23 June 2026
KPMG Australia today announced leadership changes, a governance overhaul and a comprehensive action plan to address integrity issues and strengthen accountability across the firm.
The actions include:
- Departures and leadership changes
- A major governance restructure, including the appointment of its first independent Chair, and additional independent directors
- An immediate external lessons-learned review into the whistleblower matter and related failings
- A comprehensive action plan focused on governance, culture and ethics, and controls
The measures are designed to address identified failings, improve oversight and controls, and begin the work of rebuilding confidence in the firm.
Two Audit Partners, Paul Rogers and Eileen Hoggett, are leaving the firm.
The firm will overhaul its governance arrangements, including appointing its first independent Chair. It will also appoint independent members to the Australian Board and ensure a balance between KPMG representatives and independents. The firm will review and update the Board’s role and remit in line with corporate governance best practice. This will include involving independent Board members in new sub-committees focused on priority areas such as audit quality, ethics, whistleblower oversight and other matters of public interest.
National Chairman Martin Sheppard supports the need for a change in governance, including an independent Chair and has announced that he will leave the firm shortly. A short transition period will assist a smooth handover. He will also retire from his regional board responsibilities.
A process is progressing to appoint a new CEO, who will refresh the executive team and ensure the firm has strong, ethical leadership for the future.
An external third party will be appointed to undertake an immediate lessons-learned review into the whistleblower matter.
These actions form part of KPMG Australia’s Action Plan, published today.
Interim CEO Stan Stavros said: “The decisions announced today are necessary and immediate. We did not meet the standards expected of us, and we recognise the impact this has had on the whistleblower, our people, our clients and the community.
“We are acting where it matters: changing leadership, strengthening independent governance, commissioning external reviews, improving whistleblower oversight, tightening controls and reinforcing accountability across the firm.
“Trust will only be rebuilt through sustained action and demonstrable change. We are determined to confront what went wrong, act transparently and ensure these failings are not repeated.”
“The Parliamentary Committee’s enquiries highlighted issues, including unethical behaviour by senior personnel and the human impact of KPMG’s handling of the whistleblower. KPMG Australia is focused on ensuring those failings are understood, addressed and not repeated,” he said.
KPMG Australia’s Action Plan focuses on three priority areas: governance, culture and ethics, and controls and include:
Governance
- Appointing an independent Chair.
- Appointing independent directors to the Australian Board to ensure balance of independent and non-independent members going forward.
- Reviewing and updating the role and remit of the Board in line with corporate governance best practices. This will include ensuring independent Board members are involved in Board sub-committees overseeing matters including audit quality, ethics, whistleblower oversight.
Culture and ethics
- Conducting an independent retrospective review of the firm’s whistleblowing system, with Principia Advisory appointed to conduct the review. Publishing the Principia Advisory findings.
- Reviewing and updating its conduct and consequences framework to further discourage misconduct and ensure that appropriate sanctions and other consequences are applied if misconduct occurs.
- Updating its whistleblower policies and procedures and providing associated firmwide training to ensure clear guidance and requirements for how whistleblower disclosures must be identified, escalated and governed, and for how whistleblowers should be managed.
Controls
- Strengthening the firm’s system of quality management, with a specific focus on controls related to compliance with professional and ethical standards.
- Amending Audit pursuit policies and procedures and strengthening firm-wide ethical barriers.
- Mandating firmwide training on client confidentiality, privacy and information protection, with additional targeted confidentiality training for all Audit partners and directors.
The Action Plan is intended to be a ‘live’ document, updated as findings and recommendations from the third-party reviews become available, or as new information comes to light. KPMG will engage a third-party to assess and assure progress against this Action Plan and will publish updates periodically.
These measures are in addition to the independent review announced by the Commonwealth Department of Finance, which KPMG welcomes and will cooperate with fully.
Stan Stavros added: “While these issues are serious and require decisive action, they do not define the vast majority of our Partners and people. Every day, our people act with integrity, do the right thing and deliver high-quality work for clients, communities and the public interest.
“Our responsibility now is to ensure stronger systems, clearer accountability and better leadership. We will keep clients, people and stakeholders updated on our progress and hold ourselves accountable as we drive meaningful, lasting change.”
Stan Stavros-Interim CEO
