Behind every essential service at Rous, there’s a team working behind the scenes ensuring everything runs smoothly – and Alison is a key part of that effort. As the Finance Business Partner, she helps the organisation remain financially sustainable while delivering critical services for the community.

Originally from Ireland, Alison completed a Bachelor of Accounting and Finance at Dublin City University before qualifying as a Chartered Accountant. After starting her career in Dublin, she came to Australia with plans to work and travel for a few years – plans that quickly turned into a permanent move and, eventually, a role at Rous.

“My main responsibility at Rous is to provide useful financial information to support decision making. This involves developing budgets and long-term financial plans to ensure Rous provides its services as efficiently as possible and is financially sustainable into the future and then constantly updating them for changing priorities and circumstances.

Then, I monitor actual financial performance and provide regular information to the leadership team and budget managers to help them keep on track financially and make adjustments as necessary.”

What motivates Alison most is the people she works with. Surrounded by colleagues doing a wide range of important and often complex work, she takes pride in supporting them with the financial aspects of their roles.

“I love that what Rous does is so important for the community – providing safe secure drinking water, protecting biodiversity and managing flood mitigation for the floodplain. I’ve worked in organisations where the only motivation is profit and I find it a lot more satisfying working for an organisation that provides important services.”

For those considering a career in accounting, Alison offers simple but important advice, “don’t let anyone tell you it’s boring.”

“You just have to find a role that inspires you. Accounting has allowed me to travel around the world and work in lots of different industries.

At Rous, no two days are the same for me. I’m doing different things all the time and learning and improving constantly and I can’t see that changing any time soon.”