Graham Meredith Email & Phone Number

Bowral, New South Wales, Australia

Book Us Bookkeeping has been providing a range of services to clients in the Southern Highlands, Canberra, Southern Sydney and the South/Western NSW region since 2007.We provide bookkeeping, registered BAS Agent services and consulting in businesses and business software and assist all ranges of businesses in how to further improve the use of the software.The accounting softwares we are accredited in are:Xero (Silver Partner)QuickBooks Online (QBO Certified Advisor)Reckon Accounts (Reckon Accredited Partner)myob (MYOB Partner)

Highlands Pit Lane is a Mechanical Repair workshop based in Mittagong, NSW. The business was started by myself and my 50% business partner Mr Michael Farquhar. I handled all the administrative and financial issues while Michael handled all of the operational issues. The business had a turnover of a $1 million plus per year.

I was invited by 2 gentlemen to partner with them in selling a software Customer retention program for the Automotive industry. I eventually bought out the other 2 partners and now own the business 100%.Sales have been patchy in Australia with the majority of success currently coming out of New Zealand..I have found that with the current economic conditions sales have slowed so I have temporarily ceased daily operation of this business and am focussing on the other areas that are bringing me a regular source of income.

A multi franchise dealership in the Southern Highlands of NSW for Holden, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Suzuki. The business also incorporates used vehicles, finance and insurance, parts and service. The annual turnover was in excess of $20 million.My position was Dealer Principal, Director and 25% shareholder in the Moss Vale Motor Group and as such my principal responsibilities included:Improving the business and enhancing its levels of growth and profitability within the Southern Highlands Prime Market Area.Responsible for all operational functions of the company.Establish and maintain appropriate systems to ensure the efficient and secure processing of Moss Vale Motor Group's activities.

Volkswagen Group Australia Pty Ltd (VGA) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen AG responsible for the importation and distribution of Volkswagen passenger vehicles, Volkswagen light commercial vehicles and parts & accessories in Australia.My position was Finance Director and Company Secretary (appointed Board Member on 7 November 2004) reporting both to the Board Member for Finance of Volkswagen AG, Mr Lothar Sander and to the Managing Director of VGA, Mrs Jutta Dierks and as such my principal responsibilities included:Improving the business and enhancing its levels of growth and profitability within Australia.Responsible for all financial, accounting and IT functions of the company, while working as a true business partner to the Managing Director and the management team on both strategic and operational matters.Establish and maintain appropriate systems to ensure the efficient and secure processing of VGA's activities.Compliance of all legal and secretarial duties for VGA.During my time at VGA I worked for 18 months at Volkswagen AG headquarters in Wolfsburg. I was involved in both the Group Junior Executive Program (GJEP) and the EVA Training Program while working in Germany.

The fourth largest automotive manufacturer in the world with an annual sales volume of approximately 5 million vehicles, including the marques Volkswagen, Volkswagen Commercial, Audi, Skoda, Seat, Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini. Volkswagen AG's Headquarters are based in Wolfsburg, Germany.I was a member of the Economic Value Added (EVA) team, which was responsible for the training and implementation of the new methodology for project evaluation within the group. This involved training all English speaking Top Managers within the Volkswagen Group in both Germany and other subsidiaries in the world.I was invited to participate in the Group Junior Executive Program (GJEP) Year 10 during 2003. This is a training program for potential top talent employees and included 31 participants from the group worldwide who were split into six groups, each with a major group issue. Our team had to present a solution after ten months of review work to the Volkswagen AG board. Our topic related to the repositioning of Skoda within the group and I am proud to state the majority of our recommendations have been executed by Skoda to date.In February 2004 while still working for Volkswagen AG, I was asked to return to Australia, to evaluate and if deemed beneficial for the group, execute the closer operation of the two brand companies operating independently in Australia, Audi and Volkswagen. To date Audi have moved in to the same offices as VGA, have a combined parts logistics operation and are finalising the conversion to the same IT platform. These synergy savings alone are in excess of A$5 million annually.

BMW Sydney is a wholly owned subsidiary of BMW Australia Limited and is the largest retail dealership in the BMW dealer network.My position was Commercial Manager reporting to the Managing Director and as such my principal responsibilities included:Actively involved in and interacting with the other operating managers in the improvement of the daily operation of the business.Undertaking and managing a range of accounting and administrative functions necessary to ensure compliance with legal and company policies.Establishing and maintaining appropriate systems to ensure the efficient and secure processing of BMW Sydney's activities.I was sent to BMW Sydney by BMW Australia's Managing Director, Uwe Hartmann, to take over as the Commercial Manager. Our management team was successful in turning around a substantial loss position in 1999 to a healthy profit position in 2000. This was also significantly ahead of the planned budget (a feat not achieved by BMW Sydney for quite some years). The business now earns in excess of A$4 million annually.

