BrazilPA Consulting appoints Deloitte veteran Panos Kakoullis as next CEO
PA Consulting has named Deloitte veteran Panos Kakoullis as its next CEO – with the firm opting for a long-term transition period before incumbent Alan Middleton vacates the role.
International innovation and strategy consultancy PA Consulting has appointed Panos Kakoullis as its next CEO, with Kakoullis to be given the year to settle in after spending the past three decades spent at Deloitte. Most recently, Kakoullis served as managing director for the Big Four’s global audit & assurance wing – a business which generates in excess of $10 billion in worldwide revenues.
Founded in the UK in the 1940s, PA Consulting meanwhile has a global headcount of 3,000 – including recent addition Peter Baumgartner, the former CEO of Etihad Airways – and has been active in the Gulf region for upwards of 35 years. The firm has been on a rapid growth path since securing private investment in 2015, with revenues now pushing $650 million worldwide, and is preparing for its next phase.
“I’m delighted to welcome Panos to PA. His wealth of industry experience, track-record of leading within professional services, skills in client and relationship development, and experience of managing complex global operations will make him a great leader for PA,” said current CEO Alan Middleton, who has led the firm for past 13 years and will take up an advisory role once the handover is complete.
That process will however be ongoing over the course of the year. “PA has a clear purpose and is perfectly positioned to accelerate its growth and success, as we continue our journey of bringing ingenuity to life for our clients and our people,” added Middleton, who has been at the firm for over 30 years. “I’m looking forward to working alongside Panos as we embark on the next phase of our ambitious growth plan.”
“Over the past four years PA has doubled in size under Alan’s leadership, and through the ingenuity of its team, is set to do the same again,” said PA Consulting chairman John Alexander, while Kakoullis, who was in particular cited by PA for having led the transformation of Deloitte’s audit function through the latest in digital technologies, also expressed excitement to be joining PA at such a pivotal time.
“PA occupies a unique place in the market with its exceptional record of delivering smart, world changing innovation for its clients for over 75 years,” said the CEO-elect, who first joined Deloitte in 1989. “I’m looking forward to working with Alan and our people to sustain this outstanding record and to further enhance PA’s reputation for bringing ingenuity to life for our clients and for society as a whole.”
Meanwhile, it appears the firm’s MENA managing director Francesco Pavoni has moved on from the firm, with Pavoni listed on LinkedIn as managing director at an unnamed advisory since the beginning of the year (PA Consulting doesn’t currently include any Middle East offices on its website). With PA Consulting since 2016, Pavoni was previously a partner at Roland Berger and BCG in Turkey and the Middle East.
