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Steve Fortier: KPMG's new global leader of transfer pricing services |
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Dan Peters: Keen to expand Duff & Phelps' transfer pricing capabilities |
The new leader of Duff & Phelps' transfer pricing practice plans to build teams of senior transfer pricing professionals in all significant centres in the US, particularly in the Boston to Washington, DC corridor.
Dan Peters, KPMG's former global head of transfer pricing, began his new role at the financial advisory services and valuation firm in early March. He wants to hire between five and 10 senior transfer pricing personnel within three months.
KPMG has appointed Steve Fortier to replace Peters in the role of global managing principal of transfer pricing. Based in Chicago, Fortier will continue to lead the firm's economic and valuation services practice in the US. He has already led KPMG's regional transfer pricing teams in the Americas and the Asia-Pacific.
PricewaterhouseCoopers sold its valuation service group to Standard & Poor's in 2001, who sold it onto Duff & Phelps in September last year. While it does some work in transfer pricing, Duff & Phelps is now focused on it as a service line, defining it as a specific service with a global leader.
There are synergies in his new firm's blue-chip valuation client base. "Duff & Phelps' work in valuation is done with the same sort of people that buy transfer pricing services – the tax directors, the CFOs and the controllers," said Peters.
Peters cannot provide transfer pricing services to his former KPMG clients right away. "I obviously have non-compete covenants with KPMG in the US and for clients that I serve directly I have a period of time in which I can't service them going forward without being in breach of that covenant."
"The other aspect of my non-compete covenant in the US is not to solicit KPMG employees directly. While KPMG employees may join the organization, I can't solicit them. I have to be very careful with that," he said.
Peters has already made a significant hire: Steve Salvati, the former transfer pricing leader at Lucent. Salvati had retired from Lucent but decided to come back and work with Peters to help him build the practice at Duff & Phelps.
He also wants to expand the firm's international footprint. "Our goal is to have 10 non-US offices by the end of 2006," he said. With offices in London and Amsterdam and recently-added Tokyo, the firm will open a new office in Germany in the next four weeks. The other six places the firm is eyeing are China, Korea, France, Australia, Canada, Spain and/or Italy.
"I am looking to bring together people with a blend of experience that can work in a team that can complement the horsepower that I have at Duff & Phelps," he said.
On top of transfer pricing skills he is looking for individuals that can represent the firm in investment banking and valuation matters as well as financial reporting and due diligence. "If we can find the individual with the right mix of skills I think they have a tremendous opportunity to build a real nice platform," he said. SC
