Dirk joined the Lidl Group as Global Finance and Accounting Director in 2008 and was subsequently appointed as Board Executive for Finance, Accounting and Tax for the German operation before joining the UK Board of Directors in 2014. In his role as CFO, Dirk was responsible for the Financial and Administrative operation of Lidl in Great Britain. He’s held other retail CFO roles before and serves on the Board of Kingston University, London, as the Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee.
Prior to joining Lidl, Dirk has worked for KPMG out of Frankfurt, Shanghai and Singapore as a Qualified Chartered Accountant for almost ten years. We caught up with him below to talk about COVID-19, big data and machine learning’s impact on the CFO function and his goals in his new role.
What has been keeping you busy over the past 12 months? How have you helped Lidl GB navigate the COVID-19 crisis?
COVID-19 played a major role last year. Keeping colleagues and customers safe whilst ensuring we could fulfil our vital role in feeding the nation came with many challenges. Optimising cash flows and raising funds from Investors and our shareholders was the basis for ensuring the business could not only afford the expensive COVID-19 measures but also continue with our ambitious expansion programme. We increased salaries and paid extra bonuses to our front-line colleagues who have risked their health and lives for our customers. We paid back more than £100 million in business rates relief to help the local communities with their funding and we financially supported our suppliers in need.
We must, however, not forget Brexit with its ongoing uncertainties about the new regulations and their application, which has tied many resources.
Despite all this, my focus was on delivering for our customers, enhancing the in-store experience at the check-out and delivering and continuously improving our app-based loyalty programme, Lidl Plus.
As we slowly begin to return to normality, what’s your advice to CFOs navigating the post-COVID-19 world? How are you preparing for this?
It is important to recognise that we will see a new normal rather than normality. COVID-19 has changed the way people consume, spend their time and how people work. How we approach it, embracing the new normal, tackling its challenges but also seizing its opportunities, will define future success more than just trying to get back to normal.
It will be important to carefully observe and efficiently engage with customers and colleagues to understand their needs and then support the board to adapt the organisation to those behavioural changes as swiftly as possible.
A full review of all our processes has helped to identify even more efficiencies. I am proud to say that my organisation is stronger and more robust than ever before.
What are some of the main lessons the pandemic has taught you?
Most organisations have not had a global pandemic on their risk register. In an ever-changing more globalised world, companies will be challenged by events they have not been able to foresee nor have their management teams been able to train for. The food retail sector was able to operate throughout the pandemic, thanks to our heroic frontline colleagues. However, many businesses would not have survived without the support of the government and the support of their communities. Organisations should take away two main lessons:
Do the right things even if nobody is watching. If your organisation is unable to prove that it contributes positively to society and conducts its business in an ethical and sustainable way, society might not be willing to support you during the next crisis. It is important to communicate with government bodies and the communities you serve and to acknowledge the important role these stakeholders play for your organisation.
Second, as one can’t prepare for everything, the way we responded to the pandemic was based on the experience and the training of our senior leadership team in crisis management. The generic response methodology has worked very well, and it is the duty of the CFO to ensure that the processes and the people are fit for a robust response to any crisis an organisation could go through. Our investment in crisis management training has paid dividends.
How will the proliferation of big data and machine learning impact the role of the CFO in the coming years?
A great CFO should be able to cut through today’s noise of data and provide relevant and timely insights for colleagues and enable them to excel at their jobs. Finance teams have always helped top management to focus on making fast and good decisions based on clear and true information. With more data than ever being available and coming from different sources, from both inside and outside the organisation, the CFO and their teams will have to work harder to remain the single source of truth and the go-to business partner.
Machine learning and big data might make it appear to be easier for the end-user to create their own reports, but it will need data experts to understand the quality and reliability of such information. The CFO will have to ensure that big data is used for the right use cases and in the best quality.
What are your key goals for the next 12 months?
