Mark Allum is assistant financial manager at MDM Timber in Basildon, Essex.

“I moved into the timber industry from the medical equipment sector where I had received training as a bookkeeper. I had to learn about the supply chain in the timber sector and was lucky enough to get to go to Sweden and see the production process from the tree nursery to the forests and sawmills. They grow trees out there on a scale I’d not seen before and it really underlined that timber is a renewable material if it’s grown sustainably.

“Working for a medium-sized family business, I get involved in all aspects of the financial management of the company’s activities. Day to day my job involves working with the purchase and sales ledgers, managing credit control and handling our foreign currency accounts. I also sometimes get involved in the wider financial planning for the business, and I can now help to look after the ‘ship’ when the managing director is away. I think the pay is very reasonable compared to my friends in other sectors, and job security is about the same as any other industry when it comes to the ups and downs of the country’s economy.”