Andrew Yates began his tenure as the chief executive of KPMG Australia at the start of July, just days after the Sydney COVID-19 lockdown took effect.

This meant the auditor and KPMG veteran of more than 30 years has spent his first six weeks leading the 10,000-strong firm from his home in Manly, in Sydney’s northern beaches, via what he describes as a seemingly non-stop succession of video conference meetings.