Liza Van Der Merwe
Director, Economic Advisory, M&A, Deloitte New Zealand
We are the women in M&A. We navigate complexity and bring businesses together to build stronger futures. We define strategies and unlock value. We understand risk and reward and make historic deals happen. We see problems differently and solve them uniquely. We imagine new possibilities, establish trust, drive growth, and find solutions to the most pressing issues facing our clients and communities to shape a better tomorrow. We need more like us. We need more like you.
“At Deloitte, you have the ability to speak your mind and you have the autonomy to introduce initiatives and run with them.”
Meet Liza. She is a director within the Deloitte Access Economics and Corporate Finance practice, based in New Zealand. Liza has over 18 years of experience as a professional economist, with a focus on applying economic modelling to answer business and policy questions. This includes forecasting, policy simulation, economic contribution studies, economic impact assessments, and demographic modeling. “I’m really solving complex problems for clients and just bringing economic logic and analyzing data. But I’m also bringing strategic thinking to identify a forward path for clients—whether it’s the transaction and valuation of a company or applying economics to infrastructure.”
To say Liza is passionate about economics is an understatement. She played a huge role in establishing the Deloitte Access Economics offering in 2017. “I really love economics and that’s a core component to transactions, valuations, and modeling,” she says. “I also love bringing economic logic to the problem and applying data to real-world and practical applications.” However, it’s the teamwork aspect of her job that motivates her. “My favorite part is really collaborating with my team, collaborating with clients to land on solutions, and supporting my team with the necessary infrastructure and knowledge to ensure that they’re empowered to succeed.”
Liza is proud of the strides that have been made for more diversity in financial advisory, but believes women are still underrepresented in the economics profession. Despite this, she says, “I think my experience has been really positive, though you may have to work harder and smarter to ensure that your voice is heard and the perspective that you bring is heard in this industry.” She believes gender equality is an imperative factor to growth, and diverse talent is critical to stay competitive.
Liza advises women considering careers in financial advisory to “speak up when you see opportunity and be bold—take risks. Know that your career will be a journey. So, when you see opportunity, go for it, especially if it's something that you’re passionate about.”
We need more like Liza.
We need more like you.
