João Machado

TBY talks to João Machado, CEO & Managing Partner of Deloitte, about the latest developments in the company’s activities in Mozambique, current opportunities and challenges, and goals for 2024.

Can you highlight the latest developments of Deloitte in Mozambique?

We have made relevant developments in recent times, both regarding the quality and differentiation of our offering for our clients aligning our services to our global storefront. This will give our clients a broader option of services we can provide locally with best of breed support from our global competency centers. We have been investing in digital capabilities, helping our clients to address challenges and make the most of opportunities raised by disruptive technologies, exponentially enhancing productivity and accelerating the pace of business innovation. We have also been supporting our clients in terms of not only making sure their investments in the country are happening where they need to, but also that they benefit local communities, thought our unique skills that help our clients to create shared values and social impact, while having a strong business outcome. We have been investing in the country for more than 28 years, building local skills, not only technically, but also in management and leadership. We have heavily invested in upskilling our 140 people – of which only three are foreigners- which ultimately gives back to society.

In which markets do you aim to lead?

We want to lead in implementing projects that ensure sustainability and maximize the socioeconomic impact for the country. Our strategy is to take advantage of our deep knowledge, our thought leadership and relevant experience in the main projects in Mozambique to keep following the highest excellence standard supporting our clients to achieve their goals, as the go-to firm in professional services for audit and assurance, technology consulting, risk consulting, tax and financial advisory. We have a strong presence in sectors such as oil and gas, mining, energy, utilities, banking, telecoms, health and consumer.

What trends or needs have clients raised recently?

There has been a great deal of interest around sustainability and ESG, as clients are keen to explore how we can help them fast track in those areas. Clients also want to know how we can support them locally in the areas of cybersecurity and IoT. More recently, AI is coming to the fore, and we work with clients to help them navigate through their systems and information with the support of AI. In our annual strategy review, we normally identify two or three areas that we want to invest in, and our main focus currently are e-government initiatives and the digital economy, which includes pushing forward not only digitalization but also greater digital economy.

What opportunities and challenges do you see ahead, and how do you plan to navigate them?

The biggest opportunity is that of a country that still has many greenfield projects to be developed, from infrastructure and agriculture to logistics, tourism, and sustainable energy. We see a great deal of opportunity in the booming population around consumer business. We have an opportunity to be part of a country projecting accelerated growth. The strengthening of public institutions that needs to be done is both a challenge and an opportunity as well as skills and talent across all sectors. In addition, companies need to learn how to become more transparent in terms of governance and management and put into practice new ways of doing things at an international standard. It is all about understanding that auditors and consultants are here to support and develop the economy positively.

How does Deloitte understand innovation, and what steps is it taking in this regard?

Innovation is a process. If executed properly, and people understand its value, companies can extract real value from it. We help clients look at what they are doing and how to get to the next level and introduce innovative processes and products. Innovation is at the heart of Mozambicans, and there is a natural propensity of the people here to try to evolve and make their lives easier. For Deloitte, we are focused on tangible and implementable outcomes when working with clients on innovation. We want to make sure it is real and impactful. In the most sectors like telecom, financial services, energy, utilities and renewable energies, there is a great deal of innovation happening here that can be taken to other countries.

What are your goals for 2024?

We aspire to be the standard of excellence, the first choice of the most sought-after clients and talent, to grow and expand our footprint in every sector and service we operate in – keeping the reputation of quality, integrity, and strong commitment to sustainable, responsible business practices. Deloitte is the largest professional service firm in the world and our goal is also to bring the best of Deloitte worldwide to Mozambique.