PwC Australia admits first new partners since early last year
Professional services firm PwC has taken its latest step towards normalising operations by promoting its first cohort of new partners in Australia since the government tax leak scandal.
The firm altogether added 22 new partners across its recently reorganised advisory, assurance and tax & legal lines, although the list also included current chief executive Kevin Burrowes, who was flown in to help mop up the mess.
“We are proud of our progress to date, but acknowledge that comprehensive and lasting transformation does take time,” Burrowes stated. “Our new partners are committed to leading their teams to deliver on our vision.”
Covering its full intake over the past financial year, the list reflects PwC’s renewed focus on its core strengths, with half belonging to its assurance division. Just six individuals were elevated within its advisory practice, including recent joiner Belinda Cogswell, an energy transition financial advisory specialist in Sydney with a recent background in the NSW public service.
Also promoted in Sydney was M&A tax partner Lior Prigan, who joined the firm in 2021 after more than a decade at KPMG in Australia and the UK. Promoted in Melbourne, Tim Robertson is another member of PwC’s deals team, which sits within its advisory division. Focused on restructuring & turnaround work, Robertson has been with PwC since 2006, including a three-year stint in Hong Kong.
Tracey Henderson has likewise spent the best part of two decades at the firm, joining in Melbourne in 2007 with a focus on business transformations and customer experience, while fellow digital & tech consultant Claire McKenna-Blake is another to have had Big Four experience in both Australia and the UK, the latter where she started out in 2012 before relocating with the firm to Melbourne five years on.
Finally, transformation & program management specialist Damian Munafo also takes the step up in Melbourne’s advisory division after having been with the firm since 2010. Across business lines, the firm altogether made six promotions in Melbourne, nine in Sydney and Newcastle, and five between Perth and Brisbane, with assurance member Jordan Yen having relocated from the latter to join the partnership in Papua New Guinea.
“Our new partners’ unique strengths and capabilities are in sync with the key challenges facing our clients,” Burrowes stated. “It’s clear that this group will help drive multidisciplinary support to our clients, helping them to navigate disruption, including technological, AI, economic uncertainty, skills shortages and rapidly-changing societal expectations.”
Partner intake
An overview of PwC Australia’s partnership intake for 2023/24:
Advisory
Tracey Henderson – Melbourne
Claire McKenna-Blake – Melbourne
Damian Munafo – Melbourne
Tim Robertson – Melbourne
Belinda Cogswell – Sydney
Lior Prigan – Sydney
Assurance
Cameron Carter – Sydney
Charlotte Boulogne – Sydney
Elspeth MacKenzie – Sydney
Manuel Kapsis – Sydney
MJ Oosthuizen – Sydney
Jessica Lane – Sydney
Anna Donoghoe – Newcastle
Vinay Mahajan – Melbourne
Lindsey Ruster – Perth
Mair Hodge – Perth
Tamarin Willmot – Brisbane
Jordan Yen – Port Moresby
Tax & Legal
Angeline Young – Sydney
Daniel Levin – Melbourne
Peter Nearhos – Brisbane
Enabling Functions
Claire Benton – Perth
CEO
Kevin Burrowes – Sydney