Changing of the guard
Gary Essex
Director
For the past 11 years I have been in the role of Managing Director of Johnsons MME. Effective 1 July 2022 I have handed on that role to fellow Director Paul Goonan.
I will be continuing on with Johnsons MME doing more of the things that I enjoy doing most – working with our clients.
If I briefly reflect on the past 11 years so much has changed, yet so much remains the same.
Of course, technological changes have been immense, and our business world appears forever changed as a result of the pandemic.
Four years ago, a Zoom Meeting was a car race at Winton or Bathurst. Now we know them as the tool that got many of us through the pandemic and has dramatically changed business communications.
Businesses have needed to evolve, and I suspect will need to further evolve if they are to succeed in a post pandemic world where there is pressure on interest rates, resource shortages and inflation.
The things that remain constant, I believe, is that for businesses to succeed they need to focus first on their client/customer. I unashamedly say that this has been a focus of ours at Johnsons MME and I expect will continue to be a focus going forward.
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to wish Paul all the best as he leads our team forward.
Johnsons MME is well placed to meet the challenges of the future and to assist you meet the challenges in your futures. We look forward to continuing to be a part of that.
Paul Goonan
Managing Director
I would like to start with acknowledging the significant contribution Gary has made during his time as Managing Director of Johnsons MME. It is an honour to follow in Gary’s footsteps and I look forward to continuing to work with Gary and our Directors in guiding our business.
I am proud to take on the Managing Director role of Johnsons MME, having started with the firm almost 30 years ago as a trainee accountant. I am looking forward to embracing the responsibilities that come with this role, with my focus now shifting to the strategic direction of the firm.
The world has certainly changed over the past few years, however our vision for Johnsons MME remains, to help our clients and our staff to achieve their goals.
To do this we will keep evolving our service offerings and the way we do business, to meet the needs of our clients and staff.
Adapting to change was one of the key challenges for many businesses in recent years, including our own. The ability to work from home, or virtually anywhere, had to be embraced on a large scale and this now forms part of our modern workforce.
Whilst technology has improved may aspects of our service delivery, we still find that face to face interaction is the most enjoyable way to work. That’s something that hasn’t changed in 30 years and whilst work from home is a great option when required, it won’t beat the personal relationships for most people.
It is these personal relationships, sometimes developed over multiple generations between clients, staff and directors at our firm, that have been a key to our success over the last 70 years.
Also fundamental to our success is our very competent professional team attending to our client needs as well as a strong administration team that keeps the daily operations of our firm going.
This provides us with stability and allows us to look for opportunities in the everchanging world that we live in.
It’s an interesting time. I’m looking forward to what the future brings for all of us.