25 years – a milestone at Gilligan Sheppard

Tanya Canty is a well-known accountant at Gilligan Sheppard, and we recently celebrated her 25 year anniversary with us. What a huge achievement for Tanya and Gilligan Sheppard!

It had me thinking, what does it takes to…

1. be a team member with the commitment to stay for 25 years, and
2. have a team member committed to Gilligan Sheppard for so long?

Tanya answered question number one at our celebration on Friday night. We had taken her out for the afternoon for some pampering, booked her and her mum into the Hilton for a relaxing evening and brunch the next day. That night the GS team celebrated with her at Euro for dinner. Yi Ping, Richard and Bruce (the partners of Gilligan Sheppard) gave speeches of the times they remembered. Tanya’s reply was “We have had our ups and downs, our happy and sad times, but the care and support I receive from the GS family is why I am still a part of the team.”  

Tanya has seen the team change and grow, she has had some crazy times and adventures, but always remains focused and dedicated to the team and her clients.

Tanya is the accountant for our oldest client (not in age but in years with GS). This client came from the original practice owned by Ray Eyre. Tanya’s dedication and rapport with our clients is to be commended. She is a valued team member that everyone goes to for queries, help and answers. She is our version of ‘Yoda’.

We can rely on Tanya to be at every GS event unless she is travelling – her big passion in life – hopefully this won’t be curbed for too long. Earlier in her career, before GS, she lived and working in London. Since returning home and coming to work for GS, she has travelled to Melbourne, Sydney, Vanuatu, Rarotonga, Vietnam, Thailand, San Francisco, LA, Las Vegas, New York, Canada, Italy, and China, just to name a few. Tanya is also a keen reader, movie and stage performance attendee. She will give you an honest recommendation or critique.

She enjoys the social occasions and comradery of the team including Friday night drinks, showing us her shopping (from downstairs in the Smith & Caughey building), shares her family and friends with GS team, isn’t afraid to try new things – from river rafting to tree adventures to making pizzas – and then of course dressing up for formal occasions. Tanya was our first GS team member to travel to India to help them setup systems, I.T. and training for our joint venture – outsourcing to India. They originally began as a team of two, and are now a team of over 800. Tanya is a mentor of choice for many and has helped our team grow and learn.

And what does it take to have a team member committed to Gilligan Shepard for 25 years? Shared values, a shared cause and being part of a family that loves, nurtures and supports team members – especially when it’s needed the most. 

GS wants to enrich all lives and we believe this is why we have team members that commit to us for over 25 years. Tanya is part of our story and journey. We love you Tanya! Thank you.