Awards 2006: BDO Stoy Hayward – Global firm of the year
Accountancy Age Awards 2006 winner: BDO Stoy Hayward – Global firm of the year
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Winner of the 2005 award for Large Firm of the Year, BDO Stoy Hayward has
excelled itself to take this year’s Global Firm of the Year Award.
The award marks the culmination of a year of organic growth one that has
seen the firm’s fee income increase by 21% to £275m (for the year ending 30 June
2006) following an identical rise in fee income (21%) for the previous year.
Operating profit has likewise increased a 14% hike pushed it up to £70m.
BDO’s declared ambition is to become the preferred alternative to the Big
Four and to provide an all-round service to clients, recognising that clients
want advisers from a range of business and accounting disciplines.
The firm has won 4,000 new clients over the past 12 months, made inroads into
the FTSE350 for audit work, and acted as reporting accountant on more flotations
on the AIM exchange than any other accountancy firm outside the Big Four.
The firm’s audit and corporate finance divisions both contributed strongly to
its overall results, with a 25% increase in audit fees and a 21% hike in
corporate finance fees.
To keep growing, the firm has pursued a policy of focusing on large corporate
clients as well as investing in a huge recruitment drive. BDO boosted staffing
at its Birmingham office by 20%, for instance, and across its business it is
currently taking on more than a person a day. In July, the firm appointed 13 new
partners, all internal promotions.
The judges applauded BDO’s transformation. They said: ‘This entry stood out a
mile in the accounting arena, and they demonstrated that this was the firm that
had progressed the most over the year. Clearly, it is a very well-oiled
machine.’
BDO takes particular pride in its record as an employer. The firm won the
Accountancy Age Employer of the Year Award in 2004 and 2005 and this year it
came 19th in the Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For list. In the firm’s
2005 staff survey, 80% of respondents said working for BDO provided
opportunities for growth and development, and 92% said they believed the
management executive had a clear vision for the future.
BDO’S DIVERSITY PROGRAMME
According to the 2005 results of the firm’s annual staff survey, BDO’s people
benefit from an active commitment to diversity in theworkplace: 84% of
respondents believed that managers actively encouraged an inclusive culture, and
the firm aims to attract and retain a diverse workforce that reflects its
community. Tax partner Emma Howard has responsibility for sponsoring diversity
within the firm.