The Accountancy Age 35 under 35, in partnership with AJ Chambers, seeks to highlight the rising stars of the accountancy profession, featuring those who have made great professional contributions to the field and their individual firms.
Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be announcing the full list of honourees. Today, we present the second wave of noteworthy professionals who made the Accountancy Age 35 under 35.
The full Accountancy Age 35 under 35 will be unveiled on June 25th, 2024.
Luke Quince, UK Head of Digital Delivery Services, Azets
Luke is a leader in cloud accounting, known for his innovative approach. Since starting his career in 2008, he has been instrumental in modernizing and streamlining accounting practices. As a Director at Azets, Luke has played a key role in technology adoption across the firm’s 60+ UK offices. He was an early advocate for cloud accounting and ensured clients’ compliance with MTD regulations, assisting over 2,000 clients in transitioning to modern, tech-driven workflows. By embracing AI and machine learning, he has helped clients optimize their time and efficiency.
In 2021, Luke completed his Prince2 project management qualification and led the standardization of procedures, training over 1,200 staff on a new platform during the global pandemic. His leadership facilitated collaboration and resource-sharing across the UK network, resulting in consistent efficiency gains and enabling Azets to offer additional advisory services.
Luke regularly shares his knowledge at client and internal events and speaks at accounting conferences, including DAS, Accountex, and Xerocon. His expertise has earned him seats on three advisory boards to help software providers shape the future of the accounting landscape.
In 2023, Luke was promoted to UK Head of Digital Delivery Services at Azets, where he oversees vendor relationships and leads the 160+ digital success team. Under his guidance, the team won the 2023 Digital Transformation award at the Accounting Excellence Awards and National Firm of the Year in 2023 and 2024 at the Xero Awards. Luke takes pride in his team’s client satisfaction, reflected in an NPS score of +66 within 18 months of establishing the service line.
James Kennedy, Deal Advisory Partners, Cowgills
Becoming a partner at a top 15 accountancy firm by the age of 33 is no mean feat, but James Kennedy’s desire to both achieve his goals and support his clients in achieving theirs was a challenge he was always going to succeed in.
Advising on over £500m of deal value during his short career, James has brought immeasurable value to Cowgills, both financially and in terms of team evolution and transformation. He’s played a pivotal role in the development of the Cowgills Deal Advisory team over the past six years.
James joined Cowgills in 2018 as one of just two people based in the Manchester office. Since this time, it has grown to a 30+ team, one of the largest Deal Advisory teams in the North West, which has subsequently led to the creation of Transaction Services and Debt Advisory to sit alongside Lead Advisory, Strategic Support and Research.
Whilst James has experience in a variety of businesses and industries, his key focus is the healthcare sector where he has advised on £300m of transaction value. Notable transactions include Community Health and Eyecare, Diagnostic Healthcare and supporting Pitalia Capital on their investment in Chemist4U. Other non-healthcare-based transactions include the JD Sports plc acquisition of a 60% stake in Total Swimming – owned by gold and bronze Olympic winning swimmers Rebecca Adlington and Stephen Parry respectively – which won ‘Best £10m-£50m Deal of the Year’ at North West Insider’s 2023 Dealmaker Awards.
As well as his impressive catalogue of clients, he has also been personally shortlisted for multiple awards, including Emerging Dealmaker at the North West Insider Awards and Rising Star at the Rainmaker Awards. After 13 years of professional services experience, we asked James why he loves what he does.
“Whether it’s working with owner managed businesses to help them achieve lifelong ambitions or supporting a client along their journey to maximise their longer-term potential, each job is exceptionally rewarding,” he said.
Tess Alexander, Associate Director, Gravita
Tess has been working at Gravita for the past seven years, demonstrating a commitment to excellence and leadership, resulting in four rapid promotions since qualifying with an ACA in 2020. She currently holds the role of Associate Director.
As an Assistant Manager, Tess personally secured two substantial audit clients, including a group that handles the distribution of music royalties for independent music companies. Through her efforts, this client became a significant audit account and entrusted Gravita with their R&D claims, reflecting the strength of the professional relationship she helped cultivate.
