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Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC make up the Big 4 — here's how they compare

17 December 2024 at 05:31
London skyline

Vuk Valcic/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

  • The Big Four β€” EY, Deloitte, KPMG, and PwC β€” are the world's largest accounting and consulting firms.
  • They pull in billions annually but have faced a slowdown in demand for their services.
  • This is how the Big Four have performed in recent years, and how they're looking to adapt in future.

Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC are the world's largest accounting and consulting firms, known as the Big Four.

With histories dating back to the 19th century, they have grown into billion-dollar companies employing hundreds of thousands of staff who earn high salaries and often work very long hours.

The Big Four offer companies services such as workforce transformations, reshaping corporate finance portfolios, assurance, valuation, and optimizing the use of technology.

Put simply, they're there to assess businesses and tell them how to run more efficiently.

The pandemic changed the landscape for the major firms, with a surge in demand that sparked a hiring boom. The Big Four are now attempting to balance operations amid slowing demand.

Here's a look at where the Big Four stand.

EY

After a series of mergers, EY was formed in 1989 as the accountancy firm Ernst & Young. It has since diversified its offerings and, in 2013, rebranded to EY.

Headquartered in central London, EY has more than 700 offices in 150 countries. Janet Truncale, the global chair and CEO, took over from Carmine Di Sibio in July.

EY focuses heavily on consultancy and assurance but also covers tax and strategy, and transactions.

EY office London
EY has been praised for its approach to diversity.

Jack Taylor/Getty Images

Revenue was up 3.9% on the previous year to $51.2 billion, according to the firm's latest annual report published in October. It was EY's poorest performance since 2010. Assurance services were its largest revenue generator.

In May 2024, the firm was caught up in a scandal along with PwC and fined $11.7 million by UK authorities for a series of auditing failures.

As pressure has mounted, EY cut UK partner payouts by 5% and laid off employees. Overall employee numbers dropped by 2,450 during EY's latest financial year β€” the first decrease in 14 years.

EY's global head count now stands at about 393,000.

In 2023, the firm launched EY.ai, an AI platform aiming to assist clients across all its professional services. It also offers clients a conversational AI assistant called EYQ.

Deloitte

Deloitte is the largest of the Big Four by both revenue and employees.

Founded in the UK in 1845, Deloitte expanded into the US in 1890. It is headquartered in London and has more than 700 offices in some 150 countries. It's known for strong business and technology consulting services.

Joe Ucuzoglu has been its global CEO since 2022.

In March, Deloitte announced a major restructuring aimed at cutting costs and repositioning it for future success.

It is "modernizing and simplifying" its core offering into four categories: audit and assurance, tax and legal strategy, risk and transactions, and technology and transformation.

Deloitte Global CEO Joe Ucuzoglu
Deloitte Global CEO Joe Ucuzoglu.

Jim Spellman/Getty Images

Global revenue climbed 3.1% to $67.2 billion in the 2024 financial year, but, like EY, that performance was far lower than the 14.9% growth in 2023.

The slowdown has affected partner payouts, which fell by 4.5% to about $1.27 million. Equity partners took home roughly $63,000 less than they did a year ago.

Deloitte's global workforce expanded to 460,000 in 2024, an increase of 3,000.

Deloitte has pledged to invest $3 billion in AI by fiscal year 2030 and has partnered with technology industry leaders Nvidia, Google Cloud, and AWS to develop its client offering.

PwC

PwC is often considered the most prestigious of the Big Four, and topped the latest Vault Accounting 25 ranking.

Officially formed in 1998 from a merger between Price Waterhouse and Coopers & Lybrand, PwC's headquarters is almost opposite EY's main office in London.

Mohamed Kande has been the global chairman since July.

PwC has three core lines of business β€” assurance, advisory, and tax and legal services β€” but the firm is particularly known for its strong and well-established audit client base.

It employs more than 370,000 people in 149 countries and territories.

In 2021, PwC committed to creating over 100,000 net new jobs over a five-year period, and in October 2024, it said it had already hit three-quarters of that target.

PwC logo outside office at More London location
PwC hit record-high revenues in the financial year 2024.

Jack Taylor/Getty Images

PwC was the second-highest earning of the Big Four, posting record gross revenue of $55.4 billion and 3.7% annual growth in the year to June 30.

Though not as stark a slowdown as Deloitte or EY, growth at PwC still dropped noticeably compared to the 9.9% rise reported for the previous 12 months.

A number of high-profile scandals in the Asia-Pacific region involving its work with the Australian and Chinese governments damaged business.

