Booz&Co

Shumeet Banerji

CEO

Booz & Company CEO Shumeet Banerji has seen a lot in his 16 years with the firm—not the least of which was the 2008 sale of its U.S. government consulting division and the spin-off of the global commercial business as a separate company. But Banerji is confident that right now is a great phase in the history of his newly-relaunched firm. He is excited and eager to continue the firm’s tradition of providing insight and impact on top organizations around the globe.

Can you talk about the decision to sell Booz Allen Hamilton and become Booz & Company?
The firm had two sides to it for many years: a very successful U.S. government consulting business, and a global management consulting firm. Over the last several years, we’ve asked ourselves whether these two things belonged in the same portfolio. We decided creating two viable companies with clearly identified missions and strategies was the right thing to do. So we sold our U.S. government business to the Carlisle Group, and spun out Booz & Company. We think it’s a great transaction that puts both sides of the firm in a very good place.

So is now a good time for MBAs to join the company?
It’s an outstanding time to consider Booz & Company as a place to begin a career in consulting. That’s because this is a “94-years-new” company— it is a global institution with an established reputation, but we have the momentum that comes along with the relaunch. Growth, enthusiasm, and energy create opportunities for careers, and for someone who is interested in consulting, this is a very good place to be right now.

What’s the biggest challenge you face leading this re-launched company?
We just pulled off an industry leading transaction by selling our government consulting business—doing strategy on yourself is quite hard to do, and pulling off an elegant financial and legal transaction is even more difficult. We’ve been dealing with challenges as we get this thing going, but I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about the situations to come. There are exciting times ahead of us, and I just want to make sure we maintain that sense that Booz people have, of wanting to bring the best of the firm to every client.

Where do you see the company headed into the future?
We will have a greater degree of focus on what we are about now that we are Booz & Company, which I believe will be very helpful for us. And I think five years down the road, we’ll be an even more global firm, and will continue to be one of the respected voices serving companies around the world.

What’s the best part of your job?
It is a privilege to work for an institution that has impact and influence on corporations and governments around the world. I travel a lot, and the exposure that I get on a global basis to the issues of the day that companies and governments are dealing with is great—and to get to do all that with the colleagues I have is just phenomenal.