During her time at Gravita, Tess has continually contributed to enhancing operational efficiency through new technologies. She played an instrumental role in implementing a new digital audit management software called Inflo. Since starting to use the software in 2019, Tess was part of a five-member team that spearheaded its implementation, creating a manual for the rest of the team. Her leadership in the project was recognized with an internal award, underscoring the impact of her contributions.
Additionally, Tess received a second internal award after persevering and working with a difficult client to complete an audit just before a filing deadline. This award recognized her dedication and was given for going ‘above and beyond’ while showing care in her role.
Fred Norman, Head of Audit, Harold Sharp
Fred is fast becoming a notable figure in the audit sector. He rapidly advanced to Audit Senior Manager within five years at PwC, achieved his Responsible Individual (RI) status at 29, and is set to become Harold Sharp’s youngest shareholder.
Driven by his commitment to audit, Fred joined Harold Sharp as Head of Audit in November 2023 with the goal of achieving his RI status within 12 months. He accomplished this in April 2024, seven months ahead of schedule, demonstrating his deep understanding of auditing standards and ethics and his commitment to maintaining high-quality audit work.
In the past five months, Fred has doubled the size of the Harold Sharp audit team. His extensive knowledge of UK audit standards and his reputation for audit excellence have helped him build a strong pipeline of work to meet growing capacity. He leads significant audits, including the £25,000 audit of a network of 60Estate Agency franchise offices and the £100,000 group audit of 16 companies in the care industry. Recently, he secured two complex audits in the Charity sector, and has enhanced the firm’s reputation as a trusted component auditor.
Fred also focuses on fostering a culture of continuous learning at Harold Sharp. He develops training sessions and materials to support his team’s professional growth, ensuring they stay current with audit methodologies.
Committed to improving processes for audit efficiency and client service, Fred conducted a comprehensive review of internal procedures upon joining Harold Sharp. He led the transition to cloud-based audit software to improve communication, data security, and efficiency, and is continually exploring ethical AI solutions to streamline tasks and allow for more strategic work.
Fred’s technical expertise, drive to innovate, and dedication to the audit profession make him a role model in the accounting and audit space. He is committed to shaping the future of audit and is an exemplary figure in his field.
George Suthon, Senior Manager, KPMG
Recognising his expertise, George was recruited to join the central Department for Professional Practice, where he has applied his practical fieldwork experiences to develop audit methodologies and tools. He has been integral to creating a series of new materials issued to auditors to support the effective and consistent delivery of high-quality work.
These materials have been so successful that many have been adopted for use internationally across the global network. George’s ability to distil complex topics into digestible messages, along with his adaptability, was also demonstrated in his creation of materials to support the audit of IFRS 9 for non-banking corporate entities.
Despite his various roles, George has maintained his connection to delivering audits and has received excellent feedback from colleagues across various levels for his ability to provide insightful challenge and support. His peers appreciate his mix of technical expertise and practical understanding of challenges.
In addition to his core responsibilities, George takes on several broader roles. Notably, he was invited to sit on the Audit Evolution Board, composed of emerging leaders from across the business who shadow the Audit Executive. He also serves as a People Leader to a department of over 100 individuals.
Graham Gardner, Audit Quality Director, Kreston Reeves
From a young age, computers have been an integral part of Graham’s life. His early fascination with PowerPoint animations evolved into a passion for programming, leading to 20 years of experience as both a hobbyist and semi-professional programmer, including three years as a lecturer. This extensive background in technology significantly informs his approach as an auditor.
Graham’s enthusiasm for audit, combined with his technical expertise, has defined his career. He has spent his entire post-qualification career in technical roles, previously within a Big4 firm until January 2024. As an audit subject matter expert, he supported thousands of engagement teams on audit-related queries and oversaw the audit technical helpline. Graham’s unique skill set bridges the gap between audit and technology, enabling him to integrate conceptual knowledge with practical implementation to enhance quality and efficiency.
