Deloitte Elects Joseph Echevarria CEO; Punit Renjen Chairman of the Board

NEW YORK, April 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Joseph Echevarria has been elected to the position of chief executive officer and Punit Renjen has been elected to the position of chairman of the board of Deloitte LLP.  Echevarria succeeds Barry Salzberg, who was elected to the position of global chief executive officer of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (DTTL).  Renjen succeeds Sharon Allen, who is retiring after serving two consecutive four-year terms.  Echevarria and Renjen will begin their new roles on June 1, 2011, the start of Deloitte's new fiscal year.

Echevarria, 54, was selected in 2007 to serve in his current role as U.S. managing partner and chief operating officer, Deloitte LLP, leading approximately 50,000 professionals in nearly 90 cities throughout the United States and in India. He is responsible for all of Deloitte's business subsidiaries, which deliver audit, tax, consulting and financial advisory services, as well as all of its shared service functions.

For Echevarria, an auditor himself, the critical role Deloitte plays in serving the investor public is of paramount importance. "More than ever, we recognize our role in maintaining the integrity of the capital markets and the reliance placed on audited financial statements. The highest standard of professionalism and quality in this area is one of my top priorities," said Echevarria.

"I am deeply honored to be elected by my partners and principals to be CEO of this great firm.  As the largest professional services organization in the U.S., we have an obligation to lead," continued Echevarria. "Excellence in all of the professional services we provide constitutes the foundation of our success.  As markets were shaken and major players disappeared overnight, we've made a clear choice to focus on superior performance, innovation and growth across all our practice areas. Great firms are growth firms."

"Talent is the engine of our excellence, innovation and growth," Echevarria added.  "I am proud of the fact that our people are more diverse than ever before; it has made us a better organization and more attractive to top talent."  In recognition of his leadership in diversity, the Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting (ALPFA) named Echevarria "Executive of the Year in 2007" and he now serves on ALPFA's Corporate Advisory Board.  

Since joining in 1978, Echevarria has held a number of leadership positions including Deloitte LLP's deputy managing partner and Southeast region audit managing partner for Deloitte & Touche LLP.  Echevarria serves as chair of Deloitte's Operating Committee and is a member of its Executive and Succession Planning Committees.  He also holds positions in several committees and boards in the DTTL member firms network including the Americas Executive.  He earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida, where he serves on the University's School of Business Administration Board of Overseers and is currently an Executive in Residence. Echevarria is also a member of the Orange Bowl Committee.

Punit Renjen

As chairman and chief executive officer of Deloitte Consulting LLP, Renjen, 49, has led the significant growth of the consulting practice – enhancing its market position despite the recession and helping Deloitte Consulting become one of the largest consulting services providers in the U.S. By fostering greater collaboration across Deloitte's subsidiaries and industry practices, Renjen also helped Deloitte become a leader in key, high-growth markets such as sustainability, business analytics, heath care and the U.S. federal government.

Renjen was recognized as one of Consulting magazine's top consultants in 2007. He also has guided Deloitte Consulting to be recognized as one of the "2010 Best Firms to Work For" by Consulting magazine and as one of the top firms in Vault's Guide to the Top 50 Management and Strategy Consulting Firms. Under Renjen's leadership, Deloitte Consulting has experienced the highest-ever levels of satisfaction and engagement of its talent.

"This is a great privilege, and I deeply appreciate the partnership's confidence in me," said Renjen. "I share Sharon Allen's vision for Deloitte – to be the 'Standard of Excellence.' Setting this standard demands effective governance, transparency, accountability and uncompromised quality. I am committed to leading the board in providing valuable oversight and strategic guidance to management, and also to representing our exceptional organization and culture with external stakeholders."

Renjen has held many key leadership roles during his more than 23 years of experience with the consulting practice. He currently serves on the DTTL board of directors and Global Consulting Executive Committee. Previously, he was the DTTL's global consulting strategy and operations leader and mergers and acquisitions consultative services leader. Renjen is an active speaker on college campuses and is a member of the board of trustees of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon where he earned his master's degree in management with honors.

Deloitte has been recognized 12 times on FORTUNE magazine's list of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" since 1998; ranked No.1 in the most recent Businessweek "Best Places to Launch a Career" ranking; and ranked No.1 on the Top 100 Firms by Accounting Today. Recently, Deloitte was ranked No. 8 on The 2011 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list, and has been inducted into Working Mother magazine's Hall of Fame.

As used in this document, "Deloitte" means Deloitte LLP and "Deloitte Consulting" means Deloitte Consulting LLP. Please see www.deloitte.com/us/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of Deloitte LLP and its subsidiaries.

SOURCE Deloitte