With a new government come great cuts—and the Big Four won’t escape the clash. Since he sat on the presidential chair, Donald Trump has conducted a series of measures to restructure the policies at the White House. A key component of this strategy is the newly instituted Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), responsible for revising and cutting expenses in order to increase efficiency. Now, consulting firms are worried.
The secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Doug Collins, even stated on his profile on X that he would work to put an end to or reduce contracts worth about $2 billion with these kinds of companies. “No more paying consultants to do things like make PowerPoint slides and write meeting minutes,” the executive posted on social media.
For decades, federal agencies, just like private companies, have relied on consultants from firms like KPMG, EY, McKinsey, and PwC to provide expertise when building processes, budgets, and capital allocation, with supervision that usually goes from technology implementation to strategic planning. The argument for their role has always been simple: they bring private-sector pace and innovation to a slow-moving, bureaucratic public sector.
Deloitte alone receives about $3.3 billion annually from federal contracts, which currently represents nearly 10% of the firm’s revenue. Booz Allen Hamilton, a consulting company deeply embedded in government work, generates almost all of its $10.7 billion revenue from these contracts. For these companies, the government isn’t just a client—it’s the client.
The General Services Administration (GSA) ordered federal agencies to justify their contracts with 10 consulting firms, hoping that the spending in this area is not just a waste of money, but can be reasonably sustained.
The way ahead
Losing even a fraction of the deals could force them into a painful restructuring, with widespread layoffs. Now, employees at those firms fear job cuts, bringing the debate to a public arena—meaning social media. Meanwhile, Accenture has tightened policies on unassigned employees or people outside any projects, referred to as “bench time” in the sector’s jargon. The company stated that if any employee wasn’t billable at the end of the month, they would be dismissed.
Critics argue that contracts with consulting firms may be inefficient as they stand, but some experts believe the reviews will shift focus rather than completely eliminate business. The Trump administration’s emphasis on automation and AI suggests that while traditional consulting roles may shrink, firms with expertise in these areas could see new opportunities.
In fact, some insiders told local media that consultants may temporarily fill the void left by federal workers who have already been laid off—a strange irony for an administration set on reducing government spending. The review process is still underway, but one thing is clear: for the consulting industry, the days of guaranteed federal contracts are over.
