KPMG Australia has announced the appointment of John Munnelly as the new Chief Digital Officer of the company. As per the company statement, Munnelly will continue to retain his responsibility as executive director of KPMG-backed cloud accounting vendor Wiise, which he co-created himself in 2014.

In his new role, Munnelly will be tasked with leading the Big Four consulting firm’s technology agenda, as well as working on clients' digital transformation projects. He will also report directly to KPMG Australia chief executive Andrew Yates.

Commenting on Munelly’s appointment Andrew Yates, CEO, said that Munelly’s appointment as CDO is an important change for KPMG and he recognises the rapid increase and pace of technology transformation in the market and in their own business. 

“Our clients are facing significant digital challenges, and John will be responsible for ensuring we are optimally placed to support them now, and into the future. Key to John’s role will be a focus on enhancing our technology Employee Value Proposition,” he added.

Munnelly joined KPMG in 2015 after the company acquired Hands-On Systems, where he was CEO from 1997 to 2017. Post takeover, he was appointed as the partner at the Big 4 firm.  He also led the creation of Wiise, an ERP SaaS provider for SMBs that KPMG founded together with Microsoft and Commonwealth Bank. Munnelly 

John Munnelly said about his role, “Technology has been the core driver behind most business transformation initiatives for decades, and I am excited to take on this new challenge as KPMG Australia’s first CDO.”