Business

Assurance and advisory services firm Ernst & Young (EY) Aug. 5 announced two new appointments for the Americas, naming Jay Persaud as U.S. vice chair of risk management and John L. King as vice chair of assurance. Persaud takes over for Ted Acosta, who was named regional managing partner for the Latin America (LATAM) South Region. The nearly 30-year EY vet has served in a number of company leadership roles, and will now be tasked with leading a team will support EY’s growth its risk management business.

“In an era of dynamic change, Jay understands how our business is evolving and can apply that experience in his new role as we develop new and expanded offerings,” said Kelly Grier, EY U.S. chairman and managing partner and Americas managing partner. “His leadership will position our risk management function front and center in helping us understand evolving risks to better enable our business.”

Persaud added: “The Americas Risk Management team’s brand, reputation and value were greatly enhanced under Ted Acosta’s leadership the past five years. I look forward to advancing these efforts and leading the Risk function to become an enabler to growth by spearheading initiatives and developing tools that help us serve our clients and meet our goals.”

Meanwhile, King succeeds Frank Mahoney, who has been named EY Americas vice chair of the West region, and will lead approximately 20,000 people across 31 member firms throughout the Americas, covering everything from audits to advisory services.

He’ll be focused on digital audit transformation, recruitment, retention and training of assurance professionals, and will work with the Independent Audit Quality Committee.

“As our clients grapple with dynamic change and an increasingly complex business landscape, John brings a depth of experience that will enable him to lead with vision and purpose,” Grier said. “He will also play a significant role in developing transformative leaders, who are fundamental to helping us realize our ambitious digital agenda. Under his leadership, we will remain focused on delivering quality audits that drive confidence in the capital markets.”

King added: “Innovation is driving rapid transformation in the way we deliver quality audits, creating increased value and relevance. Assurance services have evolved from basic compliance and reporting to a way we can deliver key business insights to our clients and meet the evolving needs of executives and boards. There has never been a more exciting time to be in this profession and I’m honored to lead our people forward in building a better working world through progress and meaningful change.”