The musical chairs continued this week among Perth's second tier accountants, with the 12-partner local Bentleys MRI team switching allegiance to join the Grant Thornton network.
The musical chairs continued this week among Perth's second tier accountants, with the 12-partner local Bentleys MRI team switching allegiance to join the Grant Thornton network.
The move is the latest of series going back more than two years as the dynamics of the human resources issues exacerbated by the booming Western Australian economy, global competitive pressure in the sector, the need for strong national networks to service clients and increased regulatory pressures reshape the local sector.
The Bentleys MRI Perth Pty Ltd partnership will fill a void created in the Grant Thornton network earlier this year when its four-partner local team sold their practice into listed Melbourne-based professional services consolidator WHK Group which operates under the Horwath name.
Ironically, this recent spate of movements between second-tier players in the Perth sector can be traced back more than two years ago when Hall Chadwick, depleted by a succession of departures, joined Bentleys MRI Perth's audit practice.
Since then, the activity has been constant, as has that of key sector regulator the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, which has been giving close inspection to the quality and independence of audit practices.
Perhaps the biggest event was the merger of the BDO, which had eight partners, and Horwaths, with nine partners, earlier this year to form one of the largest accounting practices in Perth under the name BDO Kendalls.
BDO Kendalls, which currently has 16 partners, sits at sixth in Perth by number of partners, behind RSM Bird Cameron.
That merger was driven by forces outside WA, with big four player Deloitte - which has been on a big buying spree - proving a catalyst to the national mid-tier merger when it poached Horwath's practice in Sydney and BDO's branch in Melbourne leaving the two mid-tier networks in tatters late last year.
A similar issue confronted Bentleys MRI which lost its Sydney office around the same time when that practice switched over to RSM Bird Cameron. RSM Bird Cameron in Perth remains the largest player outside the big four.
At 12 partners and 105 staff, the Bentleys MRI team, led by Cam Ansell, is bigger than the previous Grant Thornton practice.
Mr Ansell said that the loss of the Sydney office left Bentleys MRI Perth as the biggest in the network which was not a suitable geographic spread when it came to serving the aspirations of clients or staff, in terms of reach and technical expertise.
"Our clients have become larger and more successful," he said.
"With that growth there comes an expectation of stronger technical expertise.
"We are doing a lot of interstate and international work, including places like Asia, we have to support our clients and keep our staff interested."
Grant Thornton is shifting from a federation of practices to one partnership, along the lines of most bigger firms including the biggest local second tier player RSM Bird Cameron.
Mr Ansell said recruiting and retaining staff was becoming more difficult in a smaller group.
"We need to provide the best training and technical skills we can," he said.
PKF, with 10 partners and 120, staff is also ranked up among the biggest mid-tier firms in Perth.
Below is the full release from Grant Thornton:
Leading Perth accounting and business advisory firm, Bentleys MRI Perth, today announced that it was joining the Grant Thornton national network.
Bentleys MRI Perth will become the Perth office of Grant Thornton Australia, which recently announced its intention to move to a national structure.
Cam Ansell, Director of Bentleys MRI Perth, said: "Grant Thornton is one of the best recognised brands in the business world. It has a very strong international network, fantastic business frameworks and shared systems.
"Joining the Grant Thornton network was a natural evolution for us. We were looking for a partner to grow with, who had the reach and influence of the Big 4 firms, but not the bureaucracy that is often associated with them.
"We see Grant Thornton as a great match for us: to offer our staff international secondments, to broaden the reach and types of service we offer our clients and to extend our expertise in niche sectors across Australia."
Robert Quant, National Chairman, Grant Thornton said: "We are excited to announce this partnership. We see strong synergies between Bentleys MRI Perth and Grant Thornton in terms of culture, focus on personal service, access to partners and breadth of technical expertise."
Bentleys MRI Perth has 12 directors and over 105 staff. It is one of Australia's leading business advisors to the aged care sector, and one of the largest audit and assurance practices in Perth, outside the Big 4.
The firm has specialist expertise in the building and construction, resources, viticulture and community development sectors. Grant Thornton will be working closely with Bentleys MRI Perth to further grow its presence in these sectors nationally.
Continued Robert Quant: "Bentleys MRI Perth will bring considerable experience and expertise to the clients we service in West Australia and around the country.
"This is an exciting step forward for Grant Thornton, as we continue to grow and strengthen our position in the Australian market."
About Grant Thornton in Australia
From market-leading services for the owners of private businesses, to audit, to insolvency and capital markets services for corporations, and to innovative taxation and wealth management services for individuals, Grant Thornton in Australia helps business owners achieve success and realise their ambitions.
In Australia, Grant Thornton has independent firms in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, who have recently announced their intention to move to a single national structure.
Grant Thornton firms and entities are independent businesses entitled to trade under the international name Grant Thornton. Grant Thornton is a trademark owned by Grant Thornton International and used under licence by independent firms and entities throughout the world.
About Bentleys MRI Perth
Established in 1964, Bentleys MRI Perth Pty Ltd is an independent firm of Chartered Accountants and Business Advisors. The majority of its clients are Western Australia-based businesses and individuals.
Bentleys MRI Perth has 12 directors and over 105 staff.
In addition to traditional accounting and business advisory services, the firm also offers particular expertise in niche sectors: building and construction, government consultation services, health and aged care, Indigenous affairs, international development consulting and wine and viticulture.
The firm joined the Bentleys MRI and Moores Rowland International networks in 1994, changing its name to Bentleys MRI Perth Pty Ltd on 1st July 1998.