Enrich Group Management Services finance manager Tanya Geldenhuys with Active+ accounts officer Jenny Towers.
Tanya Geldenhuys always has an Excel spreadsheet open.
There is nothing the 48-year-old Hamilton accountant likes more than creating or solving something in the Microsoft application.
“I love Excel. I can do anything in there, complicated fancy formulas, party invitations, write letters, you name it, I can do it.”
Tanya is the finance manager at Enrich Group’s management services subsidiary in Te Awamutu.
Originally from Johannesburg in South Africa, Tanya and her family arrived in New Zealand in November 2019.
She has a Bachelor of Commerce accounting degree and attained honours in accountancy.
Before leaving South Africa, she worked in a variety of industries.
Financial advice and expertise
The job with Enrich Group is her first for a non-profit trust. She had always worked in retail or manufacturing industries and reporting experience for small entities and large multi-nationals.
Management Services is part of Enrich Group, a family of organisations with common and complementary services that support people with disabilities and those living with autism and neurodiversities.
She provides financial advice and expertise to Enrich+, McKenzie Centre, Active+ Waikato and Enrich Group.
“I’m here to support each organisation to offer more capacity in order to meet the increased demand for disability services in the community.
“By doing what I do, it allows the organisations to add value and provide greater workplace efficiencies. I also feel like I am making a difference in people’s lives.”
Management Services provides corporate and back-office functions – such as human resources, information technology, marketing and communications – to other organisations as well.
“I love the structure and the rules of accounting,” said Tanya.
“That old type of accountant is changing and the new type of accountant is more about providing valuable expertise.”
One of Tanya’s major strengths is her ability to focus and concentrate even in a shared office environment which can sometimes be “loud and crazy.”
“I am a very approachable leader and love to keep my team up to date and always stay in the loop.
“The best part of my job is the budgeting process and to be completely hands on with it.”
Which is where her Excel ability comes into play.
She and her family are now New Zealand residents. In time they want to become citizens and cannot wait to call themselves Kiwis.
“I might even support the All Blacks, who knows?”