Now that I’ve stepped down from the Executive Board of Lidl Great Britain and have joined the board of our international head office, taking on the global responsibility for accounting and financial reporting for the Schwarz Group, I am excited to be working alongside an international team of outstanding experts for Europe’s biggest retailer which also operates substantial food production and significant recycling activities across Europe, the US and Asia. I will continue to play my part to support the GB business, by chairing the Audit Committee of Lidl GB. This will allow me to remain closely connected to Lidl GB, an outstandingly ambitious organisation that is so close to my heart.
According to data from VoucherCodes, sales figures on 26 December — typically one of the biggest shopping days of the year — will total approximately £4 billion, down 10% on 2019’s $4.4 billion figure. This is assuming non-essential shops will not be told to close doors amid rising Omicron cases in the country.
While the Government has confirmed that no new coronavirus restrictions will be brought in in England prior to Christmas day, it remains unclear what will happen after December 25, with prime minister Boris Johnson not yet ruling out the possibility of telling non-essential shops to close.
Between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, a total of £13.9 billion is expected to be spent, down 9% on 2019. Online spending is set to reach £1.43 billion, a 25% increase compared with 2019 sales, but a 16% drop from Christmas 2020 when online sales hit £1.7 billion as much of the country was put under tough new “Tier 4” restrictions.
If the UK is placed into a full lockdown come December 26, with non-essential shops told to close, then the research suggests that total sales on Boxing Day will drop 1% compared to 2020 and down 10% on 2019.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), gross domestic product (GDP) growth was revised from 1.3% to 1.1% in Q3. Performance from health industries and hairdressers was weaker and the energy sector contracted more in September than previous estimates had suggested.
Nonetheless, upward revisions to 2020 means GDP in the three months to the end of September was closer to pre-pandemic levels. It came in at just 1.5% below the final quarter for 2019, an improvement from the previous forecast of 2.1% below. It is now estimated that annual UK GDP in 2020 fell by 9.4%, compared with a previous 9.7% estimate.
The largest contributors to the Q3 increase, in output terms, were the arts, hospitality, entertainment, and recreation as covid restrictions eased during the period.
Production and construction, however, both fell, driven by weak electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply following on from high levels in May 2021.
Speaking on Tuesday, Sunak announced a £1 billion fund including cash grants of up to £6,000 per premises for each eligible business as well as $30 million to support England’s theatres and museums. Sunak also announced that the Government would support some firms with the cost of sick pay for Covid-related absences.
The chancellor called the new support measures “generous” as he recognised the difficult situation many hospitality businesses continue to face in the run-up to Christmas. However, Sunak did not comment on whether further support would be offered to businesses should additional coronavirus restrictions be introduced.
As covid cases continue to soar, the Government is under mounting pressure to act to reduce the virus’ spread. On Monday, a further 91,743 covid cases were reported in the UK, marking the second highest daily total on record since the pandemic began in 2020.
Health insurance helps people with their financial needs by paying a portion of their medical care. As we all know, we don’t know when we will get sick, but with good health insurance, you don’t have to worry about the financial aspects. That said, there are many reasons why you should get health insurance not just for yourself but also for your family. But before we get to the reasons why you should get health insurance, let’s talk about what health insurance is.
What is health insurance?
Health insurance provides you with financial support in medical costs by paying your medical bills. As we all know, medical bills are staggering, and a huge portion of the population can’t afford to pay them with their income alone.
As insurances go, there are a lot of kinds in the market. There are insurance plans that are run by the government, namely Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare is health insurance for people who are aged 65 and older or people under 65 with a medical disability. Meanwhile, Medicaid is health insurance for people who have low income.
Private insurances, on the other hand, are offered by healthcare companies. You can mostly see this type of insurance from your employer or company. Probably the biggest difference between government-run health insurance and private ones is that private ones often make you pay premiums every month. Government-run health insurances mostly don’t have monthly premiums.
So how does medical insurance work? It mostly works like car insurance. When a car gets into an accident, you’re going to have it repaired, and the repair costs are often expensive. If the damage is big, you can just go ahead and buy a new car. The car insurance itself would pay for either one of them. But unlike car insurance, health insurance covers more than the hospital bills from an accident. It also covers annual checkups, preventive health, and even vaccination. It’s like car insurance, but the provider also pays for the tire, oil change, and other maintenance costs.
