BRUSSELS, September 1, 2022 BDO today announced that Daphna Smuckler, Managing Partner of the Accounting and Assurance Practice and member of BDO's Executive Leadership Team in Canada, will succeed Chris Smith as BDO's Global Head of Audit and Assurance. .
Daphna Smuckler is based in Toronto and has over 25 years of BDO experience, providing enterprise audit and assurance services to a wide range of clients in North America, Europe and Asia. Under Daphna's leadership, as Managing Partner of BDO's Accounting and Assurance Practice in Canada, several important strategic changes have been successfully made, including significant growth, both in profitability and in the talent pool. Led the digital transformation of the Assurance practice, fostered a people-first culture and continued to build on a strong quality culture.
Outgoing Global Director of Assurance, Chris Smith, who stepped down at the end of August after having been in the role for six years, commented: "I am delighted to have Daphna as my replacement. I have worked alongside Daphna for a number of years now. She is not only an expert in her field but also an excellent leader and a passionate advocate for creating a diverse and inclusive environment for our people."
Commenting on her appointment, Daphna said: "I am delighted to be taking over from Chris, who has done a fantastic job over the last few years. I have some big shoes to fill, but I look forward to my new challenge. In my new role, will further increase our focus on audit quality and work with our people to deliver quality with a continued focus on innovation and technology to meet the needs of our clients I am excited to collaborate with our BDO network focused on a market that evolves, as well as talent and customer experience.
As Global Assurance Director, Chris Smith has been instrumental in the development, implementation and deployment of APT NG, BDO's digital collaboration tool, which enables BDO people to work with others within their own firm and across BDO in international commitments, invaluable during the pandemic. He has been a strong advocate for audit quality - and quality in all operations - and has been leading the development of BDO's International Standards of Quality Management (ISQM) project.
Keith Farlinger, Global Head of BDO, concludes: "Chris has always had a keen interest in enhancing our focus on innovation, quality and efficiency, as well as leveraging developments in technology as part of the audit approach. I would like to thank Chris for his many contributions to BDO and I wish him a long and happy retirement. He will be missed for his tireless work, but we are equally pleased to welcome Daphna who will bring a lot of strategic advice to the global organization. We are excited to start a new trip."