We speak to James Lynch, our new Finance Director and latest addition to the JCI London Council.

How long have you been a member? I joined JCI at the beginning of last summer so about a year now.

Why did you join? A friend of mine made me aware of JCI initially. We spoke about the variety of events, quality of the speakers, and the diverse backgrounds and perspectives of the people involved and it certainly sparked an interest. So I checked out the website and saw that everything I had been told was true and that there was literally something for everyone, I really liked that broad approach that you don't have access to with some professional societies.

What made you take on the finance director role? All the people I've met through JCI have been inspiring and interesting individuals in one way or another and the opportunity to be involved with the running of an organisation that attracts these types of people to it was something I didn't want to miss. Also, I come from a finance background professionally but my current role focuses on external reporting so the chance of gaining an insight into what is is like to work from an internal perspective is something I hope will help me to develop a more rounded understanding of finance.

What are you most looking forward to in taking on this role? I'm most looking forward to learning more about how the council operates and from the strengths of the other council members. It seems that everyone comes from a different professional background so it's a real melting pot of skills and abilities. It's because of this diversity throughout our membership base that JCI London is going from strength to strength so I'm looking forward to contributing to its continued success and watching the organisation grow.

What do you enjoy most about being a JCI member? There's so much on offer it's really hard to choose one thing. One element that I really do enjoy is welcoming new members to their first event or social evening. Most people are a little nervous when they first walk through the door but once they realise that everybody is really happy they came and keen to get to know them it opens up a world of discovery for them as they explore what's on offer. Well that's how it felt for me anyway but I guess I'm a bit of a romantic at heart.