New Partners lead the way in Pitcher Partners national network

Pitcher Partners has expanded its national partnership, promoting nine senior people from across their firms as the network continues its focus on enabling growth and ambition for their clients, and their people.

Pitcher Partners National Chairman John Brazzale congratulated the new partners and said the growth of the network was testament to its collective agility in the face of change and collaborative relationships with clients.

“Our growth does not just happen, it’s the result of teams working together to deliver results and impact for our clients, even in the face of today’s economic challenges,” he said.

“Business leaders face rapidly changing landscapes, from shifting business conditions to technology such as artificial intelligence upending business practices and unlocking new opportunities.”

“The personal stamp that our new partners bring to our practices allows us collectively to remain responsive to changing needs and help clients and their business prepare for the future.”

The new partners join from across a variety of practice areas:

• Sudha Viswanathan  (Digital and Data Solutions, Melbourne)
• Jordan Mitchelhill  (Business Advisory and Assurance, Melbourne)
• Richard King  (Business Advisory and Assurance, Sydney)
• Robert Hughes  (Private Business and Family Advisory, Brisbane)
• Edward Fletcher  (Wealth Management, Brisbane)
• Lisa Tsoulakis  (Private Business and Family Advisory, Adelaide)
• Jon Bode  (Private Business and Family Advisory, Adelaide)
• Chris Pattinson  (Corporate Finance, Perth)
• Michael Liprino  (Business Advisory and Assurance, Perth)

Sudha Viswanathan commenced at Pitcher Partners as an intern, progressed to a Business Services Supervisor, then worked in a number of executive leadership positions in the finance and energy industries, before re-joining the Melbourne firm in 2019 to head up its Data and Analytics practice.

“My passion is to work with clients who are facing growth challenges and to help them, through applied technology, data and insights.”

“Generative AI is all the rage at the moment and the scary thing is, it is very much at its infancy.  I am excited to see how it evolves, scales and gets embedded across businesses.”

“AI, digitisation and connecting data from various sources has become progressively crucial,” he explains, “which is why we have developed proficient capabilities to do this for our clients.”

With the exponential expansion of AI, Mr Viswanathan’s eager to explore how it can be honed for businesses.

 

Jordan Mitchelhill is in the Business Advisory and Assurance practice at Pitcher Partners Melbourne, applying his experience across a wide range of sectors, including construction, property, agriculture and not-for-profit organisations.

“I commenced my career in the Investment Advisory practice however what drew me towards Business Advisory and Assurance was the opportunity to connect and foster strong relationships with corporate leaders and support the growth of their businesses,” Mr Mitchelhill said.

Mr Mitchelhill said the rapid advance of AI has only just begun to shape his industry but saw the technology as a time-saving tool that will free advisors up to focus even more on clients.

“We’re only just starting to scratch the surface with AI’s potential and the next 12 to 24 months will be really exciting. I expect it will continue to drive efficiencies in how we work and while there will always be a place for strong commercial advisors to assist clients, in future I expect it to be accented by AI tools.”

 

Richard King has had an audit journey with quite the global reach. He began his career in the United Kingdom and later moved to the Cayman Islands before joining the Business Advisory and Assurance team at Pitcher Partners Sydney. Initially arriving on a short-term secondment in 2017, his love for Australia saw him return the following year on a more permanent basis and he now calls Australia home.

Why audit? “Early on in your career, you’re exposed to a wide range of different industries and sectors, and that’s ultimately why I chose audit, it’s very diverse and is seen as a good training ground,” he said.

“During my time in the Cayman Islands, I gained extensive experience working with various hedge funds and broker traders, honing my skills in the financial sector which started my interest in the global markets. These skills seamlessly transitioned when I moved to Australia, where I specialise in Listed Investment Companies.“

Driven by his passion for auditing, Mr King rapidly advanced from Client Director to Partner in just 12 months.  Beyond the day-to-day, he is focused on developing his colleagues to reach their full potential and building collaborative, long-term client relationships to drive tangible outcomes.

 

Robert Hughes is in the specialist Pharmacy Services division of the Private Business and Family Advisory practice at Pitcher Partners Brisbane, where he specialises in advising community pharmacy owners.  Over the past few years, he has had a particular focus on preparing valuations for community pharmacies and has grown this area of the division.

