually not very similar and the ability to make revenue from the IP in television is completely different to the billing structure in advertising. It’s testament to everyone’s skill and adaptability that both areas of our business are able to come together to deliver successful projects.
How are you using AI to support your role?
We are experimenting with ways to streamline some of our monthly processes and it’s clear that it can provide assistance with some of the repetitive and less complicated tasks. It’s also great at synthesising and summarising information efficiently for me or a member of the team to review
What’s your favourite ad?
The Waitrose Christmas advert with Keira Knightley and Joe Wilkinsonn obviously! A close second is the Gillette advert, the one with the cracking song.