Embedding our Purpose and Values in everything we do


Trust is foundational to our business – and this can only be earned by acting in ways aligned to our Purpose and Values. We are committed to always acting with a clear purpose, with our Values guiding our culture, the decisions we make, the work that we do and the way we behave.

Our ambition is to drive sustainable growth across our business and to be the most trusted and trustworthy professional services organisation that successfully delivers to all our stakeholders – including our clients, our people, and the communities we operate in. It’s an ongoing process that we are fully dedicated to.

Our Purpose - Inspire Confidence. Empower Change.

Our Values - 

Integrity

We do what is right

Excellence

We never stop learning and improving

Courage

We think and act boldly

Together

We respect each other and draw strength from our differences.

For Better

We do what matters


Governance and accountability


Our governance creates the framework to drive purposeful activity. We remain vigilant in regularly reviewing our operations so they are aligned with the standards expected by our stakeholders and the Australian community.


Some key advances include:
 

  • Enhancing our public accountability through the annual publication of Our Impact Plan, where we report on 21 public commitments around governance, people, planet and prosperity. We are preparing our report in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards.
  • Increasing the number of independent directors appointed to our Board from two to three.
  • Increasing transparency, such as being the first Australian partnership to commit to publishing executive remuneration on an annual basis and publicly releasing our Partnership Agreement.


We continue to reflect on our own operations and challenge ourselves to do more to strengthen trust through a forward-looking action plan. Further information on our continuous improvement journey can be read here.

KPMG Australia is part of a global organisation of independent professional services firms, with more than 270,000 partners and employees working in member firms spanning over 140 countries and territories around the world.

KPMG International has set out strong governance for overseeing member firm activities around the world, setting policies and aligning our strategy with our Purpose. The Global Board is the principal governance and oversight body for KPMG International and currently consists of 24 members from across KPMG’s global network. KPMG Australia is represented on the KPMG Global Board by our National Chairman.

Detailed information on KPMG International’s structure, leadership and governance can be found on Governance – KPMG Global.

KPMG Australia is led by Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Yates. The CEO leads the firm’s principal management body, the National Executive Committee. The management of the firm is overseen by our National Board.

Individual Office Chairs provide leadership at a local level.

Justin Jamieson - South Australia Carmel Mortell - Victoria
Michael Hiller - Queensland Trevor Hart - Western Australia
Andrew Spong - Australian Capital Territory Doug Ferguson - New South Wales
Paul Green - Tasmania  


KPMG Australia’s governance arrangements are set in part by our membership of KPMG International and the associated rights, responsibilities and obligations of our network arrangements.

In addition, we are bound by all relevant regulations applicable to a professional services firm in Australia, and the KPMG Fiji and Papua New Guinea (PNG) member firms which operate in the South Pacific Practice are likewise bound by relevant regulations in their jurisdictions. KPMG offers a range of services subject to specific regulatory requirements, including audit, tax, advisory, engineering, property, insolvency and restructuring, sustainability reporting, data security, forensic services, and our client-facing legal practice KPMG Law to name a few.


National Board


The National Board is the principal governance body for KPMG Australia. It is responsible for oversight and monitoring of the firm’s management to drive growth and long-term prosperity of the firm while engendering trust from the firm’s partners, people, clients, and the wider community.

The Board approves and oversees execution of the firm’s strategy and ensures there are rigorous processes in place for identifying and managing risk and reputational matters, including the firm’s impacts on people, planet, and prosperity. The National Board Charter sets out the terms of reference for the National Board of the KPMG Australia Partnership.

The Board reviews the firm’s commitments, strategies and goals on sustainable development and receives regular updates on progress against Our Impact Plan commitments and associated action plans and targets, such as our Climate Action Plan, our Climate Risk report and approving Our Impact Plan Scorecard annually.

Importantly, there is separation of the Board and management. We believe this is fundamental for the appropriate oversight and holding to account of the CEO and the firm’s key management body, the National Executive Committee (NEC), on all aspects of performance. As such, the National Chairman is not part of the firm’s executive.

