Norman Lonergan
Vice Chair, Global Advisory Services
EY
Q: Where is the firm today?
A: The year brought huge new opportunities to EY Global Advisory. We continued to expand globally, broadened our service offerings and increased our market share. But among all this good news, the most pleasing surprise was our ability to buck the trends in certain parts of the world, growing even amid volatility—in the Mediterranean for example. While Italy, Spain and Portugal all have economic challenges, our business there grew 20 percent. It may seem counter-intuitive, but if you think about it, it makes sense. Because of economic headwinds, our clients there need innovative answers to their challenges.
Q: How would you describe your firm's outlook for 2014?
A: The overall global economy is improving, and we believe it will continue on that path in 2014. Of course, recovery and growth are still uneven, depending on which regions and industry sectors we look at. Looking ahead, we expect this schizophrenic trend to continue for some time. Our outlook for the future goes beyond 2014, because that's what our clients need. In fact, we have developed a long-term, strategic plan called Vision 2020 that considers the changing business world today, how it will evolve tomorrow and how we will adapt to the challenges and opportunities we all face.
This approach is definitely resonating with clients. EY Global Advisory achieved a fifth year of double-digit growth with revenue of $5.8 billion and growth of 18 percent. This figure far outpaced our main competitors, and we are particularly proud we gained market share.
Q: What opportunities do you see for the firm in 2014?
A: In 2014, we see opportunities in addition to the traditional emerging markets and BRIC countries, particularly in the Middle East, ASEAN, Africa and Japan. Also, our focus on building our business in Japan is paying dividends as the economy starts to show green shoots of recovery. We'll also look to leverage our recent acquisitions and expand our business based on their specialized capabilities. By 2020, our goal is to have the best brand and be the most favored employer by building on positive and strong relationships with our stakeholders. Growing all of our service lines will be crucial to our success but we continue to expect that Advisory will be the firm's growth leader.
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