Deloitte

Summary

It may lag PricewaterhouseCoopers in revenues with annual earnings of £ 1.5bn, but Deloitte has always been regarded as the most profitable of the Big Four firms.

Led by its bold and headstrong chief executive and senior partner John Connolly, the firm has expanded rapidly since 2002, mainly thanks to the audacious acquisition of the UK arm of Arthur Andersen, which at the time was undergoing a global meltdown because of its involvement in the collapse of Enron.

In the midst of the Enron chaos, which saw its competitors abandon their consulting businesses with stunning alacrity as conflict-of-interest fears escalated, Deloitte barely flinched and has openly run its consulting business with little disruption.

Indeed Deloitte has never been far from the spotlight and has developed a reputation for it aggressive business style, substantial staff salaries and uncompromising support of partners in times of difficulty.

The firm provided unwavering backing to former chairman Martin Scicluna when he faced complaints from the profession's Joint Disciplinary Scheme over the audit of Capital Corporation. All complaints against Scicluna were dismissed.

Connolly's salary is another headline grabber. Almost always the highest paid accountant in practice, Connolly earned £4.1m in 2006.

The firm is now firmly focused on revenue growth, with Connolly setting an ambitious target of cracking the £2bn revenue mark by 2008, a target that could see Deloitte surpass PwC in the revenue rankings.

History

The Deloitte of on the 21st century can trace its roots back to August 1990 when Spicer & Oppenheim merged with Touche Ross & Co. According to respected accounting historian Peter the new firm, operating as Touche Ross & Co, changed its name to Deloitte & Touche in February 1996.

Approximately a year after the Andersen deal, the firm decided to operate under the Deloitte brand although legally it is still named Deloitte & Touche.

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