Meet Grant Thornton’s new executive team for Australia

Professional services network Grant Thornton has unveiled its refreshed and enlarged national executive team. The 12-strong board has been installed effective from the beginning of this year.

Commenting on the revamped line-up, Grant Thornton’s chief executive officer for Australia, Greg Keith, said: “This new Executive will develop the capability of our leadership team and enable us to continue to drive our firm’s purpose and support the delivery of our strategic priorities.”

Six existing members of the national executive have retained their positions: Michelle Watson, Kate Lindwall, Andrew Archer, Said Jahani, Michael Pittendrigh, and Sue Alcock. A trio of newly-created roles have been taken on by Andrew Rigele, Iain Kemp, and Ben Swindale, while Nicole Bradley, Sandie Boswell, and Fraser McNaughton have been handed new responsibilities.

Nicole Bradley
National Managing Partner – Audit & Assurance

Nicole Bradley has been with Grant Thornton for close to thirty years, first joining in the United States before crossing to Sydney – where she ultimately served as office managing partner until 2018. She has since carried out the national managing partner role for Tax for more than five years.

Said Jahani
National Managing Partner – Financial Advisory

Said Jahani specialises in turnaround and corporate restructuring and assists clients with tackling their imminent strategic, financial and operational issues. He has been with Grant Thornton for over fifteen years, having previously served restructuring boutique Ferrier Hodgson and PwC. Jahani has a dual industry focus on mining and resources and financial services.

Sandie Boswell
National Managing Partner – Tax

Sandie Boswell joined Grant Thornton in the thick of the Covid-19 crisis in mid-2020, and has been leading the firm’s efforts in the areas of innovation and R&D grants and government funding. Previously, she spent a decade and a half at PwC, including as a member of its APAC governance board. Boswell is based out of Sydney.

Michael Pittendrigh
National Managing Partner – Consulting and Private Business Tax & Advisory

Michael Pittendrigh is a Chartered Accountant with 25+ years of business advisory experience with a particular focus on serving medium-sized private businesses; subsidiaries of large corporations and not for profit organisations. He has been with Grant Thornton since 2008, following a near 20-year career at William Buck, where he latterly served as a partner.

Andrew Rigele
National Managing Partner – ESG

Formerly the National Managing Partner for Audit & Assurance, Andrew Rigele has been with Grant Thornton for more than thirty years, first joining in South Africa in 1991 before crossing with the firm to Australia at the turn of the century. Sydney-based Rigele becomes the firm’s executive member to be dedicated to ESG (environmental, social and governance) topics.

Andrew Archer
National Managing Partner – Quality & Excellence

A partner in the firm’s Audit & Assurance division, Andrew Archer is responsible for co-ordinating audit and other services to a diverse portfolio of clients. Internally, he is involved in technical matters including financial reporting, accounting standards, assurance and quality control, and leads the Quality & Excellence portfolio in the national executive.

Michelle Watson
Chief Financial Officer

Michelle Waton is a respected and experienced CFO/COO with over 20 years of experience working in senior financial and operational roles. Her experience ranges from start-ups to global public companies, working across Asia Pacific, Europe, and the United States. She has been Grant Thornton’s Chief Financial Officer since 2016.

Ben Swindale
Chief Technology Officer

Based in Brisbane, Swindale joined Grant Thornton externally at the end of last month, joining after five years as the IT general manager at Icon Group. With 25 years of IT management experience under his belt, including as CIO and CTO over sixteen years at King & Wood Mallesons, Swindale is tasked with overseeing technology strategy and implementations across the Grant Thornton network.

Iain Kemp
National Managing Partner – Community and Office Chairs

Iain Kemp oversees Grant Thornton’s diversity & inclusion initiatives, as well as office, community, alumni and corporate social responsibility activities across Australia. He has been with Grant Thornton since 2009, before which he spent more than a decade between Deloitte and EY in South Africa, Russia and Australia.

Fraser McNaughton
Chief Marketing Officer & Industry

Fraser McNaughton leads a national team of marketing, sales, and communications professionals, together, responsible for defining and delivering Grant Thornton’s go to market vision, strategy and objectives. He has been with the firm for over a decade, and currently also serves as the APAC president of marketing association ICON.

Kate Lindwall
Chief People & Culture Officer

Nearing her 20-year career milestone at Grant Thornton’s, Kate Lindwall leads the firm’s People & Culture team nationally, responsible for all human capital topics and human resources functions. Her portfolio includes topics such as leadership and talent development, performance management, recruitment, HR policy and processes, and culture.

Sue Alcock
Executive Assistant

Sue Alcock has been with the accounting and consulting firm for close to twelve years. She previously spent six years at global law firm DLA Piper.