For decades, ascending the hierarchy to ultimately secure the position of partner at one of the world’s leading professional services organizations—the Big Four—has been regarded as one of the most prestigious and highly sought-after career achievements in the corporate arena. Such an accomplishment was historically synonymous with not only substantial financial rewards but also significant social influence, industry recognition, and professional gravitas. This trajectory was so deeply ingrained as a pinnacle of success that senior figures in consulting rarely considered stepping away from the security and prestige it offered. Moving into a smaller firm, let alone a fledgling startup, was traditionally perceived as a high-risk gamble, one that compromised both personal reputation and financial security.
However, the emergence of artificial intelligence as a transformative force across the consulting landscape is now reshaping those longstanding assumptions. AI-driven disruption is prompting a growing number of executives—many at the peak of their careers—to reevaluate their roles and reconsider what they truly want out of their professional futures. Where once stability and prestige dictated career choices, today factors such as agility, innovation, and the opportunity to make a tangible impact are commanding attention. Conversations with Business Insider revealed that several former senior leaders from top global consultancy powerhouses have voluntarily left to join smaller, more dynamic enterprises. Analyst James Ransome described this as part of a broader “exodus” of senior talent from traditional firms that once dominated the sector.
These professionals explained that their motivations were multifaceted. They were attracted to the faster operational tempo of smaller businesses, the accelerated path toward leadership opportunities, and, perhaps most importantly, the genuine sense that their contributions significantly shaped the organization’s direction. For them, leaving meant exchanging bureaucratic slow-moving environments for the chance to influence strategy more directly. Ransome, who heads partner hiring and strategy consulting at Patrick Morgan, emphasized that this trend is not isolated. He noted that Big Four companies, as well as the elite MBB firms, are witnessing a steady outflow of senior leaders toward mid-market consultancies and entrepreneurial startups—entities that are increasingly backed by private equity and strengthened by the integration of cutting-edge AI solutions.
Meanwhile, the Big Four themselves face mounting challenges: diminished demand for consulting services after COVID, intensifying competition, and the burdens of hierarchical decision-making structures. Their traditional reliance on slow, standardized processes has put them at a disadvantage compared with competitors more adept at rapid adaptation. Boutique firms such as Alvarez & Marsal, Teneo, FTI Consulting, and Annex Partners have emerged as attractive alternatives, now recruiting senior executives they could not have enticed even a few years ago. Notable departures reinforce this trend. In 2024, for example, FTI Consulting recruited Jeff Wray and Brian Salsberg—respected leaders from EY-Parthenon. Similarly, two influential figures, Steve Varley, former UK chair of EY, and Marissa Thomas, former COO of PwC, left to establish their own venture, Unity Advisory, reflecting entrepreneurial diversification. West Monroe, another midsize player, reported a 25% increase in unsolicited approaches from Big Four professionals—a significant statistic that underscores shifting ambitions and priorities.
Several forces are driving this redirection of talent. One powerful factor is the aftermath of the pandemic, which left consulting demand depressed and clients more cost-conscious. During the pandemic period, major firms had heavily invested in acquiring top-level professionals, inadvertently creating oversaturation at senior levels. As growth slowed, the criteria for promotion tightened, reducing opportunities for upward mobility and diluting the financial rewards once taken for granted by partners. Inevitably, this atmosphere has prompted both voluntary departures in pursuit of more rewarding ventures and involuntary exits tied to redundancy, as evidenced by PwC’s restructuring in 2024. Private equity’s increasing investment in boutique consultancies has only intensified this movement, as such funding allows these firms to offer lucrative compensation models and equity-sharing opportunities that rival or even surpass what is available in traditional consultancies.
At a deeper level, the lure of innovation—particularly AI—is accelerating this shift. Senior consulting leaders often describe feeling frustrated by the inertia within large organizations, where even straightforward decisions are subject to lengthy approval cycles. In contrast, startups and smaller firms offer nimbleness, streamlined structures, and the freedom to quickly adapt services or strategies to emerging trends. For example, Gert De Geyter, once the AI lead at Deloitte US, left in 2024 to join Teragonia, a startup leveraging AI at its core. He explained that despite having pioneered Deloitte’s AI department, career advancement still required navigating the lengthy process of becoming a partner. Teragonia’s proposition—building and scaling a new AI-driven practice within a flexible and fast-paced environment—proved more compelling, ultimately persuading him to make the leap.
Examples like De Geyter’s highlight a broader psychological pattern: talented professionals are betting their futures on being early contributors to firms that drive, rather than merely respond to, AI transformation. According to industry analyst Tom Rodenhauser, departures of leaders seeking more innovative and less bureaucratic opportunities are hardly unprecedented. What stands out now, however, is the convergence of AI’s transformative potential with the prestige of these individuals, intensifying the significance of the current wave.
The generational dimension further strengthens the trend. Many emerging leaders are unwilling to wait twenty years to earn influence in the rigid hierarchies of large consultancies. They see peers climbing the ladder faster at more agile firms, sometimes reaching senior leadership in under a decade. High-performing professionals often perceive that entrenched partners in Big Four firms, buoyed by legacy client portfolios, are effectively coasting. This realization inspires ambitious figures to seek environments in which meritocracy and rapid progression shape careers more decisively. For instance, Nargis Yunis, who became a partner at EY in 2019, soon observed that she was effectively at the beginning of yet another long climb within an entrenched structure. Leaving in 2021 for Forvis Mazars, she advanced to head of asset management far more quickly than she could have within EY—a position she estimated would have otherwise required at least an additional decade to achieve.
For Yunis, the motivation was not solely financial compensation; it was the empowerment to create meaningful impact and influence organizational culture. Similarly, others stress that while remuneration matters, the sense of agency, creative authority, and future potential can outweigh immediate monetary benefits. Nonetheless, some, like De Geyter, found that smaller firms offered competitive or even superior compensation structures, particularly when coupled with equity options backed by private investment. In either case, the convergence of opportunity, satisfaction, and financial sustainability is redefining traditional measures of consulting success.
For the Big Four and other large consultancies, the question now is how to retain their most talented professionals in this evolving ecosystem. On one hand, attrition might help trim bloated organizations, but the risk remains that continued losses will erode competitive advantage and market share. Firms are attempting to adapt by reassessing talent strategies, pursuing nearshore and offshore capabilities, and even restructuring leadership models to emphasize regional decision-making rather than only national silos. Yet, as Ransome notes, the essence of the challenge lies in reconciling bureaucratic DNA with the entrepreneurial spirit that rising professionals increasingly seek. Some organizations acknowledge the shift, with EY highlighting its global scale and opportunities for development as unique advantages. However, adapting effectively requires much more than rhetoric. It necessitates integrating AI strategically, upskilling talent internally, and modernizing compensation and ownership structures, all while retaining the trust and reputation that define these institutions.
Ultimately, the consulting sector is undergoing a profound rebalancing of priorities. Where once prestige, financial stability, and hierarchical ascendancy dominated career trajectories, today autonomy, innovation, and alignment with disruptive technologies are capturing the imagination of consulting’s brightest minds. This generational and technological inflection point suggests a future where boutique firms and startups, once secondary players, may increasingly shape the direction of the profession itself. For now, the exodus from the Big Four underscores one reality: the consulting elite is redefining the meaning of success, guided as much by ambition and innovation as by the promise of tradition.
Sourse: https://www.businessinsider.com/big-four-consulting-senior-leaders-exodus-leave-for-startups-2025-8
