Josh Simonis and Jonty Butler join from Deloitte’s cyber practice
Wotton Kearney has put a spotlight on Matt O’Keefe, Josh Simonis, and Jonty Butler as members of its new cyber, data, and technology (CDT) advisory practice in Melbourne.
O’Keefe recently joined the firm as head of advisory for cyber, data, and technology.
“I’m excited about building a strong team culture with people from diverse backgrounds, because that mix of perspectives is what ultimately allows us to provide our clients with the best, practical, well-rounded advice,” O’Keefe said in a Q&A.
Both joining the CDT team from Deloitte’s cyber practice, Simonis serves as director, while Butler acts as consultant.
Wotton Kearney shared that the team’s collective experience has spanned cyber strategy, risk governance, and regulatory compliance in the areas of financial services, government, healthcare, and education.
“Their arrival marks an exciting new chapter for WK, expanding beyond legal services to support clients across the full cyber risk lifecycle, from preparedness and strategy through to incident response,” the firm stated.
According to his profile on the firm’s website, O’Keefe has over three decades of experience in supporting boards and executives on strategy, governance, risk, and performance.
Before joining Wotton Kearney, he served as a cyber and technology partner focusing on financial services at KPMG for more than two decades.
In the cyber area, O’Keefe’s practice has ventured into strategy, governance, reporting, assurance, uplift programs, cyber engagements, incident response, and recovery.
In the broader technological space, he has helped clients with technology investment, risk management, transformation programs, and emerging technologies.
According to his firm profile, O’Keefe’s client base has included banking, wealth management, superannuation, and insurance organisations, among other companies operating across Australia, the Asia–Pacific, and globally.
“Being a tech nerd, I am learning more about AI and really diving into it – like all new tech, I think we are at the ‘early and confusing’ phase (where it all seems negative), and I want to jump to the ‘understanding and using’ phase quicker,” O’Keefe said in the recent Q&A.
According to his profile on the firm’s website, Simonis has focused on complex cybersecurity assessments and transformations. His experience has encompassed cyber strategy, cyber investments, and uplift programs.
According to his firm profile, his client base has included boards, executives, and risk committees. He has helped clients meet compliance requirements, tackle current and emerging threats, and build sustainable cyber maturity.
When asked about current cyber trends, Simonis said, “One trend I’m seeing across organisations is the rapid adoption of AI tools without clear governance, guardrails or monitoring. Many teams are experimenting with AI to improve productivity, but there is often limited visibility over what data is being entered into those systems or how outputs are being used.”
According to his LinkedIn profile, at Deloitte in Melbourne, Butler served as a cyber consultant from January to March 2026, as a cyber graduate from June 2024 to December 2025, and as a cyber vacationer on an internship from November 2023 to February 2024.
When asked about cyber resilience, Butler said, “The threat landscape evolves constantly, so true resilience is less about perfection and more about building the capability to respond and recover when something unexpected happens.”
