Oliver Wyman to buy aerospace and defense consultancy Avascent
Oliver Wyman, a global management consultancy, has agreed to buy Avascent, a Washington, DC-headquartered aerospace and defense sector consulting firm.
Avascent was formed in 2007 from the management-led buyout of DFI Corporate Services from parent company DFI International (now part of defense firm BAE Systems).
The firm provides a wide range of management consulting services, including strategic planning, market analysis, organizational and operational improvement, and mergers and acquisitions advisory.
Avascent supports industry and private equity clients across aerospace, defense and security, government technology, and infrastructure and energy. The consultancy has offices in Washington, DC, New York, Ottawa, London, Paris, and Tokyo.
Oliver Wyman’s acquisition of Avascent will add a team of approximately 130 professionals, including 10 partners. The team will join Oliver Wyman’s transportation & services and private capital practices.
The transaction, for which financial terms were not disclosed, is expected to close before the end of the year.
"Avascent will complement Oliver Wyman's expertise, and strengthen it significantly in the Aerospace and Defense sector, both with our corporate and private equity clients," said Nick Studer, president and CEO, Oliver Wyman. "The company also has a similar business focus – built on deep industry expertise, analytics, impact and collaboration – and we believe these values will benefit our clients."
The acquisition builds on Oliver Wyman’s recent purchase of Booz Allen’s Middle East and North Africa management consulting cybersecurity practices.
"We are excited to join Oliver Wyman, a company that shares both our dedication to deep sector expertise and an open, collaborative culture," said Steve Irwin, president of Avascent. "Joining Oliver Wyman gives us access to the breadth and depth of capabilities necessary to accelerate our growth by addressing the full spectrum of challenges faced by A&D leaders today."
Oliver Wyman has more than 6,000 global employees who deliver consulting services in strategy, operations, risk management, and organizational transformation. The firm has offices in more than 70 cities across 30 countries.
