PwC picks Mohamed Kande as global chairman
PwC has picked the head of its international advisory business, Mohamed Kande, to be its next chairman, putting the big four accounting firm in the hands of a consulting partner for the first time.
Mr Kande’s selection by PwC’s global board was revealed to partners on Monday (Tuesday AEDT), according to people familiar with the internal message. It will need to be ratified by member firms in individual countries in the coming weeks, after which Mr Kande would take over from current chairman Bob Moritz, whose tenure expires in June.
Incoming PwC global chairman Mohamed Kande.
Mr Kande came to PwC 12 years ago via its acquisition of consulting firm PRTM; he holds the title of vice-chairman of the US consulting business as well as global advisory leader.
The race for global chairman was thrown open last month when PwC’s US senior partner, Tim Ryan, unexpectedly took his name out of contention, breaking the tradition of the head of the American firm being elevated to the job.
Some partners outside the US had queried whether Mr Ryan’s hands-on and demanding management style was suited to a global role that involves marrying the sometimes competing interests of PwC member firms across the world.
In common with its big four rivals, PwC operates as a network of locally owned partnerships, with the global operation largely limited to imposing common standards and managing the brand.
One person familiar with the selection process said Mr Kande had demonstrated an “ability to bring collaborative solutions for our network”.
PwC employs about 364,000 people globally and had US$53.1 billion ($83.4 billion) revenue in the year ended June 30. Like each of the other big four accounting firms – Deloitte, EY and KPMG – it audits the
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