RSM Australia announces 11 leadership appointments to ring in the new year

RSM Australia has appointed three new partners and eight new directors to bolster its senior leadership team going into 2026, the firm announced in December.

Chief executive partner Robert Miano said the appointments reflected the firm’s commitment to staff development, with four of the appointees having started their careers as graduates with RSM.

“Supporting the career development of our internal staff is a key priority for the firm, and it’s pleasing to see talented team members rewarded and recognised within the business,” Miano said.

“Four of the 11 leaders promoted started their careers as graduates with RSM and are now an integral part of our Audit & Assurance, International Tax & Transfer Pricing and Business Advisory teams.”

The full list of appointments included:

New partners:

• Jie Dong – audit and assurance, Sydney

• Liam Telford – national tax, Perth

• Eckard Bergh – audit and assurance, Sydney

New directors:

• Stephanie Gudzoski – audit and assurance, Melbourne

• Claudia Youngman – business advisory, Canberra

• Joel Ashworth – business advisory, Brisbane

• Louis Carney – indirect tax, Brisbane

• Tristan Hedley – international tax and transfer pricing, Sydney

• Daniel O’Loughlin – business advisory, Fremantle

• Ben Carson – restructuring and recovery, Sydney

• Shaun La Motte – business advisory, Melbourne

The 11 new partners and directors included three lateral hires as well as eight internal appointments, most of which were effective from 1 January 2026.

Miano said the strategic lateral hires would strengthen its services in areas seeing strong client demand, including audit and assurance, business advisory and restructuring.

“The recruitment of Eckard Bergh from RSM South Africa, with 17 years’ experience with an RSM firm, and the internal promotion of Jie Dong demonstrates our strategic investment in the Sydney market and highlights our commitment to developing talent within both the Australian practice and our extensive international pool of experts,” he said.

Other lateral hires included director Shaun La Motte, who joined RSM’s Melbourne office, and Ben Carson, who joined the Sydney office.

“Shaun is a seasoned professional, specialising in superannuation and SMSFs, and we value his experience in leading significant offshore due diligence projects in India, evaluating technology, data security, and staff capability,” Miano said.

“We look forward to leveraging Ben’s expertise, which includes liquidation, business viability assessment, receivership, voluntary administration, corporate insolvency, and small business restructuring and turnaround.”