HCLTech’s DWS Group celebrates series of milestones

25 March 2024 Consultancy.com.au

Australian professional services firm DWS Group has celebrated a series of recent milestones.

Digital consultancy DWS Group, which was picked up by multinational consultancy HCLTech in a $160 million deal in 2020, has moved into a modern new headquarters in Melbourne. DWS Group said the move to new offices at 550 Bourke Street (the former home of Deloitte) provides its estimated 250 local employees with a more flexible and modern space, built for a hybrid workforce.

The firm also touted the premium tower’s green credentials, with the building boasting a 5-star water rating and running entirely on renewables.

HCLTech’s DWS Group celebrates series of milestones

At the time of HCLTech’s purchase, the 1991-founded firm had grown to a nationwide headcount of around 750 consultants generating revenues pushing $170 million, with an outlet having also been established in Wellington in addition to its offices in Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra.

Stuart Whipp remains as group executive director, while founder Danny Wallis has gained notoriety in recent years as a reality TV real estate mogul.

Meanwhile, Canberra-based Projects Assured, which DwS purchased in 2018, has started the year with Yas Diaz taking the reins as new executive general manager in a major leadership handover.

Departing co-founders Greg Sly and David O’Rourke established the management consultancy in its current guise almost a decade ago in 2015. Diaz joined Projects Assured from a brief stint at Downer in 2018, having earlier spent more than a decade as a public servant in the Department of Defence.

In addition to the elevation of Diaz, another long-term employee Christopher Gill has been appointed as chief operating office of Projects Assured. Gill joined Projects Assured shortly after its founding after spending seven years in leadership roles at ASG Group acquisition SMS, before which he served for a decade and a half between PwC and Mercer Consulting (now Oliver Wyman).

Capping the milestones is Symplicit, a human-centred UX design consultancy that has been part of the DWS Group since 2015. Co-founded by director Stephen Moule in 2003, Symplicit has completed its 20th year in business. Today, the firm has outlets in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane and is led by HCLTech’s Asia Pacific head of digital consulting Gerard Murphy.

Shortly after its purchase by HCLTech, DWS Group also bought its fourth subsidiary, Phoenix IT.