EY-Parthenon adds EY’s Strategy & Transactions team to become 25,000-person business
EY-Parthenon has significantly expanded its size and global footprint with the addition of EY’s complete Strategy & Transactions team, lifting its headcount to over 25,000 people across 150 countries.
Established in 2014 following EY’s acquisition of The Parthenon Group, EY-Parthenon is the company’s strategy consulting outfit. Under EY’s wings, EY-Parthenon grew from its initial size of 350 staff to over 9,000 at the start of this year – but that number is now being nearly tripled following the bolt-on of EY’s Strategy & Transactions business.
The deal will see EY-Parthenon expand its capabilities from strategic services such as corporate strategy, mergers & acquisitions (mainly commercial due diligence) and commercial strategy to also include a range of services around financial advisory (corporate finance, transaction support, restructuring), performance improvement (value creation, optimization), and business transformation.
Andrea Guerzoni, EY-Parthenon’s Global Vice Chair said that the move is designed to bring together the full strategy and management consulting capabilities of the organization under one roof.
“At a time of heightened geopolitical uncertainty and relentless tech-driven transformational change, client demand around strategic consultancy is evolving. This newly expanded proposition is meeting those new demands, focusing on delivering real-world value – solutions that work in practice, not just on paper.”
“With its deep functional talent and sector capabilities, innovative AI-powered technology and investor mindset, EY-Parthenon collaborates with CEOs, boards, private equity and governments on every step of their transformation journey – helping them to shape the future with confidence.”
Janet Truncale, EY Global Chair and CEO, added: “Expanding the EY-Parthenon brand is a pivotal step in reinforcing EY’s strategic consulting offerings to meet the challenges of tomorrow. The strengthened EY-Parthenon will help deliver on our mission and drive value for C-suite and boards.”
“To give CEOs and boards the confidence to reshape their companies’ futures and secure an edge in today’s complex and uncertain landscape, the EY-Parthenon proposition has been reimagined and expanded,” said Jad Shimaly, EY Global Managing Partner for Client Service. “Clients will benefit from a unique combination of global reach, deep sector knowledge, full-spectrum capabilities, seamless cross-border collaboration, and proprietary AI technology and data.”
Market position
With the internal reshuffle, EY now boasts the largest strategy consulting arm of the Big Four. Deloitte’s strategy business, Monitor Deloitte (which was formed after Deloitte bought Monitor Group in 2013), has around 6,000 staff, while PwC’s dedicated strategy business, Strategy& (formed after PwC bought Booz & Company in 2014), has circa 4,500 professionals. The smallest of the four, KPMG's Global Strategy Group, has around 4,000 staff.
With around 25,000 people, the deal will see EY-Parthenon in terms of headcount overtake the likes of Oliver Wyman (7,000) and Bain & Company (20,000), but remain behind market leaders McKinsey & Company (45,000) and Boston Consulting Group (32,000).
Branding and investments
As part of EY-Parthenon’s transition, the firm has refreshed its brand identity in line with the EY’s “Shape the future with confidence” brand expansion announced in June last year.
Meanwhile, EY-Parthenon has also announced it will make a $250 million investment in its AI-tools and collaborations with partners such as Microsoft and including Open AI.