So why should you get health insurance?
Save Money
According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, the US has some of the most expensive medical costs worldwide, and it’s still increasing. When you’re uninsured, you’re in for a world of hurt because you're paying a lot of medical costs on your own, and they’re not exactly cheap. Sure, you’ll be fine if you’re already paying annually for routine checkups and antibiotics, but when an emergency happens, like an injury or an acute medical condition, you’ll be responsible for all of the costs. Although the costs for various conditions vary from state to state, HealthCare.gov notes some of the most common medical expenses as follows:
Cancer Treatment: above $100,000
Broken Leg: $7,500
Hospital Care for Three Days: $30,000
Having Insurance Helps You Stay Healthy
It’s only a myth when people say that health insurances are only for people who have chronic illnesses. That’s far from the truth. In fact, nowadays, a lot more people are getting health insurance even if they are perfectly healthy, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic still going on. Also, health insurance inspires you to be healthy and does a successful job doing so. Under the ACA, most health insurances cover a lot of preventive healthcare services. Some of them include:
- Type 2 diabetes screening
- HIV screening
- Cholesterol screening
- Tuberculosis screening
- STI screening
- Contraceptives
- Vaccination, etc.
With all of these preventive services and more, you can say that having health insurance is convenient and beneficial for both your health and finances. And because of these free services, you’ll be as healthy as can be, and you can avoid illnesses in the long run, which will save you money.
You also have the benefit of catching an illness early to prevent it with all the screenings available for you. But again, health insurances vary from each other in terms of their services. That said, you can try to shop Assurance's health insurance if you want to find something that will suit your needs.
It Reduces The Chances of You Going Bankrupt
Sure, having health insurance won’t save you from paying all your medical costs, but those costs will be capped with health insurance. This is because most health insurance tends to have a maximum when it comes to copays, coinsurance, and even deductibles. Most plans also have a maximum when it comes to out-of-pocket costs. Once you hit that limit, your provider will be responsible for all the costs moving forward for the rest of your stay in the hospital.
Final Words
With the pandemic still going on and another variant of COVID-19 spreading, there’s no better time to get your very own health insurance than today. Sure, you’ll still pay a lot in medical costs, but in the long run, you’ll thank your past self for getting one. So with health insurance, not only are you safe medically but financially as well.
Soon after government scientists raised the Covid-19 alert level to 4 on a 5-point scale, the Prime Minister announced that the UK’s booster vaccine programme must speed up.
“A fortnight ago I said we would offer every eligible adult a booster by the end of January. Today in light of this Omicron emergency I’m bringing that target forward by a whole month,” the Prime Minister said in a hurriedly arranged national address on Sunday night. “Everyone eligible aged 18 and over in England will have the chance to get their booster before the New Year.”
The pound sterling dropped 0.4% to $1.3225, though remained largely steady against the euro at 85.29 pence.
Earlier in December, the World Health Organization (WHO) designated Omicron as a “variant of concern”, with scientists currently unsure as to whether or not the Omicron strain is more severe than previous Covid-19 variants.
The company said it is now exploring whether or not to cut capacity for the rest of its winter programme, having already made a loss of £2.1 billion in the year to the end of September.
In the fourth quarter, revenues rebounded thanks to the success of the vaccination programme. TUI says the first quarter of the new financial year is 93% booked, though this is still lower than levels seen pre-pandemic.
Following the news of the new omicron coronavirus variant, shares dropped by as much as 5% before recovering slightly as investor concern eased.
“We had a successful summer season after the relaunch. The overarching trends are intact. TUI's operating business is back and has recovered significantly in the last financial quarter of 2021,” chief executive Fritz Joussen said in TUI’s full-year report.
“The first financial quarter of 2022 is already almost fully booked at 93 per cent. This means that we are currently at 69 per cent of the pre-crisis level capacities in the current quarter. We expect summer 2022 and the peak travel season to return to booking levels similar to pre-Corona 2019.”
