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Bain projects in middle east/Saudi

Bain & Company
New answer on Nov 27, 2022
7 Answers
1.2 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Nov 24, 2022

Hello guys!

do any of you know what kind of focus Bain have in the  middle east and specifically riyadh office? i know in general Bain tend to have focus on PE but i don't know if that's also the case with ME offices or they are also mainly focusing on the public sector 

Thank you! 

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Rushabh
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Nov 25, 2022
Limited Availability | BCG Expert | Middle East Expert | 100+ Mocks Delivered | IESE & NYU MBA | Ex-KPMG Dxb Consultant

Hello,

From my research and interaction with Bain Middle East folks, here are my thoughts: 

1) Bain has a small practice in the Middle East: Compared to other players like BCG, Strategy&, Kearney etc, Bain is a very small player

2) As a result, they do not bid much for the mainstream projects that are transforming the region

3) Thus, the public sector work which is where all other consulting firms are, is not the largest for Bain ME

4) Majority (30-35%) of the work is Financial Services and Banking. Projects like operating model redesign, enterprise tech projects, etc. 

5) Next largest portfolio is Energy and Natural Resources

6) About 10% or so is Consumer and Retail, Advanced Manufacturing etc

7) There is not much PE in Bain Middle East. The PEG is a growing practice and people are coming in from other offices to slowly expand the portfolio (by working with SWFs etc)

If you would like to learn a bit more about the culture etc, feel free to DM me and happy to jump on a call.

All the best!

Rushabh

 

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Florian
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replied on Nov 25, 2022
Highest-rated McKinsey coach (ratings, offers, sessions) | 500+ offers | Author of The 1% & Consulting Career Secrets

Hi there,

As with anything in the Middle East, Bain focuses heavily on

  • Public Sector
  • Infrastructure
  • Energy/Oil

apart from its PE focus.

Cheers,

Florian

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Clara
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Content Creator
replied on Nov 27, 2022
McKinsey | Awarded professor at Master in Management @ IE | MBA at MIT |+180 students coached | Integrated FIT Guide aut

Hello!

I would assume there is a strong presence of public sector, but it's hard to tell unless you talk to someone who is atm in that office. 

I would suggest you to make this a networking opportunity! 

Cheers, 

Clara

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Ian
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replied on Nov 27, 2022
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate

Hi there,

This is a great networking question! Make sure to ask about their projects when you're networking with them.

My understanding is they would have projects in the major industries in that region (so, public sector, oil & gas/energy, infrastructure, etc.)

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Maikol
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Nov 25, 2022
BCG Project Leader | Former Bain, AlixPartner, and PE | INSEAD MBA | GMAT 780

First, it is a common belief that Bain focuses on PE. Not even 15% of revenues come from PE. Most of the revenues come from consumer, luxury, banks, and Oil & Gas.

In KSA, most of the work is with governments and sovereign funds. Now the biggest “aggregator” of projects there is Neom.

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Mario
Expert
replied on Nov 25, 2022
Ex-Mckinsey (analyst->associate->manager) and now in tech (Bytedance) + Part time interview coach and mentor

Hi there,

 

There are various types of Bain projects in Riyadh. The public sector arm has been growing which means you should expect your fair share of those, but Bain also does a bunch of private sector studies incl., M&A, DDs and corporate strategies

Mario 

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Anonymous replied on Nov 25, 2022

Broadly what has been highlighted above is correct. Message me offline if you want to discuss the specific topics being covered 

good luck 

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