KPMG promotes five new members to partner in New Zealand

KPMG New Zealand has added five new members to its partnership in Auckland, Wellington and Otago.

The Kiwi branch of professional services firm KPMG has admitted five new partners across its various practices, including consulting and advisory leaders Nicola Owbridge and Ben Szeto in Auckland and Wellington.

Tax duo Edwina Ma and Jordan Fincham have also been elevated in Auckland, as has ‘Sustainable Value’ partner Sanel Tomlinson in Otago.

The promotions follow the recent installation of Jason Doherty as new CEO.

“I’m excited to announce the appointment of these five exceptional individuals,” Doherty stated. “Their addition to the firm’s leadership strengthens our ability to navigate business challenges and unlock growth opportunities for our clients. Our recent partnership promotions play an integral part in our journey of building an inclusive and equitable workforce that reflects the diverse communities of Aotearoa that we live and work in.”

Nicola Owbridge
A member of KPMG New Zealand’s management consulting division out of Auckland, Owbridge has been with the firm for the past seven years after joining from PwC. As national corporate sector consulting lead, Owbridge serves clients in areas such as strategy design, project and change management, operating model optimisation, and process improvement, the latter via black belt certification in Lean & Six Sigma.

Ben Szeto
Newly-promoted advisory partner Ben Szeto has been with KPMG for the best part of a decade and a half, first joining the firm as a tax consultant in Wellington in 2010 following a law & commerce double at the University of Otago. A leader of KPMG’s operating model design & implementation team, Szeto serves both private and public sector clients on strategy, operations, transformation and program management among other areas.

Edwina Ma
Ma has spent over a decade at KPMG across three separate stints, kicking off with an internship in Wellington in 2010. Having rejoined KPMG in mid-2022 after a spell at local legal firm Chapman Tripp, Ma presently leads the firm’s tax dispute management practice out of Auckland, through which she assists local and multinational companies and family-owned businesses in navigating and resolving Inland Revenue audits and disputes.

Jordan Fincham
Also a member of KPMG’s tax team in Auckland with a history dating back to a 2010 summer internship, Fincham’s focus is on providing corporate tax and deal advisory services for clients in the real estate sector, including buy- and sell-side due diligence and structuring advice for property groups, land developers and private equity funds among others. His more than a decade at the firm includes a two year stint with KPMG in London.

Sanel Tomlinson
Previously a KPMG partner in China, Sanel Tomlinson again steps up to the top senior level as a partner in Dunedin after rejoining the firm in 2022 following a stint as head of strategy for the External Reporting Board. Starting her career with Ernst & Young in 1995, Tomlinson has amassed close to three decades of experience in accounting and international reporting standards, including in the areas of green finance and ESG.