A recent Australian Financial Review feature highlights how BKR Asia Pacific member firm Walker Wayland NSW has significantly increased the number of women in partnership roles over the past five years.
According to Kate Douglass, Partner at Walker Wayland NSW, the firm’s progress stems from a genuinely flexible approach to supporting women through pivotal career and life stages, including enhanced parental leave and adaptable working arrangements. Female partner representation across the network has grown from 16 per cent to 27 per cent, demonstrating the impact of intentional policy and a supportive culture.
Kate also serves on the steering committee of BKR’s Women in Leadership initiative, contributing her experience and insights to our global work on mentoring and leadership development for women across the association .
The AFR notes that, while women now represent 29 per cent of partners across Australia’s top 100 accounting firms, the overall growth rate has slowed, and one-quarter of these firms still report no female partners. Walker Wayland’s approach shows that meaningful change is achievable when firms focus on flexibility, retention, and equitable pathways to leadership.
This aligns closely with BKR International’s broader commitment to strengthening inclusion, advancing leadership development and expanding our mentoring programmes across all regions.
