Refreshing our company to preserve what makes it great

A century of Original thinking, rediscovered

In 2005, A.T. Kearney stood at a crossroads.

After merging with a technology consultancy to expand our reach, we found that we’d lost our culture in the process. Many of our best people were leaving, and with them, a century of shared purpose and promise.

Our partners faced a critical decision: buy back the company and restore what made it original or risk the consequences of maintaining the status quo.

A small group of loyal visionaries opted for the first. They believed that if the partners owned Kearney and recommitted to its values, then the consultancy, its clients, and its people would once again thrive. Turns out, they were right.

That decision didn’t just revive our firm: it renewed our spirit. It reminded us that being refreshing and relatable isn’t just our culture—it’s our competitive edge. And it set the course for the next century of original thinking and lasting impact.

Beginnings: a groundbreaking approach

In 1926, James O. McKinsey founded a firm of “accountants and management engineers” in Chicago. He had the then-radical idea that accountants should not just tally expenses but instead use budgets as a management tool. His first client was Armour and Company, a meatpacking company that had recently been sold to a new owner. It was one of the first expressions of what would later define us: turning insight into impact.

A professor at the University of Chicago, “Mac” was analytically brilliant, but less of a people person. Recognizing that great ideas need great people bringing them to life, he brought in Andrew Thomas (Tom) Kearney as a partner. Tom was a friendly, relatable person who could talk to anyone—exactly the right person to lead the development of the business. He also brought an expertise in marketing and operations that complemented Mac’s skills in accounting and law. And so began a partnership that would launch two of the consulting industry’s leading firms.

A merger with a rival firm, Scovell, Wellington & Company, saw the firm’s footprint extend to New York and Boston. But both sides had very different cultures and leadership styles, and only two years after James McKinsey’s death in 1937, the company split into two, with one group staying in New York and the other in Chicago. Tom led the latter, which took the name McKinsey, A.T. Kearney, and Company.

By then, he’d developed a distinct consulting philosophy based on the notion that consultants not only needed to offer advice to their clients, they then had to roll up their sleeves and help them make the changes—both in the board room and on the shop floor. It was groundbreaking at the time, and exceptionally effective. The firm embraced Tom’s advice-plus-action model and his leadership.

When the New York McKinseys announced plans to open an office in Chicago in 1947, there was some reticence on the basis that having two firms with similar names would cause confusion. The McKinseys bought the sole right to use the McKinsey name, and from then on, Tom’s firm operated as A.T. Kearney and Company. By 1959, it had expanded to employ around 70 people.

By the late 1950s, A.T. Kearney had grown into a thriving, values-driven consultancy. But more than its size or reach, what set the firm apart was its character—a culture built on the conviction that doing the right thing is not just good business, but the essential rightness that drives true impact.

Going global

Though Tom Kearney once believed that Chicago held all the opportunity the firm would ever need, his vision—and that of his successors—soon outgrew even the skyline. As new clients came on board, Kearney began to stretch its wings. In the late 1950s, the firm took its first tentative steps into international waters, forming affiliations with consultants across Western Europe.

Tom retired in 1961 and unfortunately passed away the following year. His handpicked successor, Jim Phelan, was devoted to the values Tom championed. But he also wanted the firm to grow, and under his leadership, that’s exactly what happened. By 1961, one Chicago partner was dedicated to international business, and in 1964, the firm’s first international office was opened in Düsseldorf, starting with one client, a small family-owned garden equipment business. That same year, with just under 25 partners, the firm was formally incorporated.

The expansion continued through the remainder of the 1960s and into the 1970s, as the firm elected its first non-American partners, established investment promotion authorities in multiple countries, and worked to open China to Western development. In 1971, it began one of its most significant and enduring external partnerships, with the European Management Forum, now known as the World Economic Forum—proof that our influence extended beyond commerce to help shape global dialogue.

By the following decade, the mantra of global expansion and leadership had taken off. The company opened offices across Europe and Asia. Revenue hit $100 million for the first time, the employee count shot past 1,000, and the firm started to branch into new areas such as information technology, business strategy, and organization transformation, becoming the leader in strategic sourcing. By 1990, more than 40 percent of the firm’s revenue came from strategy work, and the establishment of the Global Business Policy Council in 1992 boosted its credibility with C-suite executives and political leaders.

During these golden years, double-digit growth was the norm. Through this remarkable growth, Kearney’s leaders never lost sight of what made the firm essentially right: a culture grounded in people. They codified Tom and Jim’s values—boldness, solidarity, generosity, curiosity, and passion—into firmwide programs focused on mentorship, client excellence, and care for one another. These weren’t just corporate ideals. They were the living proof that our impact first mindset worked across every border and every generation.

Culture clash, company crisis, and a comeback

Of course, hyper-growth comes with its own challenges, including the need to adapt quickly to new capability requirements and maintaining a favorable cash position. By 1995, it was unclear how the firm would tackle either of these hurdles.

And then things took an unexpected turn.

Electronic Data Systems Corporation (EDS), an IT services giant, bought Kearney in a 50/50 cash/stock deal. It had the IT expertise the firm was lacking and deep enough pockets to invest in infrastructure. It was also keen to expand its presence in the consulting market. The merger worked well for the first few years, doubling the size of the consultancy and expanding its technology capabilities, notably in procurement analytics. Yet as the years passed, a tension grew between two cultures.

By the early 2000s, the dot-com collapse intensified that divide. Costs rose, trust faltered, and the sense of essential rightness that had long defined Kearney began to fade. A small group of firm leaders proposed a management buyback—a gutsy move, but one that they knew was necessary for Kearney’s success. They negotiated terms with EDS and ultimately convinced the firm’s 177 global partners in 26 countries that reclaiming their company was the next best step.

It was a reset that would become a rebirth. Though the firm had 2,500 people and 47 offices, it felt like starting fresh—with energy, ownership, and optimism. What followed was a renaissance. Revenue surged by 50 percent, offices expanded across Latin America, and Kearney once again became synonymous with excellence and authenticity.

By 2016, as the firm celebrated its 90th anniversary, new frontiers opened: acquisitions such as Cervello brought advanced analytics and data strategy into the fold, preparing the firm for the next wave of transformation. In 2020, we shortened our name to Kearney—a simple statement of confidence and clarity.

That same year, we reintroduced ourselves to the world with a brand that reflected who we’ve always been: real, relatable, refreshing. We replaced stock imagery with photos of our own people—the Kearney Originals—to honor the humanity and creativity that fuel our impact.

This spirit defines us as we move into our centenary. The lessons of those years—independence, authenticity, and impact first—aren’t just history. They’re our compass for what comes next.