BDO USA Wins Two Stevie® American Business Awards® for Technology Team of the Year and Women in AI

• BDO’s Research and AI Development Team was recognized as Technology Team of the Year after delivering nine new AI tools and supporting enterprise solutions that saved professionals more than 1 million hours.
• Francesca Graham, AI product delivery manager, was honored in the Women in AI Leadership category for her contributions to BDO’s AI governance and strategy approach.
• The American Business Awards® honor excellence and innovation across workplaces of all types for achievements in hundreds of business categories.

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BDO USA, one of the nation’s leading accounting and advisory firms, was awarded two American Business Awards®. BDO’s Research and AI Development (RAID) team won a Bronze Stevie® Award in the Technology Team of the Year category for its AI solutions that help drive measurable productivity and client impact. Francesca Graham, AI product delivery manager at BDO, was named the winner of a Silver Stevie® Award in the Women in AI Leadership category for contributions that help ensure BDO's AI tools are safe, trustworthy, and aligned with client needs.

Each year, the American Business Awards recognize outstanding achievement in management, product development and technology. This year, more than 3,600 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted, and more than 250 professionals worldwide participated in the judging process to select the winners. This recognition affirms BDO’s position as an industry leader, delivering responsible, purpose-driven AI in ways that propel innovation and create value for its professionals, clients, and the business.

BDO’s RAID team is the firm’s internal incubator, rapidly developing responsible, business-aligned AI solutions that drive measurable productivity and client impact. In 2025 alone, RAID created nine custom AI solutions and supported enterprise AI tools like Chat BDO. To date, Chat BDO has saved BDO professionals more than 1 million hours — valuable time now redirected to higher-value, client-facing activity. The judges praised BDO’s RAID team for its measurable results while fostering a culture of responsible AI adoption. The team’s collaborative, value-driven approach was applauded for aligning with business priorities, empowering employees, increasing client-facing activities, and setting a benchmark for enterprise-scale deployment.

To help ensure BDO professionals use AI responsibly, Francesca established the firm’s AI product operating model and governance foundation, enabling BDO to innovate responsibly at enterprise scale. Her leadership defined the firm’s AI oversight approach and drove measurable impact, including broadening adoption, scaling key AI tools, and advancing BDO’s long-term AI strategy. The judges highlighted how Francesca is the “type of AI leader the industry needs more of,” praising her people-first approach to building enterprise AI governance with measurable ROI.

“Winning two Stevie Awards is a testament to BDO’s commitment to embrace change, deploy new technologies responsibly, and create solutions that address the day-to-day needs of BDO’s professionals,” said Mike Gerhard, chief data and AI officer at BDO USA. “Most importantly, these awards affirm our approach, which prioritizes practical outcomes, responsible adoption and measurable impact. Congratulations to Francesca and the entire BDO RAID team.”

Visit the Stevie American Business Awards website for more information and to view the full list of winners.

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About BDO USA
Our purpose is helping people thrive every day. Together, we are focused on delivering exceptional and sustainable outcomes and value for our people, our clients, and our communities. BDO is proud to be an ESOP company, reflecting a culture that puts people first. BDO professionals provide assurance, tax, and advisory services for a diverse range of clients across the U.S. and in over 160 countries through our global organization.

BDO is the brand name for the BDO network and for each of the BDO Member Firms. BDO USA, P.C., a Virginia professional corporation, is the U.S. member of BDO International Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, and forms part of the international BDO network of independent member firms. For more information, please visit: www.bdo.com.

About the Stevie Awards
Stevie Awards are conferred in nine programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards®, The International Business Awards®, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, and the new Stevie Awards for Technology Excellence. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes, as well as the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding workplace performance worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com.