Tell us a bit about your team. How big is it and how does it fit together?
I lead a global communications team of about 35 people across Canada, the US and Europe, to shape, promote and protect KPMG’s global reputation across a network of 276,000 people and 150 countries. We cover everything from media relations and issues management, to internal comms, social media, strategic storytelling and executive communications.
We operate like one connected team despite being scattered around the globe. We share ideas constantly, we experiment and we push each other to elevate how the firm shows up in the world.
Describe the culture of your team – how do you encourage it?
Culture has probably been the biggest focus for me since coming into this global role. I’ve talked a lot about 3 Cs: commerciality, creativity and collaboration.
In terms of commerciality, I’m a massive believer that the best comms teams need a really strong and robust understanding of the business and financials, so we’ve put a lot of effort into driving this – including encouraging colleagues to undertake commercial learning and embedding themselves in our business areas.
On the creativity side, we’ve had a big focus on reaching new audiences who help shape our reputation, and this year worked with influencers for the first time, which is a big leap for a professional services firm. I try to instill a culture in the team where we try new things and learn fast.
We also try to make space for fun and connection to drive collaboration. Every month on our global comms call, we have a ‘Who Is…’ segment where we shine a light on someone in the team in a fun and informal way – ‘two truths and a lie’ is one of our most popular segments. And this year we rolled out our first Global Communications Champions Awards, which gives us a chance to celebrate each other’s impact. From the unsung heroes to the ‘mission possible’ person on the team that makes everything happen, no matter what the challenge.
I’ve always been clear that I wanted to build a world-class communications team, which is only possible if we try things, learn together and, more importantly, we maintain a good sense of humour.
What do you most want people to know about where you work?
KPMG has been a big part of my career. I started here as their first ever marketing graduate trainee and I was told on day one that I was the ‘guinea pig’.
After eight years I went to HSBC to be its head of communications for its UK and European commercial bank, before being asked to return to KPMG in 2017. Since then I’ve held four senior communications and corporate affairs roles before being promoted to partner in 2023 – the first comms head to achieve this.
I’m often asked why I’ve spent such a significant portion of my career at KPMG. For me, it’s the constant variety, the challenges and amazing learning opportunities, alongside working with fantastic colleagues. We work with governments, regulators, NGOs and major global companies, so the exposure is incredible. We’ve been the fastest growing of the Big Four professional services firms globally for the last two years, and it’s been an exciting time to be part of that journey. No two days are alike and that keeps things interesting.
What’s unique or unusual about how you do comms? What should people know about the job you do?
I really care about building and developing people. I’ve worked with some amazing leaders over the years who have challenged, supported and empowered me, and this is my ethos for how I lead teams. I really believe that putting time and care into this brings out better performance. There’s nothing I love more than seeing someone in my team step out of their comfort zone and develop and grow.
I’m a big believer in being a leader who coaches. I know I don’t have all the answers, but I’m surrounded by incredibly smart and talented people, so coaching and enabling them to be the best they can be is a big and rewarding part of my job.
What do you do on a typical day?
I’m a morning person and also a news junkie, so the day always starts with an early morning scan of the media. If we’re in the headlines, that will often shape my day. I try to get to the gym a couple of mornings a week (it feels more like punishment than self-care) and take the kids to school when I can.
One of the things I like most about this job is the variety. In a single morning, I might be advising a member firm on a complex media issue, preparing our global leadership for flagship stages like Davos, coaching colleagues in the team and shaping the narrative for major global campaigns. The pace and breadth of the work is extraordinary.
At the end of the day, it’s usually balancing the kids’ bedtime routine and late calls from Eastern Time zone colleagues, before some trashy TV or a good book (I’m normally asleep by the end of page one).
Is there something you’ve worked on that you’re particularly proud of?
One of my favorite initiatives is Global Values Week. It’s our moment each year to unite colleagues across the network and reconnect with what matters most, and live our values in a real, tangible way.
At its heart is our global all-colleague broadcasts, where we’ve previously interviewed speakers like [former New Zealand prime minister] Jacinda Ardern and [business leadership expert] Simon Sinek.
It’s become a major cultural anchor at KPMG. It’s a simple idea with a big impact. And is a reminder that our values aren’t slogans. They’re how we show up for each other and our clients every single day.
What are the big issues you are facing in the medium and long term? What’s keeping you awake at night?
I think the role of communications and corporate affairs is becoming increasingly focused on ‘corporate diplomacy’ – helping our businesses navigate a very challenging world. Anticipating, reacting and responding to challenging issues is a big part of my job, and it would be a lie to say some of these don’t keep me awake at night. In all of this, it’s incredibly important that we take a long-term view and be calm, considered and thoughtful in how we act and respond.
Are you using AI? How? Help or hindrance?
AI has been a huge accelerator for us as a firm, and as a comms team. We’re building AI agents focused on leadership communications, drafting, editing and refining communications and research, which has freed up time for more strategic and creative work. On a personal level, Copilot is my new best (virtual) friend, and if you haven’t tried it, I highly recommend the prompt ‘roast my week’ to make you smile on a Friday.
What are your primary external communication channels? Is that changing?
We use the full range of traditional channels, but social – especially LinkedIn – has become a major space for us. Our people are our biggest advocates, so we do a lot of work to drive pride and engagement and encourage them to tell our story. Some of our leaders are now LinkedIn ‘Top Voices’, and that’s really helped us drive greater visibility and engagement with our audiences. We’re also increasingly using external channels like LinkedIn for internal comms and engagement – sharing internal messages and videos on LinkedIn to help us reach wider audiences and build reputation.
How do you track your reputation and measure what you do?
Trust is foundational for us. It’s woven into the firm’s strategy, reporting and decision-making.
To ensure we, as a global corporate affairs function, know exactly how to build and track trust, for the last five years we’ve run an annual Trust Survey across three audiences: C-Suite, informed public and wider stakeholders. We combine this survey with our Global People Survey data and a dynamic Global Trust Index, using publicly available and subscription-based data that measures media and social media trends to achieve an accurate picture of trust in real-time.
This lets us see how market events – good or bad – impact trust in KPMG over time and helps us focus our corporate affairs efforts.
Do you use agencies? What for?
Yes, we do. Our agencies give us great strategic counsel, challenge and feel like an extension of the team. We work closely to help them understand our business, and they bring fresh thinking and ideas to our work. We also have a number of our team members with agency backgrounds, which really gives us a strong blend of perspectives and ideas across the team.