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• chief financial officer – Leo Burnett Group, Russia
• ACCA fellow since April 2005

Working in an ideas industry was a lucky break for Tamara, chief financial officer, Leo Burnett Group Russia, the creative agency owned by Publicis Groupe, one of the largest marketing communications companies in the world. ‘I knew about advertising and creative companies before I joined Leo Burnett but when I went for the first interview I was very excited by the office, the atmosphere and the people. I thought it would be a very interesting business in which to work, and it is. It’s a very inspirational and dynamic environment. I am a person who is very communicative; I don’t see myself sitting in an office doing Excel spreadsheets all day. Here I really do much more.’

With a solid accounting background, including a five-year stint at KPMG in Moscow and three years as finance controller/director of Geneva-based Richemont Luxury Group in Russia, Tamara found an opportunity to develop her finance skills when she joined Leo Burnett in March 2004 as finance director. She was appointed CFO in 2006 following a restructuring of the Publicis Groupe in Russia, which saw Leo Burnett join forces with two related agencies. At that time, she was asked to take on the responsibilities of managing director while a candidate was being sought for the role.

‘From my perspective, it was a real achievement to take on the role of managing director, which was new and challenging. I had to go to production meetings and understand details of the creative process, which was quite removed from my role as CFO. It was a useful experience, stepping into those shoes and gaining a different perspective on the business, which I have found of great benefit as CFO. But what I took from that experience is that I understood it wasn’t really my destiny to be managing director in this particular industry. To do that, you really need to be an experienced professional with the right background who has started from the bottom and worked their way up through the industry. It was tough but it helped me realise that I’m very happy being a CFO. This is where I can add value.’

Last October, Tamara became responsible for the financial performance of two additional markets that are important for the NYSE-listed group: Ukraine and Kazakhstan. Together with Russia, she now reports directly to the worldwide CFO for these three countries. Tamara is a member of Leo Burnett’s emerging markets committee and sits on the finance committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia.

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