Name: McKinsey bosses weighing thousands of job cuts
Uploaded: 2025-12-15T16:22:12.735Z
Duration: 2 min 39 s
Description: McKinsey & Co. 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.

McKinsey & Co. 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.

McKinsey & Company is considering reducing its workforce by up to 10% in non-client facing departments over the next two years, potentially affecting thousands of employees. The move comes as the firm faces flatlining revenue growth and broader challenges within the consulting industry, including the impact of artificial intelligence on hiring needs.

The company, which expanded its workforce from 17,000 to 45,000 employees between 2012 and 2022, has already reduced headcount to 40,000 in the past two years. Previous job cuts, such as Project Magnolia, resulted in 1,400 layoffs, and the net reduction by the end of 2025 is expected to reach 5,000 employees. McKinsey's actions are seen as indicative of wider trends affecting consultancies, law firms, and banks.

McKinsey bosses weighing thousands of job cuts

Partners at consulting giant McKinsey are discussing job cuts at their own firm and it could be in the number of thousands of employees. Leadership could cut staff as much as 10 percent across non-client facing departments over the next two years as revenue growth flatlines. Bloomberg's Walsh Wall Street chief correspondent Sridhar Nadarajan reported on this and joins us now. So McKinsey you know typically the one to say you should cut jobs at your firm now looking to slim down itself. It's a it's a window into the challenging period that the consulting industry overall is facing. This is not a McKinsey only issue. And you have to be mindful of the fact that in the prior decade McKinsey had really grown its head count quite a bit. However we've seen a little bit of flatlining in their revenue over the last five years. And that is why despite the bravado in front of the partners where their global managing partners Bob Stern fells was just recently talking about this idea that they're ready to kick some ass that those who believe in this mission will see good times ahead. There is a more pragmatic message percolating through the entire firm and that is it is time to get leaner. And they rightly point out one of their spokesmen actually tells us that much as they advise their own clients they realize there is a need to force some efficiency especially in their support functions. I saw in your story from 2012 to 20 22 they've gone from 17000 at one point to forty five thousand employees. So beefing up massively at the same time. Well now as a lot of consultancies a lot of law firms a lot of you know banks are saying we don't necessarily need to hire as many first year employees because I can do all of this work for them. And it is notable that they themselves in their own statement flick at the idea that A.I. is having profound impacts on business and society. And yes that is why even in the last two years you've seen McKinsey's head can't go from forty five thousand to forty thousand. So it will be interesting to see where the head can't actually ends up in five years from now. These things never move in a straight line. The last time around they had a big round of job cuts. They called it Project Magnolia internally. They said about 1400 jobs were lost. That'd be two years ago. But when we hear 2025 end of 2025 the headcount reduction actually the net reduction is down 5000. So that could well be tapping some consultants on the shoulders and saying time to get out. Not hiring as many. So because of all the changes ahead of us challenges faced by the consulting industry and rightly what you point out when they look at their clients and whether the changes you're seeing at law firms even banks at the initial stages of the junior stages. How will the consulting firms react to that. And how does McKinsey the flag bearer of that industry react to that. It will matter quite a bit.

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