Crowe UK has appointed its first chief operating officer, Roger Walker, to lead on operational efficiency and drive transformation as a key member of the leadership team. He is a digital transformation expert and was previously head of technology transformation at the Bank of England. He has also held strategic transformation roles such as COO & bid director for the recent National Lottery bid, transformation programme director at NatWest Group (RBS) and COO at UBS Investment Bank. He also previously worked at Crowe as a global risk consultant in 2016.

HW Fisher, part of Sumer Group, has appointed Daniel Burke as an audit partner. He brings over 25 years of experience in professional practice, specialising in company audits, accounting and tax advisory services for owner-managed businesses, and sector expertise includes property investment, trading companies, property funds, and FCMG. He joins from Blick Rothenberg where he was an audit partner.

Azets has made 122 mid-year promotions at all levels in its UK business, including 10 new partners and directors. Partner Noel Hankinson has been promoted to regional managing partner for the North West region, while Joshua Vincent becomes partner in accounting & business advisory services (ABAS). Eight new directors include Jessica Barry, Hannah Mitchell, Caroline Morgan, Keith Porterfield (ABAS), Francesca Bailey, Jon Huggins (corporate finance), Louise Phillips (VAT), and Ed Cliff (audit & assurance). Meantime, Azets has expanded its Bristol team with the appointment of James Thomas as a partner in the corporate finance team. He brings more than 25 years of advisory experience and joins from HMT Corporate Finance where he was a partner and head of the technology practice, having originally qualified as a chartered accountant with Deloitte in Bristol.

TaxAssist Group has appointed Dorian Gonsalves as a non-executive director. He will take up his new role on 1 March and will provide strategic guidance and advice to the executive team. He brings a wealth of experience, following a 14-year tenure as CEO at Belvoir Group plc. During this time, he led Belvoir’s IPO and diversified the business from purely lettings into financial services, property sales and other associated income streams.

KPMG has promoted David Mitchell to partner and head of audit for the North East. He has been with the firm for 17 years, most recently as audit director, and has experience working across the North East and Yorkshire with some of the region’s largest privately owned businesses.

PKF Smith Cooper has appointed partner Dean Nelson as head of business recovery and restructuring services team, based in Nottingham, marking a stronger and aligned presence for PKF in the East Midlands. Nelson has over 25 years’ experience in business recovery and restructuring, and will work at the firm’s Nottingham and Derby offices to help businesses in financial distress across the East Midlands. Tom Joy has been promoted to corporate finance director, his fourth promotion in a seven-year career at the firm, after playing an ‘instrumental’ role in building the firm’s deal-making business in the West Midlands. He has specialist expertise in automotive, technology, telecommunications and self-storage.

The Insolvency Service has announced that chief executive Dean Beale plans to leave the agency, and will become executive director of the newly established Centre for Public Interest Audit, a standalone body set up by the audit and accounting sector to support audit standards for the biggest UK companies. Beale has worked in the insolvency sector for more than 30 years in a variety of roles and has been chief executive since 2019. He managed policy development, regulated the sector, oversaw significant insolvency cases such as British Steel and Thomas Cook, and led high-profile enforcement action. He has been at the Insolvency Service for over 20 years and started his career as a forensic accountant at PwC. A replacement for Beale will be announced in due course.