West Monroe launches corporate transformation practice
West Monroe, a national management consulting firm, has launched a new corporate transformation practice to help companies manage turnarounds and technological overhauls in an increasingly challenging business environment. The Chicago-based consultancy added Guy Cartwright, a seasoned private equity and turnaround executive, to lead the new practice.
The Covid-19 pandemic is causing a financial reckoning across a wide range of industries, with bankruptcies up 26% in the first half of 2020. Analysts expect a record number of bankruptcies this year, as companies struggle with shutdowns, supply chain disruptions, cash flow problems, and evaporating consumer confidence.
This downturn means a boon for turnaround and restructuring work, especially in select industries such as aviation, retail, energy, and hospitality.
The pandemic has also accelerated many companies’ need for digital transformation. Many companies are now hard-pressed to switch their models to e-commerce, their workforces to remote ones, and their processes to streamlined, lower-cost ones aided by AI and RPA.
West Monroe’s corporate transformation practice will support mid-size and large organizations with turnaround and transformation consulting services. The practice will focus on healthcare and life sciences, energy and utilities, private equity, consumer and industrial products, financial services, software and high-tech, and retail.
The practice brings together a multidisciplinary team of experts in labor efficiency, capital efficiency, cost and cash optimization, transformation, and technology. West Monroe has a total of 1,500 employees across seven US offices.
“For companies that need to reinvent, it is paramount to view the business holistically and determine the levers that can be pulled to drive immediate and sustained results,” said Guy Cartwright, managing director and leader of the new practice. “We believe the right combination of business decisions and technology investments are critical for companies to transform in the face of significant change.”
Between 2010 and 2019, Cartwright was lead US operating partner at TowerBrook Capital Partners, a $12 billion private equity firm, where he led due diligence and drove strategic projects at portfolio companies in a diverse range of industries. Before that, he was VP of operations at NEWAsurion, a provider of insurance and extended warranties for consumer electronics, and CEO of Truefitt & Hill, a men’s grooming company.
Earlier in his career, Cartwright was a management consultant at Bain & Company, where he focused on growth strategy and M&A. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BS in chemistry from The College of William & Mary.
“Guy brings unparalleled experience leading successful turnarounds as an executive and is the most qualified person to lead effective transformations for clients of West Monroe,” said Kevin McCarty, chairman and CEO.
Cartwright most recently served as chief transformation officer and interim CFO at e-cigarette firm Juul, where he spent the past year working on a strategic and operational reset that realized $1 billion in cost reductions.
