PRESIDENT, ERNST & YOUNG

EY has been present in Colombia for 60 years. What milestones in particular stand out?

It has been an epic journey. The firm started here with fewer than ten people, as an audit practice, which was the origin of the firm. Today, we have around 2,000 people and serve around 1,500 clients in all industries including energy, oil and gas, financial services, retail, consumer, and pharma. We are a professional services firm today, and our function is helping to build a better working world. In audit, we give clarity and transparency to the financial aspects of a company. In our consulting, which covers tax, transactions, management, and technology, we look at improving our client’s performance. During challenging times, we look at performance with an efficiency lens. Colombian companies are now present in other countries in Latin America. We serve those clients and their international counterparts with operations here. The challenge we face today with our clients is how to maintain a positive outlook vis-à-vis the changes the government is proposing. Pension, health, and labor reforms are major issues that will significantly impact Colombia.

There are 2,000 EY employees in Colombia. How do you ensure effective integration and collaboration between areas?

We have 60 partners leading the company, each with their own expertise. EY is ultimately a toolbox. An accountant and a consultant use different tools, and we are on hand to offer the solutions our clients need. Today, many professional services firms are focused on industry, as are we; however, we are also organized around regions. In Latin America, we work as an integrated region with 18 countries, including Brazil, from Mexico down to Chile and Argentina. In those 18 countries, we have around 24,000 EY professionals, who together bring collective knowledge to our clients. We are also able to tap a wider region, the Americas, and have access to the know-how of almost 100,000 EY professionals. The network may bring experience from Europe or Asia, depending on the need.