“We concentrate particularly on valuations for brokers who are listing pharmacies for sale, and we also do a lot of security-lending valuations,” he said.

After spending a decade at a smaller accountancy firm in Brisbane, he had his eyes set on moving to a mid-tier firm and approached Pitcher Partners based on their high reputation in the market.

“A manager position in pharmacy came up, and I was a little hesitant at first, but I gave it a chance and it’s been a great opportunity and a really interesting and dynamic sector to be involved in.”

 

Edward Fletcher leads Brisbane’s Wealth Management practice and has worked in the financial industry for over 15 years. Prior to joining the Wealth advisory business “Ed” worked for a large corporate but moved when the opportunity arose based on his wife Leica’s previous positive experience working for Pitcher Partners as an accountant.

“Knowing the Pitcher Partners culture through my wife’s experience it was an easy decision to move. Uniquely, most of our Wealth business clients are also connected with the accounting practice. This translates to efficiency gains for clients as well as better investment outcomes given the ongoing real-time input from the client’s accounting, tax and superannuation team.”

Throughout his career, Mr Fletcher has focused on technological disruption as a means of both opportunity and risks.  As we enter the AI era, clients can be assured their investment portfolios remain relevant and current.

 

Jon Bode and Lisa Tsoulakis have both been promoted within Pitcher Partners Adelaide’s Private Business and Family Advisory (PBFA), a practice that proved to be a natural fit for a pair of problem solvers.

“I was always problem solving as a kid, reading those books where you had to solve puzzles to get to the next chapter. I was also interested in mathematics and loved meeting and talking to people. When you put these all together, it’s no wonder I found myself in Private Business & Family Advisory,” Mr Bode said.

“With a mid-tier firm, you get that interaction with the proprietors or owners directly, which you may not get at one of the larger firms.”

Ms Tsoulakis was exposed to business and accounting from an early age.

“Both my parents were business owners and self-employed, so I worked in the family businesses and accounting came quite naturally,” she said.

“Today, building those client relationships is a big reason why this profession remains attractive.”

Ms Tsoulakis said it was important to be across multiple industries in the Adelaide market.

“Being in Adelaide, it is important that we work across multiple industries. The majority of my clients are high net wealth individuals and well-established businesses, but I have a personal interest in the property sector as well,” she said.

 

Chris Pattinson is focused on growing the Corporate Finance practice in Perth, dealing largely in private business mergers and acquisitions for both buyers and sellers.

“Private business M&A is largely my focus area, helping buyers and sellers of small and midsize businesses through each stages of a transaction – from assisting buyers with identifying, analysing and transacting upon opportunities, to helping vendors prepare for, and subsequently bring their businesses to the market, along with supporting them through the (often emotionally draining) process that follows.”

Mr Pattinson commenced his career in restructuring in his early years with the Perth firm before a six-year stint living and working overseas exposed him to a broad mix of corporate finance and advisory engagements across a variety of industries.

“I kept in touch with the firm and when I came back, I found both the local insolvency and private M&A markets had changed noticeably in my time away. I believed expansion of the Perth firm’s M&A focus would present a significant opportunity for it to gain market share and I was very fortunate to find a well-established, very strong national network of M&A capability which I have been able to leverage off on this journey to date.”

 

Michael Liprino has been with the Perth firm for more than 11 years and is an integral part of the Business Advisory and Assurance practice.

“It might sound cliché however I enjoy working with numbers, and problem solving. The appeal of auditing is that I’m exposed to different industries and problems on a daily basis. No job is the same when determining risk,” he said.

“One day I’ll be working in the resources space, an area of interest for me which in Western Australia is a natural fit. The next, I am working with a range of clients across industries and of all sizes, from not-for-profit organisations, private local businesses, right through to multinationals.

The knowledge Mr Liprino has developed as a result of this experience provides him with the skillset needed to assist clients as part of the Perth firm’s Business Advisory offering.

“Business Advisory is a diverse practice area. Outside of playing the traditional accountant role, we are entrusted by businesses to take on a range of tasks which help them run efficiently and focus on their key objectives. The challenges this brings and the client relationships I have built over the years is the part of my job which I enjoy the most.”