Excellence in Leadership
Bob Patton
Americas Leader of Advisory Services Practice
Ernst & Young
In September 2008, at the height of the Great Recession, Bob Patton walked into a board meeting and requested a lot of money to re-invigorate his business. Patton, who had been with Ernst & Young and Capgemini, had only returned to the firm a few months earlier and E&Y's risk practice was in the midst of a significant slide. "Was I crazy?" Patton asks. "This was an aggressive plan, and it took some courage for me to ask for the money, but it took more courage for the board to agree to it."