The National Board comprises of our Chairman, the CEO, seven elected members and up to three independent members. The Chairman is responsible for leading the National Board, ensuring it meets its responsibilities of upholding the highest professional standards of governance, quality and integrity, and the overall strategic positioning of the firm. The National Chairman represents the firm both locally and internationally. Market-facing responsibilities include regular engagement with external stakeholders such as regulators, governments and clients.

The role of National Chairman is elected, voted on by the firm’s partners. Each term of office is three years, for a maximum of two terms. Martin Sheppard is our National Chairman, effective from 1 September 2023.

The principal governance document of the firm is our Partnership Agreement, which is overseen by the Board. In July 2023 we publicly released our Partnership Agreement, which can be read in full here.

The Partnership Agreement provides guidance on the nomination, selection processes and composition of the Board, including that is has representation from across the firm in terms of gender and diversity, the geographical location and size of the offices, and the various service lines of the firm. It also requires the Board has the range of skills ordinarily expected of the governing body of a large commercial business.

Independents
Over the past six years, our experience has been that independent Board members play an important role in strengthening our governance by imparting contemporary external perspectives and challenging existing approaches. Our Partnership Agreement allows the appointment of up to three Board members who are not Partners of the firm.

Independent appointed Board members are appointed by the Board on the recommendation of the National Chairman. Key considerations include any identified gaps in the Board’s collective skills, along with the individual’s standing in the community and breadth of experience. Potential independent appointed Board members are assessed by the firm’s Ethics & Independence team for the purposes of auditor independence requirements and resolution of any issues identified, including any actual or perceived conflicts of interest. Independent appointed Board members have ongoing independence compliance obligations and are required to submit an annual Declaration of Independence.

Elected
The balance of Board members is drawn from and elected by the firm’s partners. Annual renewal of National Board membership is an important feature of our governance model and contributes to a balanced Board composition, matching fresh ideas and diverse perspectives with continuity and stability.

A Conflicts of Interest register is maintained for Board members, and conflicts of interest are an agenda item for consideration at the commencement of every Board meeting.

The KPMG Australia Board comprises the National Chairman, CEO and 10 other members – including the
three independent Board directors:

The performance of the National Board and its Committees is reviewed biennially. The method of review and extent of each review is a matter determined by the Board, including whether the review is conducted by internal or external governance experts.

The Board maintains a National Board Skills Matrix setting out the collective skills, expertise and experience considered necessary to effectively govern the firm. The National Board Skills Matrix includes skills and competencies relevant to the firm’s people, planet and prosperity impacts. The Board completes a skills assessment to ensure a balanced and expert Board. Board elections for internal Partner candidates seek to close any skills gaps.

Our Partnership Agreement permits the Board to delegate its duties and powers and to appoint supporting Committees as appropriate. Board Committees support the Board in discharging its responsibilities, inform its decision-making and enhance Board effectiveness with detailed consideration of complex matters undertaken by each Committee and recommendations made to the Board. Committees draw on the expertise of our elected and appointed Board members with membership reviewed annually.

Our Board Committees and their remit reflect the governance of issues and critical concerns that are escalated to them. In 2023, we completed a refresh of our Board Committees and Committee Charters, including the establishment of a new Governance, Regulation & Compliance Committee.

Committee membership is reviewed annually following the Board member election, and membership is determined giving consideration to the skills and capacity of individual Board members.

Audit, Finance & Risk Committee

The Audit, Finance & Risk Committee assists the Board in its oversight of the firm’s financial reporting systems, the integrity of all externally reported financial information and all significant commercial arrangements.

This Committee further supports the Board with its oversight of the effectiveness of the firm’s Enterprise-wide Risk Management Framework, the Firm’s Risk Appetite Statement and Risk Profile. The Committee has a role in the oversight of Partner remuneration, ensuring the process for allocation of the Profit Pool is administered fairly and equitably.

