Alvarez & Marsal’s global transaction advisory group established an executive office and appointed three senior leaders to newly created roles within the new executive office: Paul Licursi as managing director and chief operating officer, Kate Lowry as chief of staff and Vivian Leemans’ as senior director of global operations.

A first of its kind for the firm, the new executive office will be led by Paul Aversano, managing director and global practice leader, and will focus on operational scale and continued emphasis on client-centric service as the practice continues its global growth.

“The global TAG executive office is both a product of our practice’s growth and an emblem of its strength,” Aversano said. “It also signifies our shared commitment to ensure a scalable infrastructure for delivering exceptional client service, with an innovative lens, amidst a complex and shifting landscape that our clients are operating in.”

The development of an executive office is a strategic marker in the practice’s continued expansion across the U.S., the EMEA region, Latin America, India and Asia as well as its recent entry into Canada, Australia and Saudi Arabia.

“Despite industry-wide challenges dampening transaction volume, in sharp contrast to our competitors, global TAG is achieving remarkable worldwide growth,” Aversano said. “The establishment of an executive office and reaching a significant milestone in our growing global base of best-in-class practitioners reinforces our investment in continuing that growth strategically and partnering with our clients from a position of unparalleled service capability.”

With more than two decades of experience in finance and private equity, Licursi will focus on finance, human capital, learning and development, technology and infrastructure, inclusion and diversity, and quality risk management issues. He has held key leadership positions at private equity firms, including satellite funds of Thomas H. Lee Partners, Long Ridge Equity Partners and GE Equity. Licursi is a New York State certified public accountant..

As chief of staff to Aversano, Lowry’s charter is to identify opportunities for deeper collaboration and greater efficiency across the global transaction advisory group, focusing on regional cohesion in support of its growth strategy. Lowry previously served as the chief of staff for Verizon’s chief creative officer after a decade-long career leading global corporate brand communications strategies and executive visibility initiatives.

Leemans has more than a decade of financial due diligence and operational experience and will reporting directly to Licursi. She will focus on optimizing financial and operational processes that drive efficiency, maximize performance and deliver tangible results for clients. Prior to joining Alvarez & Marsal, Leemans worked in KPMG’s transaction advisory practice in the Netherlands. Leemans is a fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

“Global TAG’s ability to successfully scale capabilities, geographies, lines of service and talent is rooted in optimizing its operational rigor to maximize value for clients,” Licursi said. “Our executive office initiative further enhances A&M’s integrated global platform and structural competitive advantages including freedom from audit-based conflicts and active senior leader engagement.”