To handle the changing environment, PwC cut partner pay by 5%, leaving partners taking home an average of $1.09 million this financial year.

In October The Wall Street Journal reported that the firm would make its first major layoffs since 2009 and cut 1,800 jobs.

PwC has invested $1.5 billion to expand and scale its AI capabilities. In February 2024, it unveiled a tax AI assistant for 2,300 PwC tax professionals in the UK to use.

KPMG

The smallest of the Big Four in terms of revenue and employees, KPMG is headquartered in Amsterdam and has a long-serving leader in chairman and chief executive Bill Thomas.

Its core services cover audit, tax and legal, and advisory.

The last of the Big Four to report its 2024 results, KPMG reported in December that in the 12 months to September 30, it saw revenues of $38.4 billion, a rise of just over 5% compared to 2023.

Overall, its revenues are the lowest among the Big Four, close to $20 billion less than its three competitors.

KPMG logo outside office
KPMG is lagging behind its three major competitors.

Liam McBurney/PA Images via Getty Images

KPMG has faced scrutiny across several markets for its auditing and accounting work. In 2023, it was fined a record $26 million in the UK after "exceptional" failures in its accounting work.

Employee numbers grew by just over 1% in the 2024 financial year to reach 275,000. That's 185,000 people fewer than Deloitte.

Over 2024, KPMG has made a series of layoffs. About 330 staff, or 4%, were cut from its US audit practice; 5% cut across advisory, tax, and back-office functions; and 2% from its advisory workforce in 2023, according to Accountancy Age.

KPMG said it is looking to invest more in specialist roles in areas like ESG, tax, and technology.

While it lags behind in revenues, the firm is seen to foster a less cutthroat workplace than its competitors. The firm has said it aims to have women in a third of partner or director roles by 2025.

According to its latest report, women hold 29.9% of leadership roles.

What's your experience of working at the Big Four accountancy firms? Contact this reporter in confidence at [email protected]

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An entire team of EY lawyers jumped ship to a major US law firm

12 December 2024 at 04:03
EY logo
EY's legal arm in the UK has cut jobs in the past year.

Soeren Stache/picture alliance via Getty Images

  • A team of eleven lawyers from EY have left the firm to join Hunton Andrews Kurth, a US law firm.
  • US law firms are expanding their presence in the UK to serve global clients.
  • EY's legal division has cut jobs over the past year and is reportedly considering restructuring.

Eleven lawyers from the Big Four firm EY have been poached by the London office of Hunton Andrews Kurth, a US law firm.

The team of departees includes Charles Morrison, a partner and former head of EY's energy-services team; three other partners; a counsel; a consultant; and five associates, the firm said in a statement. They will focus on transactions in the energy sector.

Hunton Andrews Kurth is an energy and infrastructure specialist. It's the 70th-largest law firm in the US by employee numbers, with 754 lawyers in 2023, according to Law.com.

Sam Danon, Hunton Andrews Kurth's managing partner, said that the group "aligns well with our international growth strategy, which is focused on ensuring that we've achieved critical mass in key practices, in core industry focus areas and in geographies where client demand is strong."

Hunton Andrews Kurth has seen demand for its services rise in recent years. Law.com said the firm's revenue rose by 3.5% to $823 million in 2023.

The team's move also plays into a wider trend in the industry β€” the growing presence of US law firms in the UK. Firms like Latham & Watkins have been building their UK teams to leverage their American client bases in Europe, often poaching staff from legacy British establishments.

Ferdinand Calice, a managing partner of Hunton Andrews Kurth's London office, said the energy-focused corporate and disputes teams in London had "experienced tremendous growth" in the past year.

Since August 2023, more than two dozen lawyers, including two more former EY staffers, have been added to the London office.

EY's legal division in the UK has been struggling. In the past year, the firm has closed down a business unit and held several rounds of layoffs, Financial News reported.

In October, sources told the paper that EY was reviewing the future of its legal arm in the region, considering further layoffs and a joint venture deal with a major international law firm.

EY recorded its poorest performance since 2010 this year, with global revenue rising 3.9% on the previous year to $51.2 billion β€” a decline on the 16% growth recorded the year before. The slowdown has also hit fellow its Big Four firms: PwC, KPMG, and Deloitte.

EY did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Do you work in the legal division at one of the Big Four firms? Contact this reporter in confidence at [email protected].

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McKinsey reportedly promoted its smallest new partner class in years amid a consulting slowdown

10 December 2024 at 04:28
The McKinsey & Company logo on a building.
McKinsey promoted around 200 people to partner this year, a substantial drop from 2023.

Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images

  • McKinsey will promote about 200 people to partner this year, The Wall Street Journal reported.
  • That's down from about 250 partner promotions in 2023.
  • Partner payouts at the Big Four consultancies have been falling amid a tough climate for professional services.

Consulting firm McKinsey is promoting one of the smallest groups in recent years to the level of partner.

The firm is only advancing about 200 employees to the coveted position, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing unnamed sources. That marks a 20% reduction from 2023 and as much as half the level of other recent years.

In 2023, McKinsey created about 250 partners, while the number was more than 400 in 2021.

Many employees at major consulting firms view reaching the role of partner as the pinnacle of achievement, a sign of excellence and dedication. Partnerships are participatory, giving individuals a say in the direction of the firm, and those promoted to equity partner receive a share of the annual profits.

That also means any downturn in demand for services hits partners' pockets.

The falling number of partner promotions comes as McKinsey's global staff numbers have grown rapidly. According to its website, there are about 45,000 staff globally, up by almost 50% from the roughly 30,000 people it employed as recently as 2021.

McKinsey did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

McKinsey's partners are not the only senior consultants facing harder times. Partner payouts at the Big Four consultancies have fallen this year.

At EY, partner payouts in the UK were down by 5% this year. UK partners received an average of Β£723,000 (about $938,000), compared with Β£761,000 (about $987,000) the previous year.

At PwC, more partners will take early retirement at the end of this year.

Do you work at a consulting firm? Contact this reporter in confidence to share your thoughts on the industry at [email protected]

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EY is set to cut 150 senior consultants as the Big 4 battles slowing demand

2 December 2024 at 06:38
Ey
The layoffs will affect managers, senior managers, and directors in the 4,700-person unit.

Jack Taylor/Stringer/Getty Images

  • EY is set to cut 150 UK consultancy jobs amid a fall in demand for advisory services.
  • Big Four consulting firms have launched a number of small rounds of cuts in recent months.
  • In October, EY reported its first annual drop in employee head count for 14 years.

EY is set to cut 150 jobs in its UK consultancy division as demand slows for advisory services.

The layoffs at the Big Four firm will affect senior consultants like managers, senior managers, and directors, The Times of London, which first reported the news, said.

"EY regularly reviews the resourcing needs of the business. Regrettably, proposals put forward in part of the UK consulting practice may result in a reduction of 150 roles," an EY spokesperson told Business Insider.

"A consultation process is now underway with those impacted by these proposals."

EY employs around 4,700 people in its consulting division in the UK.

Under UK law, all companies making more than 100 redundancies must carry out a consultation for at least 45 days before dismissing employees.

At the same time as the cuts, Benoit Laclau, the managing partner of EY's consulting business in the UK and Ireland, is stepping down after nearly five years.

Laclau will continue to "serve some of EY's largest clients and lead the firm's technology driven pursuits in the UK."

The news comes amid a struggle among Big Four firms to deal with declining demand for professional services.

According to EY's annual report published in October, the company's head count fell by 2,450 in the year to June 30 β€” the first decrease in 14 years.

Revenue was up 3.9% on the previous year to $51.2 billion, the firm's poorest performance since 2010. And it reported a 4% fall in revenues for consulting and strategy.

EY is not alone in cutting UK staff numbers in recent months. In October, Deloitte cut 250 employees deemed to be underperforming working on consulting and advisory services in the UK.

Deloitte confirmed plans for additional cuts in the advisory division in November.

In its internal messages, Deloitte said the planned cuts were "necessary to enable us to navigate the remainder of a challenging FY25."

Read the original article on Business Insider

'Big Four' salaries: How much accountants and consultants make at Deloitte, PwC, KPMG, and EY

three office employees walking and talking together in an office
Even an entry-level consultant at the "Big Four" can earn over $200,000.

Luis Alvarez/Getty Images

  • The "Big Four" accounting firms employ about 1.5 million people worldwide.Β 
  • Many of these employees make six-figure salaries and are eligible for annual bonuses.Β Β 
  • Business Insider analyzed data to determine how much employees are paid at these firms.Β 

The so called "Big Four" accounting firms β€” Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), KPMG, and Ernst & Young (EY) β€” are known for paying their staff high salaries.Β 

An entry-level consultant who just graduated from business school can make over $200,000 a year at the four firms when you include base salary, bonuses, and relocation expenses.Β 

Several of these firms have faced layoffs and implemented hiring freezes over the past year as demand for consulting services has waned. Still, they're a good bet for anyone looking to land a six-figure job straight out of school.Β 

Business Insider analyzed the US Office of Foreign Labor Certification's 2023 disclosure data for permanent and temporary foreign workers to find out what PwC, KPMG, EY, and Deloitte paid US-based employees for jobs ranging from entry-level to executive roles. We looked through entries specifically for roles related to management consulting and accounting. This data does not reflect performance bonuses, signing bonuses, and compensation other than base salaries.