The Audit, Finance & Risk Committee comprises five members – four elected Board members and one independent appointed Board member.

Audit Quality Committee

The Audit Quality Committee supports the National Board with its oversight of the firm’s audit quality strategy, culture, investment plan and compliance with our system of quality management.

This Committee oversees, monitors, and provides independent challenge to the firm’s External Audit functions to ensure that the firm discharges its public interest obligations in relation to financial statement audit quality to key stakeholders such as regulators, as well as to those entities which it audits, and employees in our External Audit function.

The Audit Quality Committee comprises four members – three elected Board members and one independent appointed Board member.

Governance, Regulation & Compliance Committee

The Governance, Regulation & Compliance Committee assists the Board in fulfilling its responsibilities to the partnership on matters relating to the firm’s governance practices, its regulatory, professional and contractual compliance obligations, conflicts of interest, ethics and independence, culture and conduct, stakeholder engagement and the firm’s social licence to operate and sustainability performance.

The Governance, Regulation & Compliance Committee comprises three elected Board members.

The Board Nomination Committee

The Board Nomination Committee assists the Board in fulfilling its responsibilities to the Partnership on: matters relating to the composition and effective operation of the Board; the process for appointment or election of individuals to the Board (including the National Chair election process); remuneration frameworks for key leadership roles (including Board and CEO); oversight of the firm’s succession planning process for senior leadership roles and composition of the partnership.

The Board Nomination Committee comprises five members – the National Chairman, one elected Board member, the Chair of the Partner Remuneration & Nominations Committee, one independent appointed Board member, and one non-voting member - the Firm’s National Managing Partner, People & Inclusion.

National Chairman

The National Chairman is responsible to the National Board and Partners for promoting and representing the firm nationally and internationally and maintaining the high public profile of the firm. The National Chairman has a strategic program of engagement through a range of forums, including our Board Leadership Centre, with clients, media, regulators, government, industry and business associations and community organisations.

The National Chairman shares insights and reflections from stakeholder and marketplace engagement with the Board at each Board meeting, with Partners in Quarterly Partner Meetings and 1:1 meetings. The National Chairman has regular engagement with staff through town halls and smaller group interactions, such as through in-person Director Connect sessions held twice a year.

Board members

All elected members of the National Board are Partners of the firm and have client responsibilities that mean they connect regularly with clients, industry bodies and associations and have their own community involvement. Appointed independent Board members serve on other boards and have connections into various stakeholder groups.

A practice of the current Board is for individual Board members to share insights and reflections from their stakeholder engagement. This is not a formalised process, rather a practice that the current National Chairman instigated on his appointment to the role of National Chairman.
 


National Executive Committee (NEC)


Under KPMG Australia’s Partnership Agreement, the National Board appoints a CEO to manage the firm and its impacts.

The CEO is the most senior executive charged with responsibility for effectively managing the firm against the firm’s strategy, plans and policies as approved by the National Board; and the implementation of regulatory and risk management procedures across the business.

Andrew Yates is KPMG Australia’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), a position he has held since 1 July 2021. In March 2024, following a rigorous process that included an independent external assessment and a review of performance on a range of metrics, Andrew Yates was reappointed CEO by the National Board for a second term of three years, to 30 June 2027. The CEO leads the firm’s principal management body, the National Executive Committee (NEC).

From 1 July 2024.

The National Board meets approximately 8–12 times per year and the CEO provides a written and verbal update at each meeting on the management and administration of the firm aligned to the execution of the firm’s strategy.

The CEO’s report to the National Board is aligned to the firm’s strategy and includes updates on financial performance, people and inclusion, corporate citizenship, climate action and other commitments linked to KPMG Australia’s Our Impact Plan. The report provides updates on progress against targets and how the firm is managing its impacts.