BMW Australia Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of BMW AG, responsible for the importation and distribution of BMW motor vehicles, motor cycles, parts & accessories and LifeStyle in Australia.My position was Retail Operations Manager reporting directly to the Managing Director and the Finance Director and as such my responsibilities included:Review the organisational structure, procedures and workflow in a creative and open minded manner and propose changes, where necessary, with the aim of establishing the retail outlets as model dealerships, from efficiency and customer service standpoints, to the BMW network.Monitoring, reviewing and reporting the financial performance of the retail subsidiaries against industry benchmarks so that proactive solutions could be implemented to lift the efficiency and profitability of the retail subsidiaries.Varied special projects for the Managing Director on operational aspects of the dealer and other business.Review and improve the system of internal control to minimise risks to the retail subsidiaries.Conduct audits of dealer incentive claims to ensure guidelines of programs were adhered to by the dealers.

Horwath Melbourne was a 14 Partner firm with an office on St Kilda Road. It joined the Horwath practice on 1 July 1995, previously known as Frank Jones and Associates. I was the Senior Manager of Motor Dealer Services reporting to the Partner designate of Motor Dealer Services and as such my responsibilities included:Effectively managing the day to day functions of the Motor Dealer Division.Promoting the Motor Dealer Division and increasing the client base, which increased from 14 dealerships to 25 dealerships in 9 months. (Main reason for accepting position).Performing benchmarking analysis on clients to determine areas of weakness and potential profit leaksPerforming operational reviews on dealerships and being involved in their budget setting process using a complicated excel based budget program produced while working in Sydney office (It won a Microsoft Award).Refer previous employment at Horwath Sydney for other job functions.

Bridge Wholesale Acceptance Corporation Limited was founded in 1972. The company was jointly owned by Austrim Limited and was the largest specialist inventory financier in Australia and New Zealand. Other financial services offered by BWAC included; Commercial Leasing, Commercial Hire Purchase, Rental Programs, Fleet Management and Trade Bills.My position was Accounting Manager reporting to the Financial Controller and as such my responsibilities included:Effectively managing day-to-day treasury and financial accounting to ensure deadlines were met.Attending to statutory accounts for Australia and New Zealand.Prepare and lodge tax returns for Australia and New Zealand.Provide day-to-day support for branch managers and staff.Support to the Financial Controller and attending to special projects such as new business analysis and ongoing software development.Management of the treasury function and renegotiation of borrowings during the absence of the company treasurer.Preparation of the Excel based budget programs, liaising with Branch Management in budget setting and finalising the company's budgets for the annual management meeting.Managing the administration department at corporate head office.Conduct internal audit function, reviewing each branch office annually.

Horwath Sydney is an 18 partner Chartered firm with an office in the city centre. It has a diverse client base including several public companies, a range of private companies and groups, sole traders and partnerships. The firm is well known for its speciality in leisure time, insolvency & reconstruction and motor dealer services.My last position was Assistant Manager in the motor dealer services division and as such my responsibilities included:Planning, controlling and reviewing audit and related tax work for audit clients prior to partner review.Planning and completing accounts, audit and tax work on a variety of smaller clients.Producing monthly management accounts and general business advice as well as year-end accounts for one small company.Supervision of up to four staff members at any one time.Full client liaison including billing and cash collection.Producing cash flows and budgets on a special detailed Excel program developed in house for motor dealers.Performing benchmarking analysis (Excel spreadsheet) on clients to determine areas of weakness and potential profit leaks.In addition, "special" assignments included:Assisting clients in obtaining bank finance for major investment proposals.Secretarial work in restructuring clients group of companies. One such job helped prevent the client from paying $1 million in stamp duty.Reviewing Nissan dealerships in the USA on behalf of Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation, to determine whether they should finance the dealership. This assignment was a one off special assignment for two months through an affiliate firm in the USA that also specialised in motor dealers.

Bachelor, Financial Administration; Accounting

Activities and Societies: Student Representative Council, Robb College, Robb College Australian Rules Team

Higher School Certificate, English, Mathematics, History, Geography

Education record