Deloitte names new local leader as it prepares to move into new uptown space
.jpg "Deloitte has named John Giannuzzi its new managing partner for the Carolinas, effective April 1.")
Deloitte has named John Giannuzzi its new managing partner for the Carolinas, effective April 1. Giannuzzi told that Observer that in his new role, he plans to grow Deloitte’s local footprint and engage the firm in education initiatives in the Charlotte region.
Giannuzzi is taking over for Theresa Drew, a former Charlotte BusinessWoman of the Year who is retiring after four decades with Deloitte. Drew, who’d been managing partner since 2010, was the only woman to lead a Big Four professional services organization in Charlotte.
“I have some very big shoes to fill with Theresa’s retirement. She’s been a great leader for Deloitte,” Giannuzzi told the Observer during a recent call.
A Duke graduate, Giannuzzi leads Deloitte’s Carolinas and Tennessee audit and assurance group. In his new role, Giannuzzi will oversee more than 1,800 Deloitte employees in the Carolinas, including about 1,100 in Charlotte.
Giannuzzi takes the reigns at Deloitte at a time when the consulting firm readies to move into its new offices at the Legacy Union development on South Tryon. Giannuzzi said Deloitte is at capacity at its current space, at the Duke Energy Center at 550 South Tryon.
“Our quarters are tight,” Giannuzzi said. The new space “gives us a great opportunity to attract and retain high quality professionals.”
Deloitte’s on pace to grow its workforce at a rate of 10 percent per year locally, Giannuzzi said. At its new spot, Deloitte will lease the top four floors of the 650 South Tryon building, accounting for about 90,000 square feet of space.
The goal is to move into the new offices by December 2020, Giannuzzi said.
Deloitte has come a long way since Giannuzzi came to the firm’s Charlotte office in 2002. At the time, Deloitte employed just over 400 people, he said.
In Charlotte, Deloitte offers a range of services — including audit and assurance, consulting, tax, and risk and advisory — to clients across multiple industries, including banking, manufacturing, technology and energy. As the new managing partner, Giannuzzi will help drive the firm’s national growth strategy, client service, corporate citizenship and inclusion locally, the firm said in a statement.
Gianuzzi said in his new position he plans to expand Deloitte’s work in the community to focus on workforce development and education. “What comes along with that is better income parity and affordable housing,” he said.
