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Big four consultants

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Age of AI

‘Tell me what you can build’: AI boom turns into gold rush for consultants

While the tech industry is looking for ways to make money off artificial intelligence, consultants like McKinsey and KPMG have already started cashing in.

  • Tripp Mickle

Latest

PwC plans to exit staff as part of its reviews following its tax leak scandal have hit a road bump.

PwC tolerated poor behaviour, gave CEO too much power, review finds

PwC Australia oversaw a culture that fostered a “whatever it takes” approach and created a chief executive role that was unaccountable to the board, a new report has found.

  • Sarah Danckert and Natassia Chrysanthos
During a Senate inquiry hearing into consultancy firms, Deloitte Australia CEO Adam Powick acknowledged his annual salary was seven times that of the Prime Minister.

I’m a consultant, but I support a $3 billion spend on the public service

You can’t replace consultants overnight, and if the government strips back their numbers it’s going to need to pay public servants better salaries.

  • Christopher Pyne
Former KPMG partner Brendan Lyon.

Speaking out cost Brendan $2 million. But he says he’d do it again

A former KPMG partner who exposed serious flaws in the NSW rail corporation has told a parliamentary inquiry that he would do it again, despite it costing him his job.

  • Matt O'Sullivan
The big four have been put under the spotlight following the PwC tax scandal.

The $780m target on the backs of embattled consulting giants

The increased penalties Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced earlier this month could create financial chaos for PwC, KPMG, Deloitte and EY.

  • Colin Kruger
The federal government is establishing a new regulator to oversee safety issues relating to the acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines.

‘Unbelievable’: Defence spends $8.5m on consultants for AUKUS nuclear regulator

The contract comes amid a growing debate about the public service’s reliance on external advice for tasks that would once have been performed in-house.

  • Matthew Knott
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An analysis undertaken by the Centre for Public Integrity has found that the consultancies charge the public purse an average of 43 per cent more than the contracts’ original worth.

Big four consulting firms accused of ‘lowball quoting’ to win government contracts

An analysis by the Centre for Public Integrity found taxpayers forked out $1.8 billion more than initially expected for big four consultancy contracts awarded over the past decade.

  • Angus Thompson
The big four have already been put under the spotlight following the PwC tax scandal.

Fear and greed: The consulting sector faces a reckoning

Staff at the biggest firms complain of sexual harassment by untouchable executives and workloads so excessive that some contemplate suicide.

  • Colin Kruger
A bipartisan committee says billions of dollars is potentially being wasted by federal government departments failing to get value for money from major contracts.

Public service puts taxpayer billions at risk by fumbling major contracts

The federal government spends about $80 billion a year on contracts. A bipartisan committee says consulting firms, not taxpayers, are benefiting the most under the current system.

  • Shane Wright
The status quo for the big consultants is no longer an option.

How the PwC virus infected the industry

With the ground shifting beneath them, the big four consultancy firms are now all very happy with the increased regulatory oversight and turbocharged penalties that are coming down the pike. But then what else could they say?

  • Elizabeth Knight

Original URL: https://www.smh.com.au/topic/big-four-consultants-1mq8