Jefferson Wells, a rapidly growing, independent global provider of professional services in the areas of risk, controls, compliance and financial process improvement, is establishing a London office for its expanding UK and European client base.

"For almost a decade, Jefferson Wells has swiftly and successfully carved a niche in the U.S. as a high-value, lower cost alternative to the traditional public accounting firms," says Owen Sullivan, president and CEO. "The new London office gives Jefferson Wells a physical presence in one of the world's major financial centres to support our existing clients and provide services to new clients based in the UK."

Mike Nelson, managing director, London, heads up the firm's UK operation. Nelson brings extensive global experience to Jefferson Wells, including a partner responsible for certain of Ernst and Young's global/European relationships.

Nelson says: "Jefferson Wells is an alternative for FDs to turn to for talented, experienced people at an affordable level. We've responded to customer demand with a refreshing business model that combines experienced professionals with pragmatic results.

"Skilled people are our greatest asset. While larger firms may have been criticised for excessive delegation of responsibility to juniors, our philosophy has always been to only hire talented, experienced professionals, which means that clients get the full benefit of mature skills but at a lower price point.

"We have extensive experience working within many different financial regimes. Clients benefit from the firm's global resource and thought leadership; shared expertise accumulated through pooling knowledge across a very wide range of situations.

"The introduction of a proven, established alternative to the existing firms in the accountancy market will allow corporate UK to make informed decisions about the directions in which they want to go. With the enhanced focus on controls and governance in the EU, and international convergence of accounting standards, we are convinced the time is now right for value and experience to step forward."

Corporate Background:
Jefferson Wells is a global provider of professional services in the areas of risk, corporate governance, financial operation and internal control, regulatory compliance and financial process improvement. The firm serves nearly 4,000 clients including more than half of the Fortune 500, other Global 1000 companies and major firms throughout Europe. Jefferson Wells is a wholly owned subsidiary of Manpower Inc. www.jeffersonwells.co.uk

For media enquiries, please contact: Lucy Bridle, Head of PR, IAS Marketing and Communication plc: Tel: 07739 979 662; Email: lucy@iasbranding.co.uk; www.jeffersonwells.co.uk

H: 2004/ Jefferson Wells/PR/UK Releases/ 0913Jefferson Wells London Launch