The emergence of the omicron variant hit the travel sector hard, with travel restrictions and outright bans quickly implemented by governments around the globe.
Speaking to CNN about the new strain, White House chief medical advisor Dr Anthony Fauci said, “although it’s too early to make any definitive statements about it, thus far it does not look like there’s a great degree of severity to it.”
Boeing ended 3.7% higher, while American Airlines and United Airlines saw an increase of approximately 8%. Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean were up 9.5% and online travel agency Expedia rose by 6.7%
While the situation currently appears better than first thought, officials from the World Health Organization have warned against reading too much into the data from cases in South Africa, saying that it is still too soon to sufficiently understand the severity of illness caused by the omicron strain.
Over 76% of employees in England’s capital would be prepared to resign from their current role to avoid travelling into the office. Covid safety concerns on public transport play a key role in the findings, with 60% of those surveyed citing the commute as a major obstacle to their safe return to the workplace and 44% of those surveyed saying they would quit their current job because of it.
38% of employees in the UK said the length of their commute was a reason to quit, while 29% said the cost of travel was to blame. Meanwhile, 36% of those surveyed pointed to the toll commuting takes on their mental health.
Outside of the capital, 54% of employees are considering resigning due to the commute.
Younger workers in particular are less willing to commute to work. The survey found that 70% of Generation Z and Millennials said they would quit if the commute did not suit their lifestyle.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, founder of Punch Taverns Hugh Osmond said, “We are seeing that some of the people in large organisations who organise bigger events are taking the cautious view because I guess they feel some overriding responsibility. We are not seeing that in young people.”
“Social interaction is, after food and water, the most important thing for a human being’s mental health.”
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said there was no need for people to cancel upcoming parties and gatherings. However, Johnson’s statement came just hours after the UK’s most senior health officials urged people to limit their social interactions.
Christmas is a vital period for hospitality venues, with many relying on generating enough profit throughout the festive season to support them through the traditionally quieter months. The loss of two festive seasons in a row would have a detrimental impact on many businesses in the UK.
In London, the FTSE 100 dropped by as much as 1%, while the French CAC fell by 1.4% and the German DAX was 1.2% lower.
The drop comes as the CEO of drugmaker Moderna, Stephane Bancel, told the Financial Times that he fears that current coronavirus vaccines are unlikely to be as effective against the Omicron strain.
Bancel said, “There is no world, I think, where the effectiveness is the same level . . . we had with the Delta variant.
“I think it’s going to be a material drop. I just don’t know how much because we need to wait for the data. But all the scientists I’ve talked to . . . are like, ‘This is not going to be good’.”
In addition to Bancel’s warning, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has also said that Omicron poses a “very high” global risk. However, both BioNTech and Pfizer have suggested that a new vaccine could be modified relatively quickly if the need should arise.
The new variant was first identified on Tuesday. It is feared that the variant could be more transmissible and may have greater resistance to current coronavirus vaccines. This prompted the UK government to put six southern African countries back on England’s travel red list on Thursday night.
Flights from South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, and Eswatini will be suspended from midday on Friday, with officials reviewing several travel measures.
The news has led to a sharp sell-off of travel stocks. IAG fell by as much as 14% in early trading, while Rolls-Royce was down 12%.
"Fear has gripped the financial markets with the travel industry flying into another violent storm, after the discovery of a new COVID strain which could be far more contagious and may render vaccines less effective,” said Susannah Streeter, a senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Meanwhile, Peter Chatwell, head of multi-asset strategy at Mizuho International said, “The European lockdowns on their own would have meant soft Q4 GDP growth, but a Q1 rebound. US, UK, Asia all looked unaffected by Europe’s problem. If the new variant does deliver its potential (usurping Delta, and reducing vaccine efficacy) we need to think about a globally soft/flat Q4 and Q1 GDP growth. Vaccine efficacy will determine the severity of lockdowns, and therefore whether this becomes another recession.”
