Introduction
August saw continued momentum in senior talent across the professional services and alternative investment sectors, with firms announcing a mix of leadership promotions, partner appointments, and strategic external hires. Private equity and asset management remained particularly active, with firms strengthening their leadership teams and expanding institutional capital, private markets, and investment capabilities across key global markets. Professional services firms also continued to bolster their transaction advisory, tax, restructuring, value creation, and infrastructure practices, with notable movement between the Big Four and mid-market advisory firms. These moves reflect continued demand for experienced leadership across private equity, M&A, transformation, technology, and specialist advisory services, while highlighting the sector’s ongoing focus on strengthening capabilities and expanding into strategic growth areas.
Key People Moves
Blue Owl Capital has appointed Takeo Ikemori as Co-Head of its Japan business and Head of Japan Institutional Capital, based in Tokyo. Ikemori joins from Natixis, where he led the Financial Institutions Group in Tokyo, having previously spent 16 years at Barclays in senior roles covering Japanese financial institutions. In his new role, he will focus on institutional distribution across private credit, real estate and GP stakes.
KPMG Ireland has appointed Gillian Myers as Associate Director. Based in Ireland, Myers brings more than 20 years of experience in organisational change, transformation and programme delivery, particularly across consulting, pharmaceuticals, aviation and energy. Prior to joining KPMG Ireland, Myers worked as a Change Practitioner supporting digital and organisational transformation programmes, following roles at Aer Lingus as SAP Project Manager & Change Manager and Amgen as Organisational Change Management Lead. She also spent more than 15 years at Pfizer, where she held several Senior Project Manager and Project Manager roles focused on SAP integration, financial digitisation, automation and other global transformation programmes.
Alvarez & Marsal has appointed Ahmed Elkomy as Managing Director in Brisbane, Australia. He joins from Partners in Performance, where he most recently served as Partner and Global Asset Management Lead. Elkomy brings over 16 years of experience in operational excellence, transformation and strategy, with a focus on heavy industries including mining, metals, oil and gas, and manufacturing. Earlier in his career, he held senior roles at dss+ and Partners in Performance, and began his career at Boral as a Plant Manager.
KPMG has appointed Andrew Trujillo as Senior Manager in Orlando, Florida. He joins from PwC, where he most recently served as Senior Manager. Trujillo previously held roles at NextEra Energy as Senior Tax Attorney and at the IRS Office of Chief Counsel as General Attorney, and earlier spent almost six years at PwC across its State and Local Tax practice.
EY-Parthenon has appointed Jorden Sleeth as Partner and Senior VP in its Turnaround & Restructuring Strategy practice in Toronto. Sleeth re-joins EY-Parthenon from Deloitte Canada, where he most recently served as Partner, advising companies and stakeholders on strategic restructuring, turnaround, operational improvement, refinancing and M&A. He previously spent four years as Partner at KPMG, following a 15-year tenure at EY in Transaction Advisory Services, where he focused on M&A, financing and restructuring advisory.
KPMG Luxembourg has appointed Antoine Michiels as Audit Partner, specialising in Private Equity. He joins from PwC Luxembourg, where he most recently served as Audit Director, focusing on statutory and consolidation audits of Private Equity structures and operational companies under IFRS and Luxembourg GAAP. Michiels previously held Audit Manager and Senior Audit Manager roles at PwC Luxembourg, following an earlier position as Senior Internal Auditor at Cargolux Airlines.
Andrea Vardaro Thomas joins Forvis Mazars as Managing Director, Private Equity Value Creation, after six years as Managing Director at Protiviti. She brings over 20 years of finance leadership experience, with a focus on private equity value creation, finance transformation, and transaction readiness.
Meghan Byrnes-Borderan has been appointed Managing Director at Baker Tilly, where she will focus on human experience, AI, and transformation. She brings more than 15 years of experience across design, technology, product, and business transformation, having previously held senior leadership roles at Designit and Capco, where she built multidisciplinary teams and led large-scale innovation and transformation programs for major organizations.
Beau Hammond has recently joined Protiviti as Managing Director, focused on Aerospace & Defense and Technology Consulting. He has 18+ years of experience in strategy, transformation, and consulting, with a focus on Aerospace & Defense, technology, and finance transformation. He has held senior leadership roles at Highspring, ICF, Deloitte, and Booz Allen Hamilton.
Dan Martin recently joined CFGI as Managing Director, bringing approximately 15 years of financial and accounting experience, including over a decade at KPMG. His career at KPMG progressed from Audit Intern and Senior Audit Associate to Senior Manager, giving him a strong foundation in serving clients and leading complex engagements. He brings extensive experience in accounting, financial reporting, auditing, and transaction-related challenges.
