Acorn Awards 2024: Jamie Kendall, 29, head of finance, Culinera

Age 29

Position Head of finance, Culinera

Nominator Thomas Pass, chief executive, Culinera

Jamie Kendall’s relentless dedication and strategic vision was harnessed in early 2023 when he became Culinera’s youngest head of finance and board director. Within just one year, his hands-on approach and proactive initiatives have boosted the independent caterer’s profits.

For a start, he implemented a ground-breaking ordering system for parents in school contracts. This has not only saved the company more than £250,000 in licence costs, but also facilitated the processing of more than 15,000 orders daily, generating an annual income exceeding £5m.

Additionally, Kendall engineered a system called Coins that accelerated £60m of annual invoicing cycles by two days a month. It also yielded substantial savings in postage costs and facilitated advanced reporting capabilities, potentially resulting in hundreds of thousands of pounds in food and cost-savings annually.

Lastly, his environmental consciousness saw him introduce tablet PCs in all school contracts, saving £30,000 a year by replacing triplicate pads and reducing CO2 emissions.

Looking ahead, he is spearheading a cutting-edge internal finance system to oversee all financial activities in the business.

Kendall, who began his career in 2014 as a finance assistant at WSH/Caterlink, shares his expertise by mentoring finance colleagues. He also initiated a monthly finance clinic, providing colleagues with an open platform to ask questions. This has supported the company to deliver 15% more profit than initially budgeted.

His multifaceted contributions underscore his commitment to excellence and advancing the hospitality industry professionally and socially. Not least, he spends time with educational institutions, supporting internships and career fairs to nurture talent and foster industry awareness among students.

How do you get the best out of your team?

"I aim to be inclusive and transparent, thereby gaining input and ideas from multiple sources. I’m lucky enough to work in a small enough business within a very close team, so we can communicate extensively, which helps us to improve consistently."

What excites you most about the future of your role?

"The culture we have around adopting new technologies into our business model and processes, combined with the increased appetite of the contract school catering industry to these changes. It has opened a world of possibilities in the near future to reinvent traditional ways of working and continuously provide a better client experience."