In his prior role at KPMG, Graham developed the firm’s policy for evaluating and accrediting technology solutions, applied to over 100 tools. He was a key contributor to the global network’s accreditation policy and advised firms worldwide on managing risks associated with audit technology. He also established the firm’s quality standards for standardized work papers, focusing on usability, reliability, and accessibility, which were applied to over 400 work papers and are still in use today.
Additionally, Graham played a pivotal role in the network’s implementation of AI-empowered audit software and led the design and development of the firm’s internal generative AI virtual assistant, winning the firm’s innovation competition in 2023. His commitment to inclusivity led to the creation of tools to support staff with dyslexia, and he built an automated staff allocation tool, saving administrative staff several hundred hours annually.
At Kreston Reeves, Graham has continued to drive innovation. He developed an automated sampling tool and wrote and implemented a fraud detection methodology for AI in journal entry testing. His blend of technical proficiency and audit expertise positions him as a leader in his field, consistently driving improvements and efficiencies in audit practices.
Isla MacGillivray, Partner, Saffery
Isla qualified as a chartered accountant in 2015 and joined Saffery the same year. Isla became a Partner in 2022 at the age of 32, the youngest Saffery Partner at the time, and quickly rose to Head of Saffery’s London Film and TV Group two years later. At the point of becoming Partner, Isla managed the largest client portfolio at Saffery, alongside holding key team roles (staff manager and client service champion).
She provides specialist financial, accounting, audit and taxation advice to a range of clients, from small independent British film producers to the largest UK and Hollywood studios, streamers and developers across film, TV and video games. Isla is one of the very few people who specialise in all three major creative sector tax reliefs.
She has worked on countless very large and well-known feature films, TV shows and video games including Star Wars, Silo and Fall Guys. Isla has lectured extensively, both at home and abroad, at various industry events, including at Cannes Film Festival, Content London, FOCUS, MOVE Summit and EGX. She has given many presentations, including those hosted by the British Film Council, Women in Film and TV, The Production Guild, Northern Ireland Screen, Screen Scotland, Animation UK, Animation Scotland which over the past year have focused on the new AVEC & VGEC legislation.
Since the creative industries consultation was published in November 2022, Isla has been a key member of the Saffery team dealing with the consultation responses as well as attending and participating in round table discussions with key industry stakeholders, meetings with HMRC & Treasury and being part of the Saffery working group dealing with the technical issues that arise from the new legislation. As part of this consultation process, Isla has given numerous presentations at events and for industry bodies to help those across the industry gain an understanding of the new legislation and key changes.
Isla has been staff manager since April 2018 then staff partner since April 2022. She was instrumental in leading recruitment for the firm’s Film and TV team which has grown in headcount from 58 to 91, a 57% increase in just over two years since she become staff partner. In the same period, staff turnover has more than halved. Isla is a mentor to several of her colleagues and has become a role model to others within the team.
Jonathon Dickens, Partner, SMH Group
Jonathon joined SMH in 2005 as a trainee. At the time, SMH was a small practice with 8 staff, who had just opened a small second office.
After his AAT, he completed ACA in 2013. In 2014 at the age of 26, he was made a partner (1 of 3) in the practice. In 2017, the Senior Partner decided to retire which resulted in a management buyout between Jonathon and the other remaining partner. At this time, SMH had 23 staff members, 3 offices and 2 partners.
2017 was a pivotal moment for the business & Jonathon’s career. With the previous Senior Partner gone, SMH set an ambitious growth plan to become one of the top 100 firms in the country. The plan was substantial organic growth, acquisitions & diversification. Fast forward to today, SMH have hugely exceeded their expectations – SMH Group ranked 86th in Accountancy Age’s 50+50 for 2023 and have grown much further since then. Jonathon has been absolutely integral to this and is now the driving force behind the business.
Over the 7 years since 2017, Jonathon has negotiated 10 acquisitions, including the structure of the deals, term, numbers, timing etc which culminated in all deals going through as planned.
Along with this, SMH has opened additional service offerings, with Residential Mortgages and Commercial Finance departments established in 2019 & 2020. The above achievements have seen the firm achieve over 1000% revenue growth since 2017. SMH now sit as one of the largest multi-disciplinary firms in the region with circa 150 staff members & 10 offices.
