KPMG has made a series of senior external appointments across its Scottish offices.

Russell Irwin has joined the accountant's Edinburgh office as a director in its management consulting arm.

Mr Irwin has worked in financial services for 30 years, with experience building and leading IT teams of more than 1000 staff. He joins KPMG from Standard Life.

Ryan Aitken has rejoined the Edinburgh office to lead the firm's financial services internal audit team in Scotland. Mr Aitken, most recently head of audit (finance) for the commercial banking and consumer finance at Lloys Banking Group.

The hires come after Moray Barber joined KPMG's Aberdeen office as a partner last year, alongside the arrival of Sandra Gilchrist in the tax team.

Craig Anderson, senior partner for KPMG in Scotland, said: "These recent appointments are indicative of the significant investment being made across all areas of KPMG's business in Scotland to support our ambitious growth plans. We are delighted to welcome Russell and Ryan to our team. They bring a wealth of specialised expertise to the business and will add significant value to our clients across a wide variety of sectors."