DFK International looks ahead to annual global conference in Sydney
Accounting and consulting firm DFK International is looking ahead to its mid-year annual global conference in Sydney, the first to be held under the tenure of Australian president Stephen Bushell.
As many professionals dust themselves off after a challenging 2023 and turn their attention to the year ahead, DFK International has jumped out of the blocks with a call for its worldwide members to start booking their stays for the accounting and advisory network’s global annual conference to be held in Sydney in July.
DFK has more than 200 member firms with a combined headcount pushing 19,000 employees spread across 90 countries.
To be held at the Shangri-La in the second week of July, delegates will have the opportunity to engage in expert presentations and collaborative sessions while networking with their international colleagues and taking in the city surrounds – such as the iconic Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge. Keynote speakers include business futurist Gihan Perera, and Keith Suter, managing director of the Global Directions think-tank.
Back in his home country, the 2024 global conference will be the first under the watch of Stephen Bushell, who was announced as the first Australian to lead the association as president at last year’s gathering in Miami. A near four-decade industry veteran who started his career at Ernst & Young, Bushell is the managing partner of Perth-based member DFK Gooding Partners, and previously served as chair of DFK for Australia and New Zealand.
“We are thrilled to welcome Stephen as the new board president of DFK International,” said global executive director Bill Wright upon Bushell’s appointment. “His extensive experience and strategic vision will be invaluable in leading our network through the ever-evolving business landscape. As the first Australian president, his appointment also symbolises the global reach and diversity of our organisation.”
It will also be a homecoming of sorts for the organisation as a whole, with DFK established in 1962 as an international network of independent firms by Sydney-based accountant John Douglass (the ‘D’ in DFK), along with Ronald Warlow of London and Francois Richard in Paris.
Today, its members generate combined global revenues of around US$2.4 billion, with the ~$60 million contribution from its A/NZ wing placing it within the top 25 local accountancies.
