Chris Paxton becomes managing partner of strategy consultancy EY Port Jackson Partners
Australian strategy firm EY Port Jackson Partners has announced a major leadership transition, with company veteran and managing partner Byron Pirola passing on the baton to Chris Paxton.
Becoming just the fourth managing partner in the 33-year history of EY Port Jackson Partners, and the second since the firm became part of EY, Chris Paxton brings over 25 years of strategy consulting experience to the role. He has been with the strategy consultancy since 2021, and previously worked for among others Strategy&, Pacific Strategy Partners (bought by KPMG in 2014), and Kearney.
Throughout his career, Paxton advised clients acoss numerous sectors on corporate and business unit strategy, acquisitions, integrations and performance improvement. He specialises in commercial and due diligence work during mergers & acquisitions, having advised on over 250 buy and sell side engagements for corporate clients, private equity firms and their portfolio companies.
Now stepping up from his previous role as leader of the Deals practice, Paxton leads a team of 17 partners and around 100 consultants and staff.
Byron Pirola, who has been with EY Port Jackson Partners since its inception (he joined Terrey Arcus and Fred Hilmer from McKinsey & Company when they co-founded the business), said that Paxton is the right person to lead the firm into its next chapter. “We are confident that Chris’s leadership will continue to drive the firm’s success and uphold the legacy of excellence, care and integrity that has characterised EY Port Jackson Partners over the past three decades.”
Remaining with the firm as a full-time senior partner, Paxton will going forward focus his time on client work, and lead EY-Parthenon (the global strategy consulting business of EY) across Oceania.
Meanwhile, EY Port Jackson Partners has also announced that David White, a former managing partner and chairman, has now retired after a long tenure with the firm.
According to Consultancy.org’s latest benchmark of consulting firms, EY-Parthenon including EY Port Jackson Partners ranks as one of Australia’s leading strategy firms for 2024.
