Accenture announces new Scottish leadership team

Bringing a diverse set of skills, the new joint leadership team will head up Accenture’s people and operations in Scotland, helping clients to improve their performance and unlock trapped value through the application of new technologies and innovation.

The pair take over from Bill McDonald who, after almost 20 years working for Accenture across a variety of industries and clients, is retiring in September.

Olly Benzecry, country managing director for Accenture UK, said: “I am delighted that Michelle and Les have taken up this joint leadership role.  They are both passionate about the success of Scotland and have extensive global experience.  The Scottish business has great potential and we are seeing significant demand for our services, particularly relating to the application of new technologies to help clients transform their business.  Over the last 11 years, Bill McDonald has done a terrific job building up the team in Scotland, and Les and Michelle will now capitalise on that to drive further growth.”

In order to achieve its growth ambitions in Scotland, Accenture will draw on its global expertise to deliver best in class services locally.  This includes data driven innovation, digital transformation, artificial intelligence and cyber security across a range of sectors. Already working in partnership with clients in industries such as financial services and utilities, the new MDs, leading a staff of over 400 in Scotland, will seek to expand into new sectors including oil and gas decommissioning and extend the use of its data science services.

Michelle Hawkins said: “Accenture has always been at the forefront of new technology and innovation and we look forward to further building our presence in Scotland.  As a business we aim to attract the best talent, establish successful partnerships and continue to give back in the communities in which we work across Scotland.  Over the next few months we will be focusing on developing more connected relationships and collaborations within the Scottish business, embedding Accenture into the fabric of Scotland.”

Les Bayne added: “Working within a global network means we draw on our wide range of experience and expertise to deliver bespoke programmes for our clients locally. Innovation, diversity and inclusion is the way to unlock value for our clients. Having worked across many business streams in Accenture, I have seen first-hand the difference, and great additional potential, having a strong inclusive team can make and we want to ensure we build this capability into our Scottish offering for our clients.”

Last November Accenture unveiled the Scotland Application Security Hub in Edinburgh, which serves global clients in their drive for enhanced security against application vulnerabilities and cyber threats.

In the Corporate Citizenship space there are a number of programmes delivered successfully in Scotland including Movement to Work with The Prince’s Trust and the Skills to Succeed Academy, in partnership with DWP And Skills Development Scotland, which has supported over 2,200 young people to help them find work.