Global consultancy Oliver Wyman sets sights on fivefold growth in India
Following years of steady growth in India, Oliver Wyman has entered a phase of acceleration in the country. Senior leaders Pedro Oliveira and Sumit Sarawgi discuss the firm’s ambitious plan to grow fivefold over the next four years and highlight where they see the hottest opportunities.
Headquartered in the United States, Oliver Wyman is one of the world’s leading strategy and management consulting firms. The company helps clients tackle topics such as strategy, organisation, mergers & acquisitions, finance, supply chain, digital transformation, and more.
Oliver Wyman first launched in India in 2008 and now operates from offices in Mumbai and New Delhi. With the nation continuing to grow its significance on the global stage and the local consulting market projected to double by 2030, the firm has set an ambitious growth strategy in India.
Sumit Sarawgi, Head of Oliver Wyman in India, said: “Anchored by Oliver Wyman’s global capabilities and tailored to India’s unique market dynamics, our ambition is to grow fivefold over the next four years. It’s a big goal, no doubt. We’re humble enough to acknowledge the scale of the challenge, but also confident in our strategy – and our people – to pursue it.”
This ambition is a key pillar for the company’s top leadership team. Pedro Oliveira, Managing Partner for the India, Middle East and Africa region at Oliver Wyman, added: “We’re committing meaningful capital and leadership time to the Indian market.”
While financial services – one of the firm’s powerhouse sectors worldwide – remains core to its offering in India, Oliver Wyman is expanding aggressively across sectors such as technology, energy, healthcare and industrials.
When asked how Oliver Wyman differentiates itself from rivals, both Sarawgi and Oliveira pointed to the firm’s focus on where strategy meets real outcomes. “Our clients are no longer just looking for strategy decks – they want execution, transformation and real impact – and that’s exactly where we bring value.”
The AI opportunity
Alongside geopolitical uncertainty and disruption, artificial intelligence (AI) dominates boardroom conversations across consulting firms worldwide. Oliveira noted that while AI will undoubtedly transform how consulting is delivered, it will not diminish the value of expertise – if anything, it will amplify it.
“The future of consulting will be far more expertise-driven and impact-focused, which, in my view, is a positive shift for the profession.”
He believes AI will be profoundly disruptive across industries – including consulting – but so far, the disruption has largely worked to the advantage of consultants.
“Clients are under enormous pressure to use AI to optimise operations and drive revenue growth – to sell more and sell smarter. But because AI is still relatively nascent, most clients lack the internal capabilities to scale it. That’s where consulting firms like ours come in. In fact, AI-led transformation is currently our fastest-growing segment in the region,” Oliveira said.