In addition, individual NEC members appointed with responsibility for the management of impacts, for example on people (the National Managing Partner, People & Inclusion), or the environment (the Chief Operating Officer and Head of Corporate Affairs), are called on to report to the Board (or its Committees) on specific matters relevant to their area of focus.

Our CEO-appointed Chief Purpose Officer, Richard Boele, and team continue to play a critical role in decisions made by the firm around its impacts in relation to our Purpose and Values.

Acting lawfully, ethically and in the public interest


We are committed to the highest standards of personal and professional behaviour in everything we do.

KPMG Australia is subject to an extensive but often fragmented framework of obligations. Contractual frameworks set by our clients define their expectations and requirements, and are further supported by regulatory and legal obligations, professional standards and codes, and commitments to professional bodies.

Our people are also required to comply with KPMG’s Global Code of Conduct and to meet the expectations of the communities in which we operate. Our Code of Conduct clearly states that we don’t tolerate illegal or unethical behaviour within KPMG or from clients, suppliers or public officials that we work with.

As members of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ), all KPMG partners are subject to Accounting Professional & Ethical Standards (APES) 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (APES 110), which is issued by the APES Board. KPMG personnel also play an active role as members of a diverse number of other professional associations, many of which have clear expectations of the conduct of their members. As such, our people are subject to extensive regulations, requirements and codes of conduct that require us to maintain high levels of integrity.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is responsible for assessing compliance with and enforcing accounting and audit standards. When completing audits of entities subject to the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), auditors are legally obliged to comply with APES 110. ASIC inspects KPMG’s Australian firm annually.

ASIC is also the regulator of the financial services industry and assesses the applications made to procure an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL). KPMG, via two of its corporate entities, holds AFSLs enabling the operation and activities of its financial services businesses.

Our audit practice is registered with the US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and with Japanese, Canadian, Luxembourg, UK and German authorities. This is necessary to either participate in audits of global clients or conduct audits of Australian clients who, owing to overseas stock exchange listing requirements, file financial statements in those jurisdictions. The PCAOB inspects KPMG Australia every three years.

Tax and Business Activity Statement (BAS) agents are subject to the regulatory oversight of the Australian Taxation Office and TPB. All legal practitioners are also subject to the oversight of regulatory bodies such as the legal services commissioners, which operate in states and territories. The Uniform Law and Rules set out the framework within which many of our legal practitioners must operate. Our people are also subject to international standards and regulatory regimes where our work extends beyond Australia.


Risk governance

KPMG Australia has a centralised Risk function, and partners with risk responsibilities report to the Chief Risk Officer, who is part of the NEC. Every year, the NEC participates in a facilitated process to identify and assess the key risks which may impact the achievement of the firm’s strategic objectives. This year, we also implemented a new Governance, Regulation & Compliance Board Committee to further strengthen our approach to risk.

Our firm also adheres to the Global firm’s Client and Engagement Acceptance and Continuance (CEAC) policies and processes which are designed to help KPMG firms identify and evaluate potential risks, including relevant ESG risks, prior to accepting or continuing a client relationship or performing a specific engagement.


Managing independence

Auditor independence requirements are enshrined in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and APES 110. As an external audit firm, we must continually reinforce the critical importance of auditor independence and be mindful not only of actual conflicts of interest, but also of the perception of conflicts of interest.

At KPMG, we have prescribed policies, procedures and guidance, combining Australian and international regulatory, independence and ethical requirements. All our partners and client service professionals must complete independence training upon joining the firm, and annually thereafter. We also require our people to complete an annual confirmation stating that they have remained in compliance with such requirements during the previous year.

We continue to strengthen our existing governance and risk management processes to help ensure that the decisions we make and the work that we do align with our Purpose and Values.

KPMG's Global Code of Conduct

Our people are required to comply with KPMG’s Global Code of Conduct and to meet the expectations of the communities in which we operate. Our Code of Conduct clearly states that we don’t tolerate illegal or unethical behaviour within KPMG or from clients, suppliers or public officials that we work with.

