At 100, McKinsey wants to be lean

Consulting giant is looking to trim a few thousand jobs and support functions.

- BY SRIDHAR NATARAJAN AND AMBEREEN CHOUDHURY

MCKINSEY chief Bob Sternfels, shown in 2024, has taken a more optimistic tone.

(AL DRAGO Bloomberg)

As McKinsey & Co. partners gathered in the consulting giant’s birthplace in late October, Bob Sternfels delivered a rallying cry. “We will kick some ass as we start our second century,” the firm’s top executive told the thousands of attendees.

But away from the 100-year festivities in Chicago, McKinsey bosses have been conveying a more pragmatic message: It’s time to get leaner.

The firm’s leadership has discussed with managers in non-client-facing departments the need to cut about 10% of headcount across their business, according to people with knowledge of the matter. That could amount to a few thousand job cuts that McKinsey would stagger over the next 18 to 24 months, the people said, asking to not be identified because the details are private.

For McKinsey, the go-to advisor for companies and countries, it’s the type of cost-cutting approach that its consultants often prescribe to clients. The firm’s revenue growth has flatlined in the last five years, leading to a reset after rapid hiring over the prior decade.

“As our firm marks its 100th year, we're operating in a moment shaped by rapid advances in AI that are transforming business and society,” a McKinsey spokesman said. “Just as we're partnering with clients to strengthen their organizations, we're on our own journey to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our support functions.”