Entrepreneur award finalist to share story with Australian business women

Cilla Hegarty, a finalist in this year's local Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year competition, is sharing her story with Australian business women this week.   Mrs. Hegarty, the founder and chief executive of Christchurch-based NZ Tax Refunds, New Zealand’s leading online tax refund company, is a speaker at the third annual Women in Focus conference in Queensland.

The conference with the theme “New Frontiers”, hosted by CommBank’s Women in Focus program, will draw over 100 business women from a range of industries and expertise across Australia.  Mrs Hegarty joins a lineup of international speakers who will challenge delegates to think expansively, courageously and with vision in their business, as they embrace new frontiers.

Mrs Hegarty says, “Attitude is the biggest thing for an entrepreneur.  Being successful requires the right mindset. You need a can do attitude.  You can be somebody and do something.

“Fostering an entrepreneurial mindset is also crucial.  For me failure has never been a consideration or an option.  Challenges are part and parcel of being in business and being successful.  Entrepreneurs also need to dare to have vision and think up new big ideas and be curious and explore new things.”

Mrs Hegarty says she seldom listens to a conversation without thinking about how it could apply to her business.  “Everything I read, hear, see and do informs me – and might end up sparking an idea to make my business better.  Great ideas can come from anywhere.”

Mrs. Hegarty founded NZ Tax Refunds in 2008 out of a desire to make it simple for people to get money back from the IRD.  She had the idea of making it easier for clients to find out if they were due a tax refund while working in her accounting business.

“93% of our customers have found out they’ve overpaid their tax in the past 5 years.  Using our custom-built web-based system our customers can find out whether they’re owed a tax refund within 60 seconds in most cases.  We’ve built a successful business out of helping put the overpaid tax back into the pockets of thousands of Kiwis.  It’s been really satisfying.”

The Women in Focus conference will be held in Noosa on 22-25 August.  Two days after the conference concludes, on 27 August, Mrs Hegarty will find out if she has been selected as a New Zealand Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year category winner.  The New Zealand winner will be announced on 18 October.