Bruce Saward

Saward Dawson is a long established firm with 65 principals and employees.  It is a diverse firm offering audit & assurance, business advisory & tax and wealth management & superannuation services.  The firm is based in Melbourne’s Eastern suburbs in Blackburn which is a central location for servicing all of Melbourne.  Saward Dawson has been in the city of Whitehorse for more than 30 years

The firm has five principals: Bruce Saward, Cliff Dawson, Joshua Morse, Peter Shields and Tim Flowers. With more than 60 people in our team, our partners are supported by dedicated and experienced Chartered Accountants and other accountants at all stages of their careers including cadets working part-time as they progress through their university studies.  There is great depth of specialisation and experience in our team so our service offering is very diverse.

We aim to serve our clients with excellence and take pride in our professional services. However, we are pleased to go an extra mile to keep our client community informed with developments that affect them. Our client seminars, regular newsletters, email bulletins and publications and website are just some of the additional ways that we provide more than you would expect from your accountant.

Our services

We have a long history of delivering specialist services to clients across a diverse range of industry sectors including manufacturing, distribution, retail, service and not-for-profit.

Our diverse range of services extend beyond the preparation of tax returns, financial statements and audit reports. We are able to offer additional services that add real value to clients. These non-compliance services include:

Business Advisory services such as assisting with business coaching and business planning, strategic planning, business sale and acquisition assistance, project evaluation, succession planning and leadership development and business structuring and specialist taxation consulting.

Assurance Advisory services such as systems and control reviews and due diligence assistance

Wealth planning and Finance services including superannuation and retirement strategic planning, financial planning development, implementation and monitoring and finance solutions for both business and personal needs.

Our team is focused on delivering the range of professional services that provide real value and results for our clients.  We are solutions oriented and strive for excellence in everything we do.

Our culture

We know and appreciate the value of enduring, personal client relationships. We are committed to community and are active supporters of a range of community groups and charities.  We recognise that the world is changing and we embrace that change. We support our staff, giving them the opportunities to develop both personally and professionally. We encourage our staff to be dedicated to their professional careers whilst ensuring that they leave adequate time for family and community involvements.

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Bruce has worked as a Chartered Accountant since 1979 and has diverse experience.  Bruce is a Business Advisory Principal with expertise and special interest in business planning, forecasting and modelling, business systems and building better businesses.

Bruce joined Saward Dawson in 1981 and has enjoyed growing with clients and developing a team of skilled professionals. He is now managing partner of the firm.

Bruce has extensive experience as an auditor, tax agent and business adviser.  He is always looking for solutions and strategies that drive value for his clients.

Sector experience and specialisation

• Manufacturing
• Distribution and wholesale
• Service sector (Hospital, medical, legal, construction, IT)
• Not-for-profit

Qualifications/Memberships

• Bachelor of Economics (Monash)
• Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants
• Registered Tax Agent
• Registered Company Auditor

Special Interests

Bruce is passionate about helping businesses grow and improve.  He is well versed in the use of technology in business believes that ever business needs to have good, robust and well documented systems to grow and thrive.  Succession planning is also crucial for both risk management and wealth protection and investing in people and systems in a business is an important part of this.  Bruce is also solutions oriented and likes to stand back and ensure that the right strategies are in place to deliver the desired outcomes. Tax planning and business structuring are an important parts of delivering solutions and this is a key part of Bruce’s work with clients.

Bruce is married and has two adult children and one grandchild.   He enjoys travel, time out and the occasional round of golf.

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