Spotlight on... Charu Gorasia

What is your role and what does it involve?

I am Chief Financial Officer for UCL and my role involves making sure UCL is financially sustainable and thriving.

How long have you been at UCL and what was your previous role?

I have been at UCL for 5 months. I was Chief Operating Officer at the Home Office and have worked in the civil service for 17 years in 5 government departments. I have also worked in the private sector for 7 years, in finance roles mainly. I was a research scientist before training to be an accountant. 

What working achievement or initiative are you most proud of?

At UCL I am most proud of how my team has responded in raising understanding of university finances across the organisation. In previous roles, I take pride in how we enabled colleagues to deliver on Brexit priorities and navigate through COVID.

Tell us about a project you are working on now which is top of your to-do list?

I am working on a Financial Strategy for UCL to accompany the UCL strategy.

What is your favourite album, film and novel?

Album: Adele’s 21.

Film: Slumdog Millionaire and Forrest Gump are my favourite films. Life really is like a box of chocolates.

Book: Becoming by Michelle Obama is my favourite book, I am reading the novel The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini at the moment.

What is your favourite joke (pre-watershed)?

What kind of debt did the secret agent issue?

A bond... James Bond.

Who would be your dream dinner guests?

Gandhi, Einstein, my grandmother and the Queen. I wonder what we would talk about?

What advice would you give your younger self?

Embrace every change that comes by with an open mind – it comes with new opportunities.

What would it surprise people to know about you?

I have been on the zipwire at Jungfrau on the highest mountains of Europe, the zipline over the Niagara Falls and the Hanuman zipline in the rainforests of Thailand.

What is your favourite place?

Home.