Second of the “Big Four” accountancy firms to hire a female CEO, KPMG follows in the footsteps of Deloitte in appointing Doughtie to the illustrious post. Doughtie will take over from John Veihmeyer, commencing the five-year term on July 1.
Doughtie has been at the helm and earned $2.65bn in revenue
last year
“It is an honour to have the chance to lead KPMG at such a pivotal moment, when ensuring quality and confidence in the work we do has never been more important,” said Doughtie in a company press release. “Our firm, our clients and the entire marketplace are looking at a future of unprecedented change and extraordinary opportunity, where ‘business-as-usual’ is going to mean constant innovation and transformation.”
Following a series of prominent positions during her thirty-year tenure at KPMG, since 2011, Doughtie has headed the firm’s advisory division and was in charge of leading its strategic direction. According to The Wall Street Journal, the branch exhibited an annual growth rate of 17 percent since Doughtie has been at the helm and earned $2.65bn in revenue last year.
Doughtie has consistently exhibited excellence in the field, receiving widespread recognition for her work. In 2012, she was listed in Consultancy Magazine’s “Top 25 Consultants” for excellent leadership. Doughtie has also received accolades in Accountancy Today’s “Women in Accounting” and “Women Worth Watching” in the Profiles in Diversity Journal.
Quantopian, an algorithm trading platform, has studied the correlation between female CEOs and the stock performance of Fortune 1000 companies ran by women and S&P 500 companies, between 2002 and 2014. The research found a 340 percent return to investors achieved by female-led companies, compared with 122 percent for the rate achieved by S&P 500 firms.
In recent years the number of females in the boardrooms of multinational corporations is slowly rising, and (albeit at an even slower pace), more women are leading historically male-dominated businesses too. As this long-awaited movement continues to grow, Quantopian’s correlation, if indeed holds true, can come to light in an irrefutable and transparent fashion. As a firm among the first to take this bold step in bucking the trend against business conventions, KPMG illustrates a modern, dynamic outlook that can steer the firm into new directions and superior performance.