The Code of Conduct applies throughout all the firm’s activities and business relationships and is integrated and referred to within relevant strategies, action plans, policies, procedures and mandatory training.


Working against corruption

Along with our KPMG’s Global Code of Conduct, our anti-bribery and corruption program is designed to ensure we uphold the highest standards of professional integrity. This includes detailed policies applicable to all KPMG firms and their personnel, as well as training, compliance procedures and an international whistleblowing hotline.


Managing conflicts

Within KPMG, conflicts of interest principally fall within one of the following four categories:

  • external audit independence-related conflicts of interest
  • adversarial conflicts of interest
  • competing party conflicts of interest, and;
  • commercial conflicts.


KPMG’s Commercial Conflicts Resolution Committee (CCRC) is responsible for reviewing, maintaining oversight of, and making decisions relating to, but not limited to, commercial conflicts, including proposed engagements, communications, or expressions of thought leadership likely to detrimentally impact our relationship with one or more of our clients.

Our policies and procedures include assessing existing or potential conflicts of interest and risk – including reputational, human rights and environmental considerations – through our client and engagement processes and systems. Our people are prompted in our systems to consider whether an opportunity has the potential to give rise to a potential commercial conflict. Such matters are directed to a Risk Management Partner (or delegate) for review and assessment, and where required, the CCRC for consideration.

Prospective clients or engagements with conflicts of interest that cannot be eliminated or safeguarded to an acceptable level (e.g. through the implementation of system information barriers and ethical divider memorandums) are rejected under our policies.


Ethical culture

The Board and NEC play integral roles in the delivery of our firm's culture program, overseeing our objectives and progress. We continue to strengthen our speak up culture through a range of initiatives, complementing our existing speak up channels, which include our People & Inclusion team, Ethics and Independence Partner, Chief Risk Officer, General Counsel and our independently operated KPMG International whistleblower hotline.

We recognise that building and maintaining a strong ethical culture is an ongoing process.

Please see Our Impact Plan for more information on these initiatives.

We continue to strive to meet the standards expected of us by the public.

Read our latest Our Impact Plan for further information on:

  • our interactions with government
  • public policy engagement
  • our response to the Treasury review
  • our participation in parliamentary inquiries
  • our transparency journey
  • political donations.

Our people, clients and other stakeholders entrust us with sensitive data and information. We continue to strengthen the policies, processes, controls, training, and capabilities needed to protect our data from unauthorised access and disclosure or any use beyond the original intent.

KPMG Australia has policies, processes, and governance structures in place to uphold data and information protection, privacy and security. The importance of maintaining client confidentiality is emphasised through KPMG global policies on information security, confidentiality, personal information and data privacy, in addition to specific KPMG Australia policies.

Read our latest Our Impact Plan for further information on:

  • how we manage data and cyber risks
  • how we build capability and awareness.

KPMG Australia is committed to respecting human rights in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, building on our longstanding support for the United Nations Global Compact.

We expect high standards of human rights performance across our people, operations and supply chain and recognise our influence and impact as a professional services firm on the human rights of a range of stakeholders. We are committed to doing what matters by identifying and understanding our impacts, mitigating negative impacts and enhancing positive ones.

In addition to the KPMG International Business and Human Rights Statement, KPMG Australia has a dedicated Human Rights Policy which is supported by a strong governance structure led by our firm’s Human Rights Working Group. KPMG Australia’s Chief Risk Officer and Chief Operating Officer continue to be active participants in, and executive sponsors of, the working group throughout the year.

Human rights are a component of our due diligence procedures included in our Global Quality & Risk Management and People & Inclusion policies.

KPMG Australia’s approach to identifying and managing the risk of modern slavery is led by our firm’s Human Rights Working Group, which is co-sponsored by the firm’s Chief Risk Officer and Chief Operating Officer. The Human Rights Working Group collaborates with a dedicated Human Rights Manager to implement a comprehensive multi-year modern slavery response.

For further information, view our Modern Slavery Statement.