Daring to be different in 2015, says KPMG Luxembourg

KPMG Luxembourg today announced that “daring to be different” has brought the firm healthy growth in 2015. KPMG’s revenues have risen by 6%, an increase that the firm attributes to a clear focus on innovation underpinned by strategic investments in its people, technology and Luxembourg. 

KPMG Managing Partner Georges Bock explains.
“We have proved that innovation is much more than a buzzword for KPMG: daring to be different is integral to our success. From delivering our services in a way that was unthinkable just a few short years ago, to launching the KPMG Hub for Entrepreneurship and KPMG Plage – 2015 has truly been a vintage year. Doing things our own way has taken dedication, and an unfailing belief in our people and values. It has also meant high levels of investment in key strategic areas, like Luxembourg, people and technology. The results prove that this recipe has been successful in 2015. We’ll keep investing so that we can continue to bridge the gap between client experience, business and the megatrends disrupting the future.”
Head of Advisory, Pascal Denis, explains how leveraging technology – in all aspects of our service delivery – has spurred advisory growth.
“Technology underpins all our services. Our teams of consultants do not only advise our clients on how they can transform their operating models through digitalization and data analytics: They also build our own ‘asset-based services’, marrying cutting-edge technology with our multi-functional skills to develop value-added managed services for our clients. We’ve been delighted to see that these ‘asset-based services’ have been so well received on the market. Our proprietary technology (KPMG Racer) supports the creation of thousands of regulatory, risk and tax reports per quarter for our clients. We have extended our reach towards providing managed e-archiving and data management services, and will be operating soon as a fully regulated PSF. Technology is changing the way that our clients work, and will continue to be key to our future growth. Our investments are definitely a game changer!”
Head of People, Thomas Feld, expands on how a different approach to work is driven by a people strategy founded on the principles of diversity and inclusion.
“In this era of unprecedented digital shake-ups, diversity is key to keep one step ahead of the market and anticipate the next trend. We now have 43 different nationalities working in our firm, making for a vibrant kaleidoscope of cultures that drives constant renewal and change. The KPMG family has also come to include a vast array of profiles that one wouldn’t typically expect from a Big 4, but rather a tech firm. Our customers know us as excellent auditors, but we also have highly skilled teams of FinTech wizards, application programmers and data engineers who have been developing the technology at the core of our new service offerings. It is only by changing the shape of our business, that we can help our clients to make theirs future-ready.”
Daring to be different has also been a key differentiator for KPMG when it comes to audit. Emmanuel Dollé, Head of Audit, reflected on how the profession is about to change:
“Audits are about to change. Significantly. The core goals will remain the same, but audit tools, execution and results will be transformed and expanded in the next few years by new capabilities in Data & Analytics. This is more than a trend and we believe that there are broad benefits to adopting this approach. For example, auditors typically base their work on a relatively small data set, extrapolating conclusions across the full financial data. Our D&A tools, like iNAV, are able to incorporate the totality of an organization’s financial information, analyzing millions of transactions to identify irregularities and key risk focus areas for auditors. The Audit function at KPMG Luxembourg has already started its D&A journey and we’ll make further investments in this area in 2016.”
Sebastien Labbé, Head of Tax, commented on how the tax environment has evolved in the course of 2015, and how Luxembourg has reacted to the changes:
“BEPS and other recent tax developments have given us a new way of looking at the world of tax. And this new outlook has given rise to an evolution in how things are done. This is true for all countries, but in particular for Luxembourg as we make important policy choices in this changing international environment. 2017 will see comprehensive tax reform and we’re committed to maintaining an open dialogue with the government, our clients and the professional bodies in an effort to help shape the future of responsible tax. Our wish list for these reforms is very simple: for the government to be budget neutral, implement the main BEPS measures and all the while ensure that Luxembourg remains attractive to international companies. Clear communication will play a role, both domestically (between the tax authorities and taxpayers) as well as internationally when it comes to communicating our tax strategy. All this will help us maintain stability and certainty.”
Georges Bock predicts another year of innovation in 2016.
“KPMG Luxembourg will be organizing Luxembourg’s first ever FinTech awards to attract talented entrepreneurs to Luxembourg. The event will take place at the KPMG Plage, a perfect opportunity to show that Luxembourg has its hidden gems. This is just one way that we’ll be living by our “dare to be different” motto in 2016.”