Baker Tilly scales its service delivery with new joint venture

This addition to the firm’s complementary workforce brings talented team members from India.

CHICAGO & BANGALORE, India--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Leading advisory CPA firm Baker Tilly US, LLP (Baker Tilly), enters into a joint venture with India-based Pierian Services to form BT Pierian, providing the $1.3 billion U.S. firm with a talented complementary workforce.

The joint venture, paired with internal Baker Tilly service centers and third-party vendors, comprises the firm’s complementary workforce, which enables Baker Tilly to quickly scale its service delivery capabilities with the right talent when the firm needs it the most.

“Leveraging outside specialized resources to get work done is a core strategy in public accounting,” said Deanna Merryfield, partner and complementary workforce leader. “With our organizational purpose to unleash and amplify talent, we are creating a welcoming and nurturing experience for everyone who works for us and with us — helping ensure we provide the highest level of service to our clients.”

Who is BT Pierian?

BT Pierian consists of two legal entities, one that provides assurance and advisory work, and another that is focused on managed services, including tax, client accounting and other consulting services. In this first phase of the relationship, the joint venture employs around 175 professionals who have joined Baker Tilly teams to tackle tax, assurance and client accounting work as well as other organizational projects.

“The joint venture will act as a force multiplier for both us and Baker Tilly, affording each of us an opportunity to tap into others’ strengths,” said CA. Gurunath Kanathur, Pierian Services co-founder and director, who leads the BT Pierian managed services entity.

Kanathur’s fellow co-founder and assurance and advisory partner Abhishek Gupta added, “We believe there is an opportunity to serve clients in new and different ways by scaling with a global workforce and optimizing talent.” Gupta leads the BT Pierian assurance and advisory entity.

On the Baker Tilly side, the joint venture is led by Merryfield with Managing Director Christine Robinson, overseeing operations, and Partner Gabe Torre, leading tax services, who have been cultivating this collaborative relationship from day one.

“We are here to enhance and protect our clients’ value, and we do that with top-notch talent across the board,” said Robinson. “Our BT Pierian team members receive the same intense training as Baker Tilly’s do, while strict compliance and data security measures are in place to give our clients complete confidence.”

Pierian Services has been serving multinational firms for more than 20 years in the accounting and consulting spaces. BT Pierian team members work in secure and segregated Pierian offices throughout India, including in Bangalore, Gurugram, Shivamogga, Jaipur, Chandigarh and Chennai.

About Baker Tilly US, LLP (bakertilly.com)

Baker Tilly US, LLP (Baker Tilly) is a leading advisory CPA firm, providing clients with a genuine coast-to-coast and global advantage in major regions of the U.S. and in many of the world’s leading financial centers – New York, London, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago. Baker Tilly is an independent member of Baker Tilly International, a worldwide network of independent accounting and business advisory firms in 145 territories, with 41,000 professionals and a combined worldwide revenue of $4.7 billion. Visit bakertilly.com or join the conversation on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.