Satty Khangura has joined PKF Littlejohn as a Partner. He is a financial services professional with over 18 years of experience, primarily focused on the insurance sector. He spent 19 years at EY, progressing from Graduate through Senior Manager to Partner. His expertise includes assurance and advisory services, Lloyd’s accounting and regulatory reporting, PRA requirements, US GAAP, UK GAAP, IFRS, and accounting conversion projects.
BDO in Australia has appointed Jenelle Forrest as Partner within its Project and Infrastructure Advisory team. Forrest joins from Scyne Advisory, where she was most recently Managing Director and previously Director, Infrastructure and Property. She has also held senior infrastructure advisory roles at PwC Australia, including Director and Associate Director within its Integrated Infrastructure practice. Forrest brings extensive experience across infrastructure and capital projects, with a focus on strategic asset planning, business cases, programme management and major projects across sectors including health, energy and community.
Grant Thornton Ireland has appointed Eoin Daly as Partner within its Consulting practice. Daly joins from Commercial Bank of Dubai, where he was most recently Head of Customer Experience and previously held senior roles including Head of Sustainability and Head of Change Management. Earlier in his career, he spent more than 11 years with PwC, progressing to Director within its Financial Services Advisory Consulting division, having previously worked as a Senior Manager and Management Consultant. Daly brings experience across consulting, financial services, customer experience, sustainability and organisational change.
KPMG UK has appointed Amy Marshall as Partner within its Energy & Natural Resources Strategy practice. Marshall rejoins KPMG from Xynteo, where she was Partner & Managing Director (Europe), having previously spent seven years with KPMG as a Director. She has also held Partner-level roles at PA Consulting and brings extensive experience across energy, natural resources, utilities, transformation and commercial strategy.
Glenmede has appointed Michael H. Novak as Managing Director and Relationship Manager within its Wealth Advisory business in Ohio, reporting to Ohio Regional Director Bethany Bryant. Novak joins from Northern Trust Corporation, where he most recently served as Senior Vice President and Senior Fiduciary Officer, managing the firm’s trust practice in Ohio. Prior to this, he spent more than 21 years with Key Private Bank as Senior Vice President and Personal Trust Officer. Novak brings more than three decades of experience in wealth management, with a focus on fiduciary services, trust administration, estate planning and high-net-worth client relationships.
KPMG Nederland has appointed Sheila Gemin as Partner within its Digital Advisory team. Gemin joins from ING, where she spent five years as Global Head of Corporate Technology, leading technology transformation across the organisation. She previously held senior roles at Atos, including Client Executive Partner, and has more than 25 years of experience in technology transformation, with a focus on regulated, multinational organisations and the financial services sector.
Alvarez & Marsal has appointed Karthik Manonman Koutha as Associate Director within its US Tax practice in Bengaluru. Koutha joins from EY, where he spent more than 11 years, most recently serving as Tax Manager. He progressed through several roles within EY’s Tax practice, including Tax Analyst, Tax Senior and Assistant Manager, building extensive experience in US tax.
Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has appointed Matthew Patel as Manager, Project Leader within BCG Platinion. Patel joins from EY, where he spent eight years and was most recently Manager, Digital Transformation, SAP S/4HANA. He previously held Senior Technology Consultant and Technology Consultant roles within EY’s SAP Technology Consulting practice. Patel brings experience in technology strategy, enterprise transformation, SAP and technology-enabled business transformation.
David Benabou has been appointed Partner at EIGHT ADVISORY, where he focuses on strategic valuation, financial modelling, and value creation. He brings 17 years of experience across EIGHT ADVISORY and EY, advising corporate and private equity clients on valuations, complex financial instruments, and transaction-related decisions.
Lilit Galustyan has joined BDO USA as Director of Transaction Advisory Services, bringing her experience in transaction advisory and client service to the firm. She will focus on serving clients, developing talent, and supporting the growth of BDO’s TAS practice.
Silvio Ritz has joined Alvarez & Marsal as Managing Director in the Global Transaction Advisory Group in Germany. He brings nearly 20 years of M&A experience, specializing in financial due diligence and advising corporate and private equity clients, particularly across consumer and retail industries.
Liz Zaremba has been appointed Head of International Tax and Transfer Pricing at Convera, bringing more than 25 years of experience in international, corporate tax, transfer pricing and tax advisory. She previously held senior tax leadership roles at Johnson Matthey and Macquarie Group, where she led global transfer pricing and tax advisory initiatives.
