Media Statement
August 1st, 2011
It's a long Way from Paris for 2011 Lawler Employee of the Year
It is customary for accounting firms to mark the end of the financial year and this year saw Lawler Partners Chartered Accountants celebrate the occasion in style at its 15th annual End of Financial Year Ball.
The Lawler event continues to be a tradition of the firm and plays a key role in acknowledging their accounting and business advisory teams for their contribution, as well as the opportunity to announce their Employee of the Year.
The location alternates each year between New South Wales venues to cater for maximum participation and this year over 200 of the firm's staff and their respective spouses and friends gathered at Caves Beachside Hotel for the James Bond themed event.
The Newcastle team was also keen to showcase the Lonely Planet's Top 10 City accolade to the guests from independent member firms of their national group of independent firms, Lawler Chartered Accountants who had travelled from Brisbane and Melbourne.
"We wanted to capitalise on the great press that our region has received and to give Directors from our national group an opportunity to attend our Ball and then stay on in Newcastle for the weekend to see why we are one of the world's best kept secrets. Not only is it a great place to do business, but Newcastle is a beautiful, friendly and exciting city that provides visitors with great value for money", commented Managing Director, Steve Meyn.
Employee service and a review of the previous year's achievements are recognised as part of the End of Financial Year Ball programme, but it was the coveted 2011 Employee of the Year, won by thirty four year old French born transactions specialist Xavier Blerot, for his outstanding contribution to client service in the Corporate Finance and Audit teams that was the highlight.
Xavier, migrated from Paris to Sydney in 2008 with a background in audit and corporate transactions in second tier and big four firms and joined Lawler Partners in 2010 as a key member of their new Corporate Finance team.
"I researched a number of firms in Australia, but I was attracted to Lawler Partners due to their size - which was not too big or too small. Although, what really got my interest was the quality of their client portfolio and that they were working on some exciting projects in the corporate finance and audit area with multinational companies,” said Xavier.
In the 12 months since coming on board, Xavier has contributed significantly and was instrumental in assisting a large French top 40 listed client with their amalgamation after they acquired three new entities in Perth, undertaking a four month secondment to the Western Australian capital to manage the integration process with the French team. He has also played an integral role in achieving successful client outcomes on a number of other major projects, including providing high level advice in international valuations and as part of the IPO process.
The Lawler Corporate Finance team provides high quality commercial advice to assist companies, private equity and High Net-Worth Individuals in executing transactions. Their services include Mergers and Acquisitions, Initial Public Offerings, Due Diligence, Sale of Business & Exit Strategy, Private Equity Funding, Takeover Advice and Independent Expert Reports.
ENDS
