The new Australia managing partner highlights Australia and APAC as a key growth region for the firm
A couple of weeks ago, Kennedys shook up its leadership by appointing a new APAC regional managing partner in James Melvin and a new Australia managing partner in Nicole Wearne. Wearne, who officially succeeded predecessor Jonathan Wyatt on 18 February, brings significant leadership experience to the role, having stepped up as a senior female leader in the past.
“The AMP is an elected position so to receive the unanimous support of my partners to take on this role was humbling and instilled in me a sense of responsibility”, she told Australasian Lawyer. “I am genuinely energised by the opportunity to lead the Australian firm at such an exciting time of growth”.
Wearne said Australia and APAC represented a key growth region for the firm, and that as the Australia office's leader, her objective was to boost its national profile.
“We have growth ambitions which align with and build on our existing practice areas. Our senior partner has shared our ambition to achieve revenue of US$1bn by 2030. Australia will be a key part of that growth aspiration”, she told Australasian Lawyer. “As a local leader, my role will be to lead the Australian partners to achieve their goals by building our national profile through the lens of client service and people engagement, whilst retaining our culture of being approachable, straightforward and supportive, which enables us to deliver practical and distinctive advice”.
Wearne explained that in her new leadership role, she intended to concentrate on expanding the firm’s core client base, enhancing its current industry relationships, and identifying opportunities to expand the firm’s practice in Australia-specific high-value market segments. Moreover, she would be aiming to bolster the connection between the Australia branch and Kennedys’ other global offices, supported by her strong working relationships with Melvin and former APAC managing partner Matt Andrews.
“James, Matt and I are aligned on the growth strategy leading up to 2030. We will be focused on Australia and APAC to ensure that more clients are aware of and take up Kennedys’ service offering”, she told Australasian Lawyer. “As a global law firm, we are uniquely placed to service our clients because of the embedded relationships we have with our clients, many of which are global insurers, particularly given our market leading practices in the UK, USA and LATAM”.
Wearne also seeks to continue Wyatt’s focus on employee engagement, describing the firm’s people resources as “our biggest asset”.
“My focus will be on continuing to build a diverse workplace which is inclusive, recognises the value of difference and open dialogue, and delivers a workplace where our employees are passionate about coming to work, feel valued and recognised and in turn are invested in the firm”, she told Australasian Lawyer.
