Deloitte buys team of 40 advisors from CBIG Consulting in Asia-Pacific

Deloitte has acquired a team of more than 40 professionals in Asia-Pacific from US headquartered CBIG Consulting. The new professionals will join the Big Four firm’s offices in Singapore, Sydney and Melbourne.

The growing ability to capture, assess and analyse data is spurring audit leaders to rethink their traditional audit models and approaches. Efficient analysis of data can also help companies to improve their processes, and grow or streamline their business. Data Analytics now include various ‘next gen’ technologies which are transforming organisations, such as cloud technology, analytics, the Internet of Things, machine learning, Artificial Intelligence and Big Data. Clients of the consulting industry are subsequently demanding more and more in terms of data analytics capabilities from firms.

Big Four professional services firm Deloitte presently caters to businesses in terms of customer insights, real-time and or automated decision-making, cybersecurity and machine learning. The firm has performed well, especially in Asia-Pacific, which boasts a rapidly expanding Big Data and Business Analytics market that The International Data Corporation estimates to be worth US$13.6 billion in 2017, with an expected CAGR of around 14.4% through to 2020. As demand continues to grow, Deloitte have therefore sought to further enforce their position in the data analytics market with the acquisition of big data and analytics solutions providers, CBIG Consulting, and their 41 strong team located in Singapore, Sydney and Melbourne.

Following the purchase for an undisclosed fee, Asia-Pacific leaders of CBIG Cameron Price and Gerard Skybey join Deloitte as new Partners, located in Sydney and Singapore, respectively. The pair have previously operated across Asia including work in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand. Their capabilities in Big Data and Advanced Analytics are said to have been a motive for Deloitte’s interest, as they implied there would be good compatibility between the two consultancies’ cultures, going forward.

Cameron Price, CBIG’s former APAC Managing Director, said, “As well as improving career growth opportunities for our staff, joining Deloitte accelerates our ability to scale across the region. The combination of the Deloitte brand with our analytics and information management capabilities is expected to be highly synergistic in the way we service clients and attract talent.”

Gerard Skybey, CBIG’s former APAC Director, added, “We are increasingly seeing clients considering how best to invest in modern, ‘next gen’ tools and platforms, and in data assets themselves, which can allow them to unlock insights and successfully pursue data-driven strategies.”

Cindy Hook, CEO of Deloitte Australia, commented on the arrival of the duo, “Joining forces with Cameron, Gerard and their team extends our market leading capabilities in big data, and enhances our identified strategic priorities to build-out advanced analytics and intelligent automation capabilities.”

The pair will be joined by their team of 39 staff, who will also join Deloitte’s Analytics and Information Management teams in Sydney, Melbourne and Singapore. The transaction will further extend Deloitte’s market leading data capabilities in Asia-Pacific – an area where the firm has been investing on all fronts. Last year, this saw Deloitte purchase Sydney-based storytelling studio The Explainers, to help the firm business strategies, transitions and change management projects to its clients.

Deloitte’s Asia-Pacific Regional Managing Director, Yoichiro Ogawa, said, “Our Asia-Pacific clients are investing heavily in solutions and platforms that collect and analyse data in real time. They understand the imperative to become insight driven organisations, as they look to maximise business opportunities across the region.”