If it hadn’t been for the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and a chance conversation on the West Bank while trying to get back to Jordan, then Phaedra Bird, chief executive officer of accountancy firm Crowe, might have ended up a food scientist.

Phaedra explains: ’At school I’d always been keen on maths and science so I opted to study at Leeds University for a degree in food science.

’At the time though, I wasn’t sure where this would take me career-wise, but I was drawn to the analytical discipline of the four-year course.

’The work was intensive but I enjoyed the degree immensely.

’Most people think that it has "something to do with cookery" but in fact it is a fairly wide subject that applies the science of chemistry and biology to the properties and composition of foods and the changes they undergo during storage and processing.

’Once I graduated, I wanted to go travelling so spent seven months backpacking in 1990.

’We’d left Jordan for the West Bank and then the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait happened and we had to get back to Jordan so we could out of the war zone.

’We were put together with other backpackers all trying to reach Jordan and got talking to a couple of people who’d completed their accountancy qualifications but were taking time out to travel before starting post-qualification work.

’Talking to those people on the West Bank sparked my interest so when I got back to the UK I applied for trainee accountancy positions and secured a job with a firm of accountants in Manchester.

’As well as enjoying the analytical aspect of accountancy, I also came to see how you can help people.

’Some individuals - families, self-employed or those running smaller businesses, for example - can be apprehensive about dealing with numbers and complex-looking forms. As accountants we’re here to demystify the whole process and help them every step of the way, and that’s very rewarding.

’I think that’s what distinguishes Crowe - our truly personal approach. This applies not only to our clients but also to our 40-strong staff.

’When the pandemic struck, for example, we did all we could to support them and make sure they were OK, and we also helped clients who were eligible to apply for grants.

’Crowe’s been operating in the island for more than 35 years now and that local, personal touch shapes how we run the firm; all my fellow directors are fully on board with this. It’s an approach that extends to how we’re growing the business and how we’ve developed a measured acquisition programme, when we always take on the staff who want to stay.’

Phaedra has been with Crowe for 22 years and became chief executive in 2019. She says: ’I’m really proud to have such a strong, approachable and flexible team.’

And when it comes to helping people, it’s not just about numbers, as Phaedra explains. ’We like to help local good causes.

’We’ve sponsored the Manx Three Peaks Challenge in aid of the Children’s Centre this year and last weekend we sponsored the Moonlight Walk in aid of Manx Breast Cancer Support group. We are also about to sponsor a dolphin in aid of Hospice Isle of Man’s Big Splash 2022 sculpture trail. And we do this because for all of us at Crowe, supporting the local community is central to that personal touch.’

The Leeds University food science course was ’tough and very disciplined’ recalls Phaedra.

’It was five days a week, nine-to five with lots of lab work as well. But when I started in accountancy in Manchester, I had a bit of a "light bulb moment". I found that the discipline and analysis of the course really worked for me and that I could apply it to accountancy, so I knew I’d made the right career decision.’

To this day Phaedra remains a big fan of the double-entry bookkeeping system. She explains: ’It’s the logic that appeals. These days I don’t get the opportunity to work on many accounts, but when I do, I always go back to basics and for me that means double-entry bookkeeping.’

And while she may be chief executive of an accountancy firm managing a team of more than 40 and dealing with local and global clients, Phaedra readily confesses: ’I still get a thrill when I get a chance to do a bank reconciliation.’