Here's how much Deloitte, PwC, KPMG, and EY paid their hires.Β Β 

Deloitte paid senior managers between $91,603 to $288,000
Deloitte logo
Deloitte offers its top manager salaries close to mid six figures.

Artur Widak/Getty Images

With 457,000 employees worldwide, Deloitte employs the most people of any of the 'Big Four.' It pulled in close to $64.9 billion in revenue for the 2023 fiscal year, marking a 9.4% increase from 2022.

Deloitte did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its salary data or 2024 hiring plans.

Here are the salary ranges for consulting and accounting roles:Β 

  • Analyst:Β $49,219 to $337,500 (includes advisory, business, project delivery, management, and systems)
  • Senior business analyst: $97,739Β 
  • Audit and assurance senior assistant: average $58,895
  • Consultant: $54,475 to $125,000 (includes advisory, technology strategy, and strategic services)Β Β 
  • Global business process lead: $180,000Β 
  • Senior consultant: average $122,211
  • Manager: average $152,971
  • Tax manager: average $117,268
  • Senior manager:Β $91,603 to $288,000Β Β 
  • Managing director: average $326,769
  • Tax managing director: average $248,581
  • Principal: $225,000 to $875,000
Principals at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) can make well over $1 million.
logo of PwC
PwC.

Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) is a global professional services firm with over 370,000 employees worldwide. The firm reported a revenue of more than $53 billion for the 2023 fiscal year, marking a 5.6% increase from 2022.Β 

PwC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its salary data or 2024 hiring plans.

Here are the salary ranges for both consulting and accounting roles.Β 

  • Associate: $68,000 to $145,200
  • Senior associate: $72,000 to $197,000Β 
  • Manager: $114,300 to $231,000
  • Senior manager: $142,000 to $251,000Β 
  • Director: $165,000 to $400,000Β Β 
  • Managing director: $260,000 to $330,600
  • Principal: $1,081,182 to $1,376,196
KPMG offers managing directors anywhere between $230,000 to $485,000
The logo of KPMG, a multinational tax advisory and accounting services company, hangs on the facade of a KPMG offices building on January 22, 2021 in Berlin, Germany.
KPMG managing directors can earn close to half a million.

Sean Gallup/Getty Images

KPMG has over 273,000 employees worldwide. The firm reported a revenue of $36 billion for the 2023 fiscal year, marking a 5% increase from 2022.Β 

KPMG did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its salary data or 2024 hiring plans.

Here are the salary ranges for consultants, accountants, and leadership at KPMG.Β 

  • Associate:Β $61,000 to $140,000
  • Senior associate:Β $66,248 to $215,000
  • Director: $155,600 to $260,000
  • Associate director:Β $155,700 to $196,600Β 
  • Specialist director: $174,000 to $225,000
  • Lead specialist:Β $140,500 to $200,000
  • Senior specialist:Β $134,000 to $155,000
  • Manager:Β $99,445 to $293,800
  • Senior manager:Β $110,677 to $332,800
  • Managing director:Β $230,000 to $485,000
Statisticians at Ernst & Young (EY) make salaries ranging between $66,000 to $283,500.
Pedestrians walk in front of the entrance to EY's head office in London.
EY spends $500 million annually on learning for its employees.

TOLGA AKMEN / Contributor / Getty

EY employs close to 400,000 people worldwide. For the 2023 fiscal year, the firm reported a record revenue of $49.4 billion, marking a 9.3% jump from 2022.Β 

The firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its salary data or 2024 hiring plans.

Here are the salary ranges for consultants, accountants, auditors, and chief executives at the firm:Β 

  • Accountants and auditors: $54,000 to $390,000
  • Appraisers and assessors of real estate: $166,626 to $185,444
  • Computer systems analyst: $62,000 to $367,510
  • Management analyst: $49,220 to $337,500
  • Statistician:Β $66,000 to $283,500
  • Financial risk specialist: $62,000 to $342,400
  • Actuaries: $84,800 to $291,459
  • Economist: $77,000 to $141,000
  • Logisticians: $72,000 t0 $275,000
  • Mathematicians: $165,136 to $377,000
  • Computer and information systems manager: $136,167 to $600,000
  • Financial manager: average $320,000

Aman Kidwai and Weng Cheong contributed to an earlier version of this post.Β 

Read the original article on Business Insider

More PwC partners take early retirement amid consulting slowdown

23 November 2024 at 03:03
PwC
PwC is restructuring its UK operations under new boss Marco Amitrano.

Michael Kappeler/picture alliance via Getty Images

  • Dozens of UK partners at PwC will take early retirement in December, Sky News reported.
  • The larger-than-usual cohort comes as Big Four firms grapple with declining revenues.
  • Partner payouts at PwC also took a hit this year, declining by 5%.

