The balconies are crammed, their gaze fixated on the sea of red and white below. The tension is palpable. Within the crowd the chanting insistent; Prayers to San Fermín beseeching mercy from the ordeal about to take place. The mind races, it begs the question from you as to why? For what rational reason am I doing this?

The chanting grows louder and the sun beats harder. And in a flash, the bang of the pyrotechnics reverberates through your soul. It’s begun! Adrenaline courses through your veins and you run. You run because this is what you are here for. You run because your life depends on it, from the herd of bulls that are chasing you through the rocky Pamplona streets. And it is amazing.

I forever understood that life is about these moments where the world around you melts away. Where for that short time, nothing else exists.

I read a story which showed how we could learn from pirates, and saw the parallels with Red Bull: To not just challenge the status quo, but to influence society. To not  just break the rules, but to rewrite them.

I embrace this ethos, and my passion for adventure twinned with an affinity for numbers has driven me for a financial role in the company that defines this philosophy; that defines energy. Currently  part ACCA qualified,  I will complete this and become chartered, alongside working for Red Bull.

Having merely thought of Red Bull as just a drink, I soon learnt that a single product had evolved into a brand that evokes emotions, that combines passion with a spirit for adventure, that inspires those that dare to believe anything is possible. Radical guerilla advertising working in tandem with the creation of events on a global scale, soapbox challenges to wingsuit flying, I found a revolutionary brand with an unrivalled vision. It is this culture that has shifted the paradigm of what we believe is achievable. An artistry in its own form to carve out boundaries in the mind; to push life to be lived on cusp of its limits.

The holistic approach instilled by Mr Mateschitz has enabled all of this to come to fruition and what I discovered has resonated with me. A compelling world which calls to me, to not just experience, but to immerse myself into and live. One that sends a man to jump from the edge of space, but also whose moral responsibility led it to create the Wings for Life foundation.

It is here  where my own capabilities will be tested and I will be challenged to push  my own limits, that has led me to strive to be a part of the Red Bull community.

From Private Sector to Civil Servant to now running my own business, I have realised that it is not about finding yourself, but about creating yourself. I know where I want to be, and this is me making the opportunity. You are dream makers, and I a believer of dreams will be a part of this.

Having run with the bulls to currently training for the Red Bull uphill race, I endeavour to push myself and embrace life to its fullest. With a head full of numbers and heart full of adventure, this combination will hold me in good stead to nurture my potential, and to make an impact with Red Bull. We don’t find luck, we make it.

Cake Box Borehamwood

• 2021 - Present - Owner - Franchised a Cake Box store from inception, managing all aspects of operation, and leading a team of eight staff. Handle Payroll, VAT, Annual Accounts and Corporation Tax. Adhere to Environmental Health Office requirements, Food Hygiene Standards (5*), and Allergen regulations. Uphold brand reputation and maintain standards of product quality (currently 4.8 Google rating, 100+ reviews).  Created partnerships and negotiated contracts to supply cakes to local businesses, notably Borehamwood Football Club, SKY Studios, Elstree Studios, and BBC Studios, with our cakes featuring live on air (Strictly Come Dancing), and used as props (Eastenders). Overseen growth year on year in revenue and EBITDA.

HM Revenue & Customs

• 2018 - 2021 - Upstream Compliance Lead - Tasked with heading a new team at the forefront of HMRC’s Upstream compliance strategy, pursuing pro-active compliance using a One-To-Many approach. Grew the team from creation to 16 members. Implemented operational processes, governance agreements, and data procedures, including data acquisition, GDPR requirements, and data processing.

• Delivered six One-To-Many projects from idea, through governance, to delivery. Involved presenting to steering groups and One-To-Many Assurance boards, analysis of large data sets concerning 500,000+ individuals, establishing levels of risk, determining which activities were viable, and evaluating results. Total yield across the projects measured at £65m+.

• 2017 - 2018 - Wealthy Finance Performance & Planning project - Tasked with a cost optimisation exercise to evaluate the over budget payroll spanning 6 offices in the Wealthy Directorate. Extracted footprint data, critical staff requirements, anticipated organisational structural changes, and projected attrition for each site. Created a planning tool using Excel VBA scripts allowing the Director and Site Leads to independently model iterations of potential recruitment/redundancy, and determined which site had scope to absorb a new Sectors based team.

• Simultaneously revamped the Tax Revenue forecasting process for the Wealthy Directorate. Wrote Excel VBA scripts to automate the processing of raw data, creating uniformed reports allowing consistent month-on-month comparison, and to highlight material changes in expected versus actual yield. The efficiency saving was quantified as saving 36 FTE days per year, and statistics with visuals could be produced on demand allowing staff performance to be challenged with up-to-date data.

• 2015 - 2017 - High Net Worth Tax Inspector - Completed the HMRC Income Tax technical training program and placed in the High Net Worth unit, dealing with individuals worth £20m+. The role comprised of risk analysing tax returns and leading subsequent enquiries. Notable case contested the treatment of Capital Gain losses arising from Share Capital Reductions, undertaken by 22 taxpayers, represented HMRC in the dispute resolution meetings with agents, and which concluded in yielding £12m additional tax .

AXA PPP Healthcare

• 2014 - 2015 - Pricing Analyst - Priced quotations for health insurance based on market variance, method of underwriting, current and rolling loss ratios, and other criteria.

 Royal Bank of Scotland

• 2013 - 2014 - Customer Advisor - Resolved queries raised by customers as part of day to day banking operations.