Background and summary
Patricia has developed a hard earned reputation for professionalism, integrity and durability. Having battled her way from being a 16 year old ‘girl Friday’ working for the GLC at County Hall, to the Head of Treasury at AstraZeneca, Patricia has gained an invaluable and rarely matched experience across a wide scope of industries.
With her approachable and caring nature and a desire to coach and mentor, she has done a truly great job in passing on much of her knowledge to the next generation of aspiring treasurers.
A true inspiration to those who have worked with and for her, Patricia’s positive impact and influence on the treasury industry over her career is unquantifiable.
Career
She has spent the best part of 40 years split equally between Unilever and her current role at AstraZeneca.
During the early stages of her career Patricia faced enormous challenges being a female in a very male dominated environment. Having no formal qualifications made the mountain to climb in front of her even more daunting. However, her strength of character and determination drove her to seek new challenges and drive her career forwards. She is now a keen supporter of our recently launched ‘Women in Treasury’ initiative.
The following testimonials illustrate perfectly the respect she commands and serve to support this unique achievement:
“I have always seen Patricia as my role model, her highly ethical values and visionary Treasury operational structures are an inspiration and a reminder that hard work and perseverance are the key to success.” Cristiane Candeloro, AstraZeneca.
“I have had the privilege of knowing Patricia both professionally and personally for a good 15 years or more. At work she is the consummate professional. I am very proud to be part of Patricia’s professional and personal life. She is one classy lady and a pleasure to do business with and to spend an evening with.” Jo Prince, Director FX Sales, UBS.
“Working with Patricia changed my working life forever. I learnt so much from Patricia and thoroughly enjoyed working with her. She always impressed me with her ability to make things happen and she ‘made’ my working career – before that I was drifting along with no clear goals.” Claire Aitken, former AstraZeneca colleague.
“Patricia has been one of the most influential people in my career and that of many bankers I know. Her incredibly high standards and attention to detail demand the best from her team and her banking partners. Her ‘to do’ lists and demands used to fill me with dread but the reward for working through them was a lot of laughs and she is a lifelong friend.” Cara Savas, MD, J.P. Morgan.
Patricia is now looking forward to having more time on her hands to holiday in South-East Asia and indulge in her recently-acquired passion for golf.
“I’m still passionate about what I do, but with the operation moving to Manchester I decided to take the opportunity to retire early,” she said. But with so much professional knowledge and expertise still to offer, will she still be keeping in close contact with her team after she leaves? “Of course,” she said with a chuckle. “I’ll definitely be on speed dial.”
The entire team at Treasury Today wish to congratulate Patricia on this Award and wish her all the very best in a most well-earned retirement.