More PwC partners than usual will take early retirement at the end of this year, marking another shake-up at the firm's UK division since the appointment of a new boss, Marco Amitrano, in Spring.

PwC's 1,030 UK partners were informed this week via a voice memo from Amitrano that dozens of partners would take early retirement next month, Sky News reported.

The cohort of early retirees was larger than usual, though one insider disputed that the numbers involved were "significant," Sky News reported.

The Big Four firm appointed 60 new UK partners earlier this year.

Senior employees at the Big Four consultancies β€” Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC, all of which are privately held β€” can be promoted to partners, and some are offered equity ownership in the business. In addition to salary and bonuses, equity partners traditionally receive a share of annual profits.

The jump in partners taking early retirement follows a series of changes following Amitrano's elevation to senior partner for the UK and Middle East in April.

Amitrano has launched an overhaul of operations in the UK, including creating a standalone technology and artificial intelligence unit and merging other parts of the business to create six new teams, the FT reported in October.

Almost all the major consulting firms have been grappling with a slowdown in business this year following the end of the pandemic-era rush on advisory services. The firms have been restructuring divisions, laying off employees, and making cuts to limit revenue decline.

Partner payouts have been one area targeted for cuts at EY, Deloitte, and PwC. UK partners at PwC took home an average of Β£862,000 (about $1.1 million) this financial year, 5% less than they did in 2023.

PwC, which is the largest of the Big Four by revenue in the UK, is also facing higher taxes per employee after the country's recently elected Labour government increased the rate of national insurance contributions (a tax on earnings) employers must pay.

PwC declined to comment.

Do you work at PwC? Contact this reporter in confidence to share your thoughts on the industry at [email protected]

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Deloitte plans to cut hundreds of jobs in its advisory division

20 November 2024 at 03:48
Deloitte
Deloitte said the "challenging market" was forcing it to consider the shape of the business.

Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

  • Deloitte is planning to cut more roles from its advisory division.
  • The "ongoing challenging market" is forcing the firm to restructure, a spokesperson said.
  • The growth rate in Deloitte's global consulting division has fallen from 19% in 2023 to 1.9% in 2024.

Deloitte plans to cut more staff from its advisory division as demand for consultancy services declines.

The Big Four firm informed staff on Tuesday that parts of its UK business would be undergoing a restructuring process that would "put some roles at risk of redundancy," Deloitte told Business Insider.

A Deloitte spokesperson said the job cuts were still subject to consultation. Under UK law, all companies making more than 100 redundancies must carry out a consultation for at least 45 days before dismissing employees.

The cuts will affect 180 staff from the strategy, risk and transactions, and the technology and transformation divisions, according to people familiar with the decision, The Financial Times reported.

Deloitte's restructuring is the latest in over a year of redundancies and firings as it tries to balance costs and workforce numbers against slowing demand for consulting services.

This fall, the firm fired about 250 employees from advisory services in the UK who it deemed to be underperforming. A source with knowledge of the matter told Business Insider in October that about 1% of the UK workforce had left the company as part of internal "performance management processes."

Deloitte also carried out 100 redundancies in February 2024 and 800 redundancies in September 2023.

"In the context of an ongoing challenging market, we have to carefully consider the shape of our firm," Deloitte told BI on Wednesday.

The upheaval comes as the major consulting firms struggle to adjust to slowing demand after a surge in growth during the pandemic.

According to its latest annual report, Deloitte's global consulting revenues grew by 1.9% in the 2024 financial year ending 31 May. Over the same period in 2023, consulting revenues grew by 19.1%.

The slowdown has also affected partner payouts at the firm, which fell by 4.5% to about $1.27 million. Equity partners took home roughly $63,000 less than they did a year ago.

Deloitte's global workforce expanded to 460,000 in the 2024 financial year, an increase of 3,000. Tens of thousands of new hires were made in the previous two years.

Do you work at Deloitte? Contact this reporter in confidence to share your thoughts on the industry at [email protected]

Read the original article on Business Insider

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