Johannesburg, 04 Jul 2002
Following significant client wins and anticipated firm-wide growth, business advisory firm Ernst & Young has announced the appointment of eight new partners and seven new directors effective 1 July 2002. Two of these appointments are from outside the firm with the remainder based on internal promotions.
The new partners are Dr Karin Badenhorst, Mike Benetello, Grant Brewer, Freda Britz, Alan Codd, Mark Danton, Sugan Palanee and Henri Staal. The new directors are Jenny Greyling, Sean Kruger, Rodney Lewis, James Luke, Henry Mynhardt, Emilio Pera and Sanjay Soni.
Philip Hourquebie, CEO of Ernst & Young, says: "All the appointments are in line with our policy of transformation, as the demographic representation of partners will be significantly improved. The promotion process recognises the tremendous achievement of these individuals, as well as the contributions they have made to the firm and effort they have made during their career."
The appointment of such a large group of partners and directors reflects Ernst & Young`s confidence in the opportunities in SA and the firm`s commitment to democracy and empowering its people, explains Hourquebie. He points out that the firm has made significant strides at the executive level through the expanded partnership, to complement its aggressive recruitment drive at the graduate level for black professionals.
"Employment equity is one of the biggest challenges SA faces, but will bring tremendous value to us as we succeed," says Hourquebie. "The development of Ernst & Young`s personnel is one of the primary responsibilities of all executives in the firm."
According to Hourquebie, individuals are admitted to the partnership ranks based on their track record, knowledge and expertise they bring to the firm. He says this enables Ernst & Young to harness the added value that comes from having people with diverse backgrounds in their teams and use it to help our clients create their future.
"From our entry-level joiners through to our partners, we need to work together through this transformation not only to achieve equity in employment but to ensure that we create value for our people, our clients and our firm," adds Hourquebie.
"Our clients will also benefit, as our new partners bring their entrepreneurial skills to existing customer relationships," continues Hourquebie. "We believe the expanded partnership enhances our ability to create unmatched solutions for our clients."
New partner information:
Dr Karin Badenhorst, BRS/ISAAS: Karin was until recently heading up Andersen`s Technology Risk Consulting division as a national partner. Karin has been appointed to drive business growth in Enterprise Risk Management (BRS) and IT Security (ISAAS), because of her specific subject matter expertise in risk management and IT governance, security and risk management.
Mike Benetello, Tax: Mike joined KPMG as an article clerk in 1994 and joined the partnership in August 1999 at the age of 29. Mike has joined as Ernst & Young`s Corporate Tax Partner in the Johannesburg office, where he`ll be responsible for South African Income Tax Services with a diversified portfolio of clients, focusing on corporate tax.
Grant Brewer, Strategy and Innovation: Grant joined Ernst & Young in 1994 and was appointed as the national head of ISAAS` Security department in 1997. In March 2000 Grant was appointed director of e-business and from 2001 he also became responsible for Strategy and Innovation and EY Online Solutions. In his new role, Grant will focus on the e-business and EY Online Solutions business, which he has been instrumental in establishing and building.
Freda Britz, Audit (FSG): Freda has been appointed as a new Audit FSG (financial services group) partner at Ernst & Young. Freda comes from a treasury environment at Absa, having acquired extensive experience in the middle and back office functions specifically.
Alan Codd, ISAAS: Alan has been with Ernst & Young for 10 years and has gained extensive experience in IT auditing, security and related consulting. Alan was a director with ISAAS. In his new role as partner, Alan will concentrate on re-energising and managing the ERP Integrity group with a focus on SAP and Oracle.
Mark Danton, ISAAS: Prior to joining Ernst & Young in 2001, Mark was Global Business Development, Service Management and Strategy Manager (IT & Information Security) at Dimension Data plc. In his role as partner, Mark will be heading up the eSecurity team within the ISAAS division.
Sugan Palanee, Audit: Sugan joined Ernst & Young in 1992 and was promoted to assistant manager in 1997. In 1998 Sugan joined the Public Sector group, which he grew significantly and which led to his promotion to director in July 2001. In his new role, Sugan will be responsible for service delivery to public sector clients in the KwaZulu-Natal region, as well as playing a supportive national role in terms of sales and technical issues.
Henri Staal, Business Development Strategist: Henri will primarily focus on the sales function with a strong involvement in marketing. In the late 1990s Henri was joint managing director of E&Y`s management consulting business. In 1998 he left E&Y to take up the post of Group CEO of Adcorp Holdings. In July 2001 he joined Mertech Holdings, a property development and technology company as Group CEO.
New directors information:
Jenny Greyling, National Human Resources & Development: Jenny joined the firm in 1990 and was the first female manager seconded to the Toledo office in the US as part of the Global Exchange Programme. She was appointed as the national Human Resources manager for Audit in 1998. In September 2001, she was appointed to head up rResourcing for the firm as part of the national HR&D team. In her new role, Jenny will be responsible for formulating, implementing and maintaining a resourcing strategy that will enable the firm to attract, retain and motivate talented individuals in accordance with a strategic staffing plan.
Sean Kruger, International Tax Services: Sean specialises in International Tax and Corporate Tax, which includes e-commerce, transfer pricing and a variety of cross border and purely International Tax issues. In addition, Sean has specialist knowledge in Exchange control issues and Africa Tax. Sean has been appointed as director in International Tax Services with his extensive domestic and international tax consulting experience to both domestic clients and inward and outward investment multinationals in a broad range of industries.
Rodney Lewis, Tax: Rodney has over 31 years of experience in all aspects of taxation including individual tax, entities, mining companies, trusts, from the perspective of both South African and International Taxation. Rodney has been appointed as director in the Tax group with specific responsibility around corporate tax.
James Luke, National Accounting & Auditing: James first joined E&Y in January 1987 as an assistant Audit manager. After joining the Special Investigations Division of the Department of Finance, he was acting head of the financial accounting section of the Faculty of Economics and Management at the University of Natal and associate professor at the University of Port Elizabeth. In October 2001, James rejoined E&Y as a senior manager in the National Accounting & Auditing department. In his new role, James will continue to provide advice and guidance on technical issues, but with additional responsibilities for growing the department and enhancing its standing both internally and externally.
Henry Mynhardt, Audit, FSG: Henry was an executive within the financial services group at Arthur Andersen prior to joining Ernst & Young. Henry also gained extensive risk management experience both from his role as a senior manager at the South African Reserve Bank where he managed the risk portfolio for 32 banks, gaining a great deal of international exposure; and prior to that, as a dealer and senior risk manager for 11 years at Absa. Henry has been appointed as director in the Financial Services Group with specific responsibility for Banking Act and Regulation compliance, as well as both general and treasury risk management at banking clients.
Emilio Pera, Audit: Emilio joined Ernst & Young in 2002 as Audit director after having worked for UBS Warburg as associate director in the Group Internal Audit (London) division.
Sanjay Soni, Corporate Finance: Sanjay joined Ernst & Young as an Audit manager in September 1998 and was, until recently, a manager in the Corporate Finance division in KwaZulu-Natal. In his new role, Sanjay`s primary focus will be Corporate Turnaround and in the short-term he will be responsible for Transaction Support in a supportive role.
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