With Jonathon’s ambition and drive, along with the hard working staff & Partners, SMH have gone from a relatively unknown, small firm, to a large regional player.
More recently SMH has started to support it’s local sports teams in a very large way, supporting Rugby, Cricket, Swimming, Golf & Football teams. The most exciting being the sponsorship of Chesterfield FC’s stadium – ‘The SMH Group Stadium’ which is Jonathon’s home town club.
Jonathon is a very well-respected businessman and Chartered Accountant with experience way beyond his years.
Tom Bradbury, Corporate Finance Director, Wilson Partners
Tom is a chartered accountant who qualified in audit at EY, achieving first-time passes on all exams. During his five years at EY, he obtained his qualification in the first three years and advanced to the position of manager over the next two. Tom worked across a varied portfolio of clients, including Hewlett Packard Inc. and Cape plc, managing audits and leading complex aspects such as US revenue recognition and industrial disease (asbestos) provisions.
During his time at EY, Tom supported the integration of data analytics into audits, becoming an office ‘champion’ and point of contact for various tools available. He also supported and later led annual “pass the baton” sessions, which were full-day sessions for each intake across their first three years to introduce and prepare them for their coming year.
In 2017, Tom joined HMT LLP, a boutique corporate finance advisory firm, to pursue a career in corporate finance. He performed and led financial due diligence across transactions of varying sizes and sectors, predominantly for both private equity and corporate clients. In 2019, he moved to Wilson Partners Ltd. as a senior manager to help build the due diligence team and support lead advisory mandates, presenting a new and exciting challenge.
Tom has now been at Wilson Partners for five and a half years, progressing to a Director role, leading a team of nine, and spearheading internal corporate finance training delivery. The team currently performs up to 40 due diligence assignments a year across various sectors for private equity, corporate, and high-net-worth clients. He has also led two MBOs and a multi-million debt refinancing for recurring clients.
In 2021, Wilson Partners secured investment to pursue a buy-and-build strategy, resulting in five offices across the UK and one South Africa. In 2022, Tom was invited to become a shareholder of the company.
Tom is committed to driving the overall growth of Wilson Partners and aims to establish it as a top 20 accountancy firm in the UK. His ambition is to continue leading and driving sustainable growth across the Transaction Services and M&A teams while building and strengthening strong relationships across his professional network.
Dominick Knight, Corporate Services Director, Ensors Accountants
Dominick joined Ensors as a recently qualified audit senior at the end of 2016. Technically very strong, with a commitment to delivering and a passion for building relationships with clients he quickly progressed. In 2022 he took on sole responsibility for managing the Ipswich audit team in very challenging circumstances. With long term expansion plans, but short term staffing issues and resource constraints, there was strategic focus on the addition and development of students.
Understanding the need for a new way of working to deliver this, Dominick devised and led an initiative to lower the grading required to line manage students and opened the opportunity up to those that wanted to. This reduced the ratio of students per manager, delivering better training and mentoring to fast-track development. This also gave the opportunity for more responsibility and progression which has encouraged retention.
Dominick puts faith in those around him and strives to ensure they have the support needed to thrive. He began delegating more responsibility, creating a management team which focused on people, culture and development to build a group capable of meeting their own, and the firm’s, objectives. Several new ideas were brought to fruition, including regular bite-size practical training.
The new management structure and initiatives have helped to navigate change, preserve the Ensors ethos, meet existing client needs and create the platform for growth. Since Dominick took responsibility for the audit team in Ipswich, the head count he’s ultimately responsible for has increased by around 50% to 41 people. Following the success, other offices have also introduced earlier line management.
Dominick has worked tirelessly during these challenging last couple of years, always available to offer technical support and discuss work planning to solve problems. His positivity, enthusiasm and willingness to do what it takes to help have inspired and gained trust from his peers.
In addition to overseeing the team, Dominick retains a portfolio including some of the firms largest and most high-profile audit clients. Also heavily involved with recruitment and growth of the client portfolio, he understands the need to balance adding to the client base with available resources to protect the positive working environment. He is certainly used to a juggling act and values work-life balance; married with 4 children he is equally busy outside of work!