People Promotions
KPMG US has appointed Smita Rao as Director in its Accounting Advisory Services practice. Based in the Detroit Metropolitan Area, Rao joins from KPMG Canada, where she served as Senior Manager. She previously spent more than six years with KPMG US as Manager in Accounting Advisory Services, following an earlier role as Audit Associate at KPMG Lower Gulf in Dubai.
Carlyle has promoted Harvey Schwartz to Chief Executive Officer, where he leads the firm’s global investment operations. Schwartz previously served as President and Chief Operating Officer at Goldman Sachs, following a more than 20-year career with the firm, and brings extensive experience across investment banking, markets and financial services.
Ardian has appointed Mark Benedetti as Co-CEO, having previously served as Chair of the Executive Committee since September 2023. He joined Ardian 20 years ago and is based in New York. Mathias Burghardt, Vladimir Colas and Jan Philipp Schmitz have also been appointed Executive Presidents.
KPMG France has promoted Hicham Makhtout to Senior Manager within its Infrastructure, Energy & Utilities (IEU) practice in Paris. Makhtout has been with KPMG for seven years, having previously served as Manager in the IEU practice, and has experience auditing large companies across the energy sector.
Grant Thornton UK has promoted Matthew Woodgate to Partner within its Value Creation Advisory practice. Woodgate has been with Grant Thornton for 14 years, having previously served as Partner, Value Creation Advisory, and brings extensive experience advising corporate and Private Equity clients on M&A and post-merger integration.
Deloitte has promoted Ryan Ro to Managing Director. Based in Los Angeles, Ro has been with the firm for nearly seven years, previously serving as Senior Manager and Manager, M&A Transaction Services. He brings 14 years of experience across audit, accounting advisory and M&A, having previously worked at EY as Manager, Financial Accounting Advisory Service (FAAS), and at KPMG US as Senior Associate, Audit.
Ryan has promoted Creytn Crosby to Director, Business Valuation & Complex Securities, based in Salt Lake City. Crosby previously served as Vice President at Economics Partners, a Ryan company, where he focused on financial analysis and valuation. He joined Economics Partners in 2017 and progressed through Financial Analyst, Senior Financial Analyst and Vice President roles before taking on his new position.
Parker Hondel has been promoted to Principal (Partner) at Deloitte, following more than 16 years of experience across technology transformation, product strategy, enterprise architecture, telecom, SaaS, IoT and 5G. He is based in the Greater Minneapolis–St. Paul area.
Sam Pambah has been appointed Tax Business Unit Partner-in-Charge for KPMG’s Chicago-Milwaukee market, bringing nearly 20 years of experience in valuation services, tax, and corporate advisory. He has spent more than 12 years at KPMG, where he advises multinational companies, private equity firms, and businesses across healthcare, technology, software, and consumer industries.
EY-Parthenon has promoted Ann Cooperman to Director within its Deals practice. Cooperman has been with EY-Parthenon since 2023, most recently serving as Senior Deals Associate, having previously worked as a Transaction Diligence Analyst. She began her career at EY through its TD+ rotational programme, gaining experience across Assurance and Strategy and Transactions – Transaction Diligence.
Baker Tilly has promoted Jon Blitman to Managing Director within its M&A Tax practice, with Blitman returning to the New York market. Blitman joined Baker Tilly in 2025 as Director, M&A Tax, having previously spent three years with Moss Adams, where he progressed to Director, M&A Tax. Earlier in his career, he spent five years with PwC, most recently as Manager, M&A Tax, and also held a Tax Planning role at NextEra Energy Resources. Blitman brings more than ten years of experience in M&A Tax and tax planning.
Leo Otrino has been promoted to Associate Director of Strategy at Monitor Deloitte in Melbourne, building on over four years with the firm. His experience spans strategy, operating model design, transformation, M&A integration and turnaround programmes across retail, public sector and higher education.
Laura Kinzel has been promoted to Director in Deal Services at RSM US LLP, building on nearly five years with the firm. Her experience spans deal services, technology risk, information security and compliance, following earlier roles at Costco Wholesale.
Kunal Maheshwari has been promoted to Director, Deal Services at RSM US LLP, where he focuses on M&A value creation for private equity and corporate clients. His experience spans commercial due diligence, synergy modelling, integration and separation management, and operational improvement.
John Sams has been appointed CEO of KPMG Australia, following more than two decades with the firm. He previously served as CFO and COO and brings over 20 years of experience across tax, corporate finance, and infrastructure advisory.
Anjlee Rawlani has been promoted to Director at EY-Parthenon, where she focuses on corporate finance and decision modeling. She brings experience in financial modelling, valuation, and equity research across the U.S. and Pakistan.