PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business

PwCAdd to myFTGet instant alerts for this topicManage your delivery channels hereRemove from myFTPwC plans overhaul of global consulting businessShake-up spurred on by rise of AI and threat of major upheaval across the industryPwC UK has announced it will merge its risk and consulting divisions, which will advise on matters ranging from AI to supply chain management and regulation © Joan Cros/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesPwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on x (opens in a new window)PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on facebook (opens in a new window)PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on linkedin (opens in a new window)PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on whatsapp (opens in a new window) Save current progress 0%PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on x (opens in a new window)PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on facebook (opens in a new window)PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on linkedin (opens in a new window)PwC plans overhaul of global consulting business on whatsapp (opens in a new window) Save Stephen Foley in New York and Laith Al-Khalaf and Ellesheva Kissin in LondonPublished45 minutes ago6Print this pageUnlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.PwC plans to overhaul its global consulting business in a bid to eliminate the sometimes disjointed service when its national firms work together, which bosses view as a disadvantage against more tightly integrated rivals. A blueprint being drawn up by international leaders is designed to standardise PwC’s services across the globe and increase the use of shared staff in locations such as India, according to five people familiar with the effort. The planning has been given a new urgency by the rise of AI and the threat of major upheaval across the consulting industry, the people said. PwC UK made one of the first moves to adopt the new strategy, telling staff on Tuesday that it would merge its risk and consulting divisions, bringing together two of its three advisory businesses, which sit alongside audit and tax. The deal advisory unit will remain separate.Marco Amitrano, PwC UK senior partner, said: “This decision is about global alignment and we are leading on this along with our colleagues in the US and global firms.”Unlike most multinationals, PwC and the other Big Four accounting and consulting groups — Deloitte, EY and KPMG — are structured as networks of locally owned partnerships under an international umbrella organisation. That often creates complexity when serving multinational clients. PwC’s rivals have merged some member firms or handed significant power to the central organisation. EY planned an even more radical solution of merging all of its locally owned consulting businesses and floating the combined entity on the US stock market, before infighting doomed the plan. Mohamed Kande, the first consultant to be appointed PwC’s global chair, has been pushing for tighter integration but has pulled back from the most radical options for fear of creating friction in the network, according to some of the people familiar with the planning.The reorganisation is still politically fraught, the people said. While global bosses at Big Four firms have long pushed for common standards across all countries, national member firms have historically been resistant to giving up control of parts of their business.The objective is to standardise training and demand planning, and to direct client projects to the parts of the firm’s international operations with appropriate capabilities and highest quality, said one of the people.Another person said PwC would keep its “economic model under review [and] if further territory integration is believed to make us stronger and more effective then we will progress those things”.The blueprint is designed to align service offerings and promote shared technology platforms, such as the AI-led “PwC One” suite of products recently launched by the US business. “Having a more globally integrated business is really important,” PwC US chief executive Paul Griggs told the FT. “Where a client resides shouldn’t limit the expertise of PwC that they receive.”Under the plans, PwC UK’s merged risk and consulting businesses will be led by Jonathan House, who is the current head of consulting, from July. Head of risk, Claire Reid, will become PwC UK’s chief technology and innovation officer, it announced on Tuesday. The enlarged UK consulting division, advising on a range of matters from AI to supply chain management and regulation, will employ 4,600 people and have about £1.1bn in annual revenues. Amitrano said merging service lines would help tackle multinationals’ complex projects. “Today’s challenges don’t fall into neat categories,” he said. “An issue like cyber can cut across geopolitical risk, technological advancement and ultimately business strategy.”The merger would enable quicker advice for clients “rather than . . . saying, ‘we will get back to you in a day because we just need to co-ordinate those [service] lines’”. 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