Ignition reveals the 2026 Top 50 Women in Accounting following record-breaking nominations

Fifty women across six countries recognized for leadership, innovation, and impact on the accounting profession

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, UNITED STATES, August 26, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Ignition just announced its 2026 Top 50 Women in Accounting, recognizing 50 exceptional women who are leading change and helping shape the future of the global accounting profession.

This year’s Women in Accounting Awards attracted a record-breaking 1,265 nominations representing 835 unique nominees, reflecting the breadth of leadership, innovation, and impact taking place across accounting and bookkeeping worldwide.

Selected by a global judging panel, the 2026 Top 50 represent six countries — Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States — and span firm founders, partners, accountants, bookkeepers, finance leaders, educators, technology innovators, and emerging leaders.

Returning under the theme “Igniting Change,” this year’s awards celebrate women who are not simply adapting as the profession evolves, but actively shaping what comes next.

From embracing AI and automation and challenging traditional firm models to redefining how accounting expertise is valued, building stronger businesses, and creating opportunities for others, the 2026 honorees demonstrate the many ways meaningful change is happening across the profession.

“The accounting profession is undergoing enormous change, and this year’s Top 50 show just how much of that transformation is being driven by women,” said Anne Ting, Chief Marketing Officer at Ignition and 2026 Women in Accounting judge.

“What stood out was not one single definition of leadership. These women are innovating with technology, rethinking how firms operate and deliver value, building communities, mentoring the next generation, and having the courage to challenge long-held assumptions. They are not waiting for the future of accounting to happen — they are helping create it.”

Launched by Ignition in 2018, the Women in Accounting Awards have grown into a global platform for recognizing and connecting women making an impact across public accounting, private industry, bookkeeping, technology, and the broader professional services ecosystem.
Before this year’s awards, the program had already recognized 287 women, attracted more than 2,400 nominations globally, and represented more than 21 countries.

The caliber and diversity of this year’s nominations made selecting just 50 honorees particularly challenging.

“What I’m most looking forward to is finding the women who aren’t necessarily loud about what they do but are quietly reshaping how this profession works,” said Kyelie Baxter FCP, Managing Director of IQ Accountants and 2026 Women in Accounting judge, ahead of this year’s judging process.

“The profession is changing fast, and I love that this process surfaces the people genuinely driving that shift — not just the ones already in the spotlight.”

That change can be seen throughout this year’s Top 50.

Some honorees are using AI, automation, and emerging technology to redesign how accounting work gets done. Others are moving firms beyond traditional compliance services toward higher-value advisory relationships, introducing new pricing and business models, or building workplaces designed to operate differently.

Others are creating impact through mentorship, education, advocacy, and community-building — opening doors and creating opportunities for the women who will follow them.

The advice shared by this year’s honorees also reveals common themes among the leaders helping shape the profession: know your value, stay curious, embrace technology, build strong relationships, question traditional models, and take opportunities before you feel completely ready.
“Accounting is ready for reinvention, and the women who see it differently should be the ones leading it,” said Megan Roberts, COO at HD Growth Partners and a 2026 Top 50 Women in Accounting honoree.

For Narelle Wilson, Director at Volta Consulting and fellow 2026 honoree, that leadership also means recognizing and advocating for the value accountants create.

“Know your worth. Understand your value, what you need to live, and where you want to be in five years, then advocate for it with confidence, whether you are setting your prices or negotiating your salary.”

The 2026 honorees are:

Australia: Inbal Rodnay, Joynivee Chua, Kathi Tait, Krista Fletcher, Kylie Thompson, Narelle Wilson, Peta Demczyszyn, Sarah Hyland, Sonia Gibson, Victoria Cooper, and Zoe Keck.

Canada: Laurianne Lachapelle.

New Zealand: Kathryn de Bruin and Lisa Martin.

South Africa: Cara Kahts.

United Kingdom: Abi Wilson, Alex Falcon Huerta FCCA, Alison Smith, Amanda Watts, Billie Mcloughlin, Danielle Smith, Emma White, Georgi Rollings, Harriet Hodgson-Grove, Julie Bickerdyke, Sharon Critchlow, Subhashree Sadasivan, and Trusha Lakhani.

United States: Alicia Katz Pollock, Amy Cobb, Ashley Rhoden, Carrie Hale, Elizabeth Manso, Elizabeth Pittelkow Kittner, Ellen Sulistio, Felicia Farrar, Hope Brown, Ibironke (Ibi) Ojo, Kelly Pope, Kimberly Ferguson, Kristin Dodd, Laryssa Ramina, Marie Greene, Megan Roberts, Melissa Hertell, Michelle Vilms, Nancy McClelland, Rabecca Eunis, Rebecca Berneck, and Victoria Nguyen.

The 2026 honorees were selected with the support of a judging panel of accounting and industry leaders, including Randy Johnston of K2 Enterprises, Kacee Johnson of AI Native Accounting, Kyelie Baxter of IQ Accountants, Sarah Lawrance of Hot Toast, Amy Vetter of B3 Enterprise, Nicole Davis of Conscious Accounting, Justin Kurn of Dark Horse, and Anne Ting of Ignition.

“This program is about much more than a list of 50 names,” Ting said. “Recognition creates visibility, and visibility creates possibility. By sharing these women’s stories, we hope to celebrate what they have achieved while showing the next generation of leaders just how many different ways there are to make an impact in this profession.”

The announcement marks the culmination of the 2026 awards process, but the Women in Accounting program will continue throughout the year as a platform for recognition, connection, practical insight, and conversation about the future of the profession.

To meet the 2026 Top 50 Women in Accounting and learn more about their stories, visit womeninaccounting.ignitionapp.com/top-50.

About Ignition:
Founded in 2013, Ignition is the leading AI revenue and billing automation platform for firms and agencies to transform their sales, billing and payment processes.

Ignition automates proposals, engagement letters, invoicing, payments and workflows in a single AI-powered platform, empowering 8,500+ businesses to sell, bill and get paid for their services with ease.

To date, Ignition customers have managed relationships with over 2.4 million clients and earned $13b in revenue via the platform. Ignition’s global workforce spans Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Philippines, US and the UK.

Gabby Iamundo
Ignition
media@ignitionapp.com

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