VFF is a transformational approach to traditional outsourcing, where a businesses’ financial information is taken out of their office but is still managed under one (virtual) roof. The fully bespoke service offering, differs from traditional cloud accounting solutions because the team are also on hand to provide specialist advice and expertise to ensure the bigger picture is considered– not simply assisting with processing.

Arlene Cumming has re-joined AAB as a Senior Manager in the VFF team. She started her career at AAB before moving to industry where she worked with international and local businesses, predominantly in the energy sector, and gained extensive experience in monthly reporting, budgeting/forecasting, cash flow management and revenue assurance.

Alex Wheelan has also joined the team as a manager. She specialises in IFRS and renewable energy, specifically working on specialist projects, assessing the impact of new standards and how that impacts financial reporting. Alina Burns, Mandy Ross and Keri Innes all join as assistant managers and Sarah Drummond is the team’s first graduate trainee.

These appointments follow a substantial increase in client demand for the VFF service. In the last 12 months, client numbers have increased by 50%, with fee income increasing by 60% during the same period.

Due to the nature of the VFF service, clients range from SMEs to listed companies across all sectors. Around half of the recent wins have come from businesses within the energy sector with the other half from the business services, technology and public & not for profit sectors.

Lauren McIlroy, VFF director at AAB, commented: “I am delighted to welcome so many new members to the VFF team. All of these appointments bring additional expertise and experience which will benefit our clients and further enhance our service delivery.

“The increase in client demand is a result of many different factors. Some clients are growing, others are downscaling, some have completed mergers or acquisitions and we are also supporting a few start-ups who have secured their first round of funding and need to put key functions in place. However, the majority of our new, and existing, clients are businesses who are embracing virtual finance functions as an alternative to recruiting in-house finance teams.

“It is a very exciting time for our team, and we look forward to continuing to work with such progressive businesses across the globe.”