Natalie Hiller ACA

She/her
Chartered Accountant and Co-Chair of Disability Awareness Network (DAWN)
PwC

Award category:

Business and Finance

Natalie is a key and respected voice in promoting disability inclusion in the accountancy and restructuring professions. For over a decade, she has devoted herself to tackling workplace stigma and raising the profile of experiences of disabled people. In November 2023, she was named as ‘Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Champion of the year’ at the prestigious awards for her professional field (TRI Strategy awards).

As volunteer Co-Chair of PwC’s Disability Awareness Network (DAWN), Natalie has shown unwavering dedication to building a strong community that champions/supports colleagues and raises disability awareness. The DAWN community has grown significantly under Natalie’s leadership and now has over 1100 members. Over the past 18 months, Natalie has worked to restructure the network to further increase participation and reach. Her innovative approach involved bringing the disability and neurodiversity communities together into a refreshed network, expanding peer support groups to cover more disabilities, making global connections with other networks, and influencing PwC policies.

Natalie constantly challenges perceptions of disability, demonstrating that disabled people can be successful in business. In September 2023, she was showcased in the inclusion section of PwC’s Annual Report and represented the firm in videos shared widely across corporate social media. Natalie is a wheelchair user so this was a great visual representation of disabled people in the workplace.

Natalie is also a key voice in raising disability awareness across the industry. In July 2023, she was interviewed by Accounting Web as part of their coverage of Disability Pride Month and highlighted how ‘great steps have been made’ towards disability inclusion in the industry ‘but stigmas remain’. She has featured in recruitment campaigns for both PwC and the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales (ICAEW), inspiring a future generation of professionals.

Natalie has achieved the above alongside her day job working in technology investments for PwC’s Restructuring business. She has overcome many personal challenges in her career and is passionate about helping other disabled people to succeed. Natalie is motivated by her belief that the skills and perspectives of disabled people can bring significant benefit to both businesses and the wider world.

Together we can build a world where disabled people have fair opportunities to reach their potential.

Q&A

Natalie Hiller ACA
Believe in yourself! You have the potential to achieve just as much (if not more) than a non-disabled person. Recognise that you might need to be innovative in finding accessible ways to deliver work. I would strongly recommend that you request the reasonable adjustments that you need to achieve your potential.
I have led as Co-Chair of the PwC Disability Awareness Network (DAWN) for over 5 years. DAWN provides peer support to around 1,100 members, through: disability specific buddy groups, monthly newsletters, events, connections with other disability networks across the globe, and collaboration with the PwC inclusion team on impactful projects. DAWN provides a space for disabled people to share ideas, develop a sense of belonging and raise disability awareness. I have also worked with the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales (ICAEW), Durham University and disability charities to raise disability awareness more widely. As a wheelchair user, I have appeared in corporate social media campaigns and articles giving visual representation of disabled people in the workplace, which I hope has inspired other disabled people. I am honoured to have been recognised on the Disability Power 100 for a third time!
I aim to continue to grow the PwC Disability Awareness Network (DAWN) in order to: reach more disabled people, further raise the profile of the experiences of disabled people, and to promote an inclusive world. I also hope to further progress in my accountancy career.
I enjoy eating out, going to the theatre and travel. I have been taking Spanish classes for around two years and enjoy practicing the language on holidays to Spain.
Spending time with my family and friends brings me joy.
Dogs
The negative assumptions that people can sometimes make about the capabilities or intelligence of a person using a wheelchair, before they have got to know them. The Disability Power 100 is very important in raising awareness of the achievements of disabled people and helping to challenge these perceptions.
I think that businesses are becoming better at arranging suitable reasonable adjustments for disabled people. Now more work needs to be done to give disabled people fair opportunities to progress in their careers. I would love to see more disabled people in senior leadership positions, especially on the boards of FTSE 100 companies.

Areas of expertise

Business, Disability Advocacy, Finance

Disability Power 100 profile information is self-submitted by the profile subject. Shaw Trust understands and respects that disability and impairment descriptors and language use varies from person to person. Shaw Trust assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or discrepancies in the content of this, or any other, profile page.

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