Grant Thornton Stax hires Chen Liu as partner in Chicago office

Stax, a Boston-based M&A consulting firm that joined Grant Thornton US earlier this year, has hired Chen Liu as a Chicago-based partner in its technology and education practices.

Liu brings more than 10 years of consulting experience focusing on corporate strategy, due diligence, and growth acceleration advisory services for private equity clients.

He has led 100+ projects in the technology sector in areas including EdTech, enterprise software, GovTech, and administrative platforms. Liu has expertise in educational and professional learning platforms, ERP, CRM, workflow automation, and other back-office solutions.

He joins Stax from EY-Parthenon, where he spent nine years and was a managing director in the private equity practice focusing on commercial due diligence engagements. Before that, he was an analyst at Accenture.

Liu has an MBA from Northwestern University and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"We’re thrilled to welcome Chen to the Grant Thornton Stax team," said Paul Edwards, global practice lead, Grant Thornton Stax. "His decade-plus experience advising investors and management teams on scaling B2B services and software companies adds tremendous depth to our practice.”

Grant Thornton US acquired Stax in August as part of its private equity-backed acquisition spree this year. The mid-market accounting and consulting firm also in 2025 bolted on various European member firms of Grant Thornton, as well as Auxis, a business process outsourcing (BPO) firm.

"What excites me most about joining Grant Thornton Stax is the firm’s entrepreneurial spirit and collaborative culture," said Liu. "The team operates with the agility of a focused firm while consistently delivering the depth and rigor of a global platform—a combination that truly sets Grant Thornton Stax apart. Its focus on private equity aligns closely with my background and interests, and I’m eager to contribute to the firm’s accelerated growth in this next stage of expansion under Grant Thornton.”