Nigel Bourke, Director of Strategic Pricing at Hogg Robinson Travel, began his pricing career in the military within the MoD. Nigel's fast paced pricing mind is coupled with his pursuits beyond the office, with him being a lover of motorcycle riding and a loyal visitor to the Holte End to support his cherished Aston Villa.
Pull to Pricing
"My first introduction to pricing was as a Military Management Consultant in the MoD working on the “Competing for Quality Initiative” as an in-house bid advisor.
As a qualified accountant, this appealed to me as it was not run-of-the-mill accounting, but tested many of the additional skills you are taught during your training, like Marketing and Strategic Planning.
This led me to Hogg Robinson Travel as a Commercial Accountant, where I have been for 23 years and am now Director of Strategic Pricing.
Having been in Pricing now for over 20 years the same things still excite me. The ability to change a business through pricing strategies and establishing pricing as part of the perceived company brand is a powerful tool. You feel you are helping drive the business.
Pricing appeals to my competitive nature! There’s nothing better than the feeling that comes with a win, and knowing that both sides have a deal they are happy with because you got the commercial agreement and pricing right."
Progress of Pricing
"Pricing has become a recognised profession over the last few years, especially with accounting bodies recognising it as a skill set for accountants within business.
As a result, you are seeing many companies moving pricing from under the traditional Marketing reporting line into the CFO, a possible recognition of the impact pricing can have on financial performance.
It is now seen as a career in itself, not just something you did on the way up the ladder to give you commercial exposure. It is no longer a back office number crunching role.
Pricers have a lot to offer businesses with their commercial expertise, getting them out there in front of the business is essential and has been my primary focus over the years. I have actively promoted pricing as a profession within accountancy through presentations and seminars.I have trained many people in the “art and science” of pricing, focusing on getting them trained to support the client facing side of the business. As these people have left, they have taken this approach and skillset with them and adopted it in their new roles."
Future of Pricing
"Pricing is a crucial part of any business. Understanding the relationships between revenue, cost, profitability, value and the competitive landscape is essential.
Everything has a price so every business needs pricing experts.
The advent of cryptocurrency, blockchain and cryptoassets could bring a new dynamic to the industry. But, pricing will become even more important as the world becomes smaller through technology advancement."