He was elected by the firm’s 334 equity partners and will take over the top job when Eagland's term ends in September as BDO heads towards the £1bn revenue target. 

Shaw, 53, has been a partner at BDO since 2006 and is currently head of business restructuring. He joined the firm in 2000 from Moore Stephens where he was also a partner. He has been a member of the senior leadership team since 2008 and a member of the firm’s advisory executive and quality & risk executive. 

Shaw will take up the new role on 1 October 2024, succeeding Eagland, who will have completed his maximum of two four-year terms as managing partner. Since his election in 2016, Eagland has overseen the firm more than double in size. 

Eagland, who is 58, has not confirmed his future plans, and BDO said he ‘could stay with us as others have before or move on... he'll update us of his decision when he’s ready’.

When Eagland started in 2016, revenue was £405m, and by FY2023, this was up by 131% to £935m for FY2023.

The golden target of annual revenue of £1bn is now very much in sight as the firm reported 16% growth for the last financial year. BDO is now 50% larger than Grant Thornton, a significant change since Eagland’s appointment when BDO trailed Grant Thornton in fifth place in the Top 75 Firms Survey.

One of the most significant developments of Eagland’s tenure was the 2019 merger with Moore Stephens which saw a £138m boost to BDO’s financial position and cemented the firm’s ranking as the fifth largest accounting and audit firm in the UK after the Big Four.

Over his time in office partner numbers have increased from 244 to 441, while total staff numbers have more than doubled from 3,000 to 7,000.

Eagland remains in position as managing partner until the end of September and will work closely with Shaw and senior partner, Matthew White, to ensure a smooth transition in leadership for the business and its people. 

Mark Shaw, managing partner elect at BDO UK, said: ‘BDO is an incredible firm, occupying a very specific market position. We have much to be proud of from our journey to today, as a near £1billion UK firm. This is a time to build on our heritage, whilst looking to our future.’

He takes on the role at an exciting time for BDO. The firm, which has 17 offices across the UK and employs 7,500 people, is fast approaching the £1bn revenue milestone. Last year BDO invested £120m back into the business – the largest annual investment in the firm’s 100-year history - with people, quality and future high-growth services at the centre of its investment strategy. 

Shaw added: ‘I look forward to working with our talented partners and colleagues to achieve balanced growth over the coming years, which puts serving the public interest, doing the right thing, culture and wellbeing at its heart.’

With less than five months to go, Eagland said: ‘The next few years will undoubtedly bring more opportunities and developments in our market. I have every confidence that, under Mark’s leadership, the firm and its 7,500 people will continue to grow and succeed.  

‘This, combined with the strength and resilience of our core market of entrepreneurial, mid-sized businesses, gives us something unique in the market and something to be incredibly proud of. It’s exciting to be able to pass the baton of a firm in good shape and with huge prospects.’