Our friends and colleagues from across the Asia Pacific region and beyond reunited in Bangkok, Thailand from 24 to 26 July 2024 for our annual Asia Pacific Gathering.

Delegates enjoyed three days of interactive and engaging content, with an agenda centred around the themes of technology & resourcing, practice management, growth & diversification and the client experience.

Exploring agile and flexible resourcing solutions

Highlights included our session which focused on the challenges firms face around resourcing and which outlined some of the different ways to manage this. Ann-Maree Kingi, a director at PKF Bay of Islands, one of our member firms in New Zealand, shared fascinating advice about how she empowers her team to forge meaningful relationships with clients. By really thinking about each client’s needs, tailoring the approach accordingly and using technology to support these interactions, her team members develop lifelong client relationships.

PKF Global People Projects Lead Pattra Sutti spoke about network-wide secondment opportunities, while Michael O’Sullivan, Executive Director of Talent Formula, an outsourcing business that provides offshore talent services to accounting firms worldwide, explained the benefits of integrating professionals as remote team members.

The ideas explored throughout this session echoed discussions at the ASEAN Partners Meeting which took place before the conference. During the meeting, PKF-CAP’s Managing Partner Eng Kian Lee underlined the importance of empowering the region to work closely on global initiatives and to enhance collaboration.

Reflecting on this session, PKF Global CEO Theo Vermaak said, ‘Our speakers have highlighted the overarching principle that people are the very heart of our business. Our collective strength comes from working as a global community, growing and thriving together. Engaging and connecting with our people is critical to our success.’

Navigating the new age of sustainability

PKF O’Connor Davies partner Matthew Orrell supported the momentum ESG is gathering as a service line in our network. With years of experience of sustainability strategy and reporting, Matt is well placed to explore the significant business opportunities in this area. He also shared member success stories and identified ways our members can develop their own capabilities in sustainability.

Keeping the PKF promise of exceptional client service

Guest speaker Ross Stevenson, Group Head of Finance and Operations at DSGPay, a cross-Asia based fintech and client of multiple PKF firms, presented as part of our client experience stream. Ross described his experiences of working with PKF and his insights into how a client’s expectations of professional service providers have evolved over time. We loved hearing first-hand how our members unite to offer the best possible client service.

More than a brand: capturing the essence of what PKF means to you

This interactive session led by Clayton Hickey (partner at PKF Sydney & Newcastle), Kelvin Ma (partner at PKF Consulting (China)), Yun Chin Lee (partner at PKF Brunei) and Heather Newby (PKF Global Head of Communications) saw members share their experience of how staff and clients have embraced our new brand and how it reflects the values and culture of their firms.

It was a pleasure to hear feedback from our members, including the ways in which our rebrand has positively impacted their businesses. Alastair Lloyd, a director at PKF Kendons in New Zealand, said, ‘Adopting the new PKF brand has been a great success for us from a recruitment perspective. Candidates are drawn to the international opportunities we can offer as part of a global network. Our branding entices potential new recruits and sets us apart from other local firms.’

Be the change

In line with our other regional events, we replaced delegate gift bags at this event with a donation to a local charity. The nominated charity for this year’s Asia Pacific Gathering is the Foundation for Slum Child Care, an organisation which provides care and education to children from low-income backgrounds.

We welcomed Jitrapa Himathongkam, President of the Foundation for Slum Child Care, to our gathering and presented her with our donation of $4,700. Jitrapa talked about how refreshing it is to see corporates like PKF Global adapt their practices, doing away with non-essentials and instead making a real difference to others. She extended her heartfelt appreciation to our members, saying, ‘We thank PKF Global for helping us make this world a better place to live in.’

Thank you

Thank you to all our members, colleagues, speakers, event partners (Caseware and Xero) and event organisers who made our 2024 Asia Pacific Gathering such a resounding success.

Are you interested in joining a global community that unites, empowers and supports its leaders and members around the world? Find out more about PKF Global membership here.