The digital transformation of the Middle East is continuing at breakneck speed. Governments are spending heavily to modernize their digital infrastructure and operations, with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia investing $11 billion and the United Arab Emirates following closely behind with an $8 billion spend. Consultancies have taken notice of the rapidly growing market and are growing to meet the need, with firm Oliver Wyman recently announcing an agreement to acquire Booz Allen Hamilton’s management consulting business in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Booz Allen’s MENA-based management consulting arm has deep expertise in both the public and private sectors across Energy, Real Estate, Financial Services, and Climate & Sustainability, bolstering Oliver Wyman’s range of offerings in Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Climate & Sustainability. Booz Allen will continue serving U.S. government clients within the MENA region, providing cyber, defense, and security solutions. Booz Allen Executive Vice President and MENA Managing Director Souheil Moukaddem will join Oliver Wyman’s Management Leadership Council as part of the acquisition, with the transaction expected to close in 2022.
“With Oliver Wyman’s unwavering commitment to breakthrough impact, we’ve long admired Booz Allen Hamilton’s shared ethos of client excellence and deep sector expertise of the highest standards,” said Pedro Oliveira, Managing Partner of Oliver Wyman IMEA. “Indeed, Oliver Wyman and Booz Allen already share a long history, with two former Booz Allen Hamilton partners having founded Oliver Wyman, and we are deeply pleased this culture of entrepreneurship and DNA of deep-seated values endures some four decades later. We are confident this move to come together will offer exponential value to our clients, and we look forward to welcoming them to the Oliver Wyman team.”
Booz Allen supports clients in the public and private sectors as one of the Middle East’s longest-serving management consultancies, and its business will be merged into Oliver Wyman’s more than 5,500 professionals serving worldwide. The newly-acquired business unit will focus on management and strategy consulting, operations, risk management, and organizational transformation. With global digital modernization spending forecast to reach $2.8 trillion in 2025, the MENA market is ripe for further growth for consultancies looking to expand their global reach.
