We're delighted to announce that Lisa Topliss, one of Bedrock's Directors, has been shortlisted for the inaugural Women in Accountancy and Finance Awards 2020 which showcases the achievements of women in practice, business and the third sector.

Lisa has been shortlisted along with seven other women for the Woman of the Year – Non-CCAB qualified category. The winners will be announced at an awards dinner which takes place on 6 May at the Hilton London Bankside.

Lisa said about the awards:

“I’m delighted to have got this far in the Women in Accountancy and Finance Awards 2020. I had an unconventional career path via EY, Deloitte and PKF while playing international Netball for England rather than the typical university degree before establishing Bedrock Tax. I believe my career route has made me a more rounded individual with a broader skill set than just those based on technical knowledge or academic achievements which is a huge benefit when working with business owners and their accountants. I’m delighted to have that recognised by these awards.”

The judges are drawn from across the accountancy and finance sector, from Big 4 through to regional accountancy practices and professional bodies such as the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

The awards are intended to honour the inspiring achievements of women across all segments of accountancy and will also help shape the discussion around how diversity can be improved within the sector as some of the most forward-thinking initiatives are highlighted. The awards are intended to move the diversity agenda forward, especially for women, as everyone knows there are still many issues to be addressed and challenges overcome. Showcasing excellence and achievement is a vital tool in the continuing battle to establish equality across all parts of the industry and in all roles.

The accounting profession has made significant strides down the road to creating a genuinely diverse, equal opportunities sector. Major firms and organisations have been transparent about their gender pay gap, and flexible working conditions are commonplace. But there is still a long way to go to reduce the pay gap and break the glass ceiling that impacts the career prospects of women in accountancy practices and at board level. Those who make it to the top are outstanding role models, but there are still far too few women at the top.

A bit more about Lisa

Having played netball at county level for Derbyshire, at 16 Lisa started playing for the England U18 netball team and progressed to the England U21 squad ultimately competing internationally until 2000. Lisa was very aware that a career in netball wouldn’t pay the bills, so she focused on a career at Deloitte and developed her VAT expertise.

Prior to establishing Bedrock Tax, Lisa had valuable experience of working with clients that have taken cases to the VAT Tribunal and the European Court of Justice. In 2015 Lisa helped establish Bedrock Tax as she spotted a gap in the market for supporting firms of accountants with tax advice which didn’t threaten their client relationships. Many accountants without in-house tax expertise or the capacity to deal with complex tax projects are fearful of losing their clients if they use a top 10 accountancy firm to assist them.

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