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Bain & Company facts for kids
This page is about the management consulting company. For the investment firm, see Bain Capital.
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Headquarters at 131 Dartmouth St, Boston, Massachusetts
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| Private | |
| Industry | Management consulting |
| Founded | 1973 |
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| Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
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Number of locations
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64 |
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Key people
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| Revenue | $6 billion (2023) |
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Number of employees
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19,000 (2023) |
Bain & Company is a well-known American company that gives advice to other businesses and organizations. It helps them solve tough problems and make smart decisions. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, Bain & Company works with companies, governments, and non-profit groups.
It is one of the "Big Three" top management consulting firms in the world. Bain & Company was started in 1973 by Bill Bain and his friends. Bill Bain used to work for another big consulting company, the Boston Consulting Group.
In its early years, Bain & Company grew very fast. Later, in 1984, Bill Bain created a separate company called Bain Capital to invest in other businesses. He chose Mitt Romney to lead it. Bain & Company faced some tough times in the late 1980s and early 1990s. However, with the help of Mitt Romney and Orit Gadiesh, the company became successful and grew again.
In the 2000s, Bain & Company kept growing. It started helping non-profit groups and technology companies. It also became a leader in advising private equity firms, which are companies that invest in and improve other businesses.
Contents
What is Bain & Company?
Helping Businesses Succeed
Bain & Company is a company that offers "management consulting" services. This means they act like expert coaches for other businesses. When a company faces a big challenge, like how to grow, how to save money, or how to enter a new market, they can hire Bain. Bain's consultants study the problem, come up with ideas, and help the company put those ideas into action. They work with all kinds of organizations, including large companies, private investment firms, and even non-profit groups.
How Bain & Company Started
The Idea from Bill Bain
The idea for Bain & Company came from its founder, William Worthington Bain Jr. He used to work at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In 1970, BCG's boss, Bruce Henderson, divided his company into three competing teams. Bill Bain led one of these teams, the "blue team." His team did very well, bringing in more than half of BCG's money and profits.
However, Bill Bain felt frustrated. He wanted to do more than just write reports. He wanted to help clients actually make the changes he suggested. He once said he felt like he was "writing a report, putting it in a bottle, throwing it in the water, then going on to the next one."
Starting a New Company
In 1973, Bill Bain decided to leave BCG and start his own consulting firm. Many of his senior colleagues from the "blue team" followed him. Even some of BCG's biggest clients, like Black & Decker and Texas Instruments, chose to work with Bain's new company instead. This made BCG's boss, Bruce Henderson, upset, as he felt Bill was taking his clients.
Bain & Company started in Bill Bain's apartment in Boston. Within a few weeks, they were already working with seven former BCG clients. The company grew quickly, mostly because CEOs and board members told others about Bain's great work.
Early Growth and Success
Bain & Company opened its first official office in Boston. Then, in 1979, it opened an office in London, Europe. By 1986, the company was making $150 million in revenue each year. The number of people working at Bain tripled between 1980 and 1986, reaching 800 employees by 1987.
By 1987, Bain & Company was one of the four largest "strategy specialist" consulting firms. They were known for keeping their employees happy, with very few people leaving the company compared to others in the industry. They helped big clients like National Steel and Chrysler save money on manufacturing.
Challenges and Comeback
Difficult Times in the 1980s
In the late 1980s, Bain & Company faced some problems. There was a public issue in 1987 involving their work with a company called Guinness. Also, some partners were unhappy because only Bill Bain knew how much money the firm was making and how profits were shared.
When the stock market crashed in 1987, many of Bain's clients spent less money on consulting. This led to layoffs, and about 30 percent of the employees lost their jobs.
Financial Troubles and Solutions
Bain & Company had also taken out large loans to buy shares from Bill Bain and other partners. These loans cost the company $25 million in interest fees every year, making their financial problems worse. Bill Bain even tried to sell the company, but he couldn't find a buyer.
Mitt Romney's Return
Mitt Romney came back to Bain & Company in January 1991 as the temporary CEO. He is often credited with saving the company from going bankrupt. Romney had left Bain & Company in 1983 to lead Bain Capital, a separate investment firm.
When he returned, Romney made important changes. He allowed managers to know each other's salaries, which helped with trust. He also worked to reduce the company's debt and changed the ownership structure so more partners had a stake in the firm. Romney convinced the founding partners to give up $100 million in ownership. After these changes, Bill Bain and most of the founding partners left the firm.
Orit Gadiesh Takes Over
Mitt Romney left again in December 1992 to start a career in politics. The next year, Orit Gadiesh was chosen as chairman, and Thomas J. Tierney became the worldwide managing director. Gadiesh helped improve the company's spirit. She also changed a rule that prevented Bain from working with different companies in the same industry. This helped Bain get more clients.
By the end of 1993, Bain & Company was growing strong again. The number of employees, which had dropped to 550, went back up to 800. The company opened more offices, including one in New York in 2000. From 1992 to 1999, Bain grew by 25 percent each year and expanded from 12 to 26 offices.
Bain & Company Today
Expanding Services
In the early 2000s, Bain created new groups to focus on technology consulting. One group, bainlab, helped new startup companies that might not be able to afford Bain's usual fees. They sometimes accepted part of their payment in company shares.
Around 2000, Bain became very involved in advising private equity firms. They helped these firms decide which companies to invest in. By 2005, Bain was the top consulting firm for private equity. By 2018, this part of Bain's business was three times larger than its closest competitor and made up 25% of Bain's total business.
Bain & Company doesn't share its exact revenue numbers, but it is believed to have grown by double digits each year in the 2000s. Even when the overall market for consulting was slowing down, the "Big Three" firms, including Bain, continued to expand. Bain opened new offices in other countries, like India in 2006. They also started working more with governments.
New Leadership and Digital Focus
In 2012, Robert Bechek became CEO and was very popular with employees. In 2017, he stepped down, and Manny Maceda was chosen to take his place in March 2018. Maceda announced that Bain would focus more on digital services. Bain & Company bought a digital marketing company called FRWD in 2018 and an analytics firm called Pyxis the next year. In 2022, Bain also bought ArcBlue, a company that helps with purchasing, in the Asia-Pacific region.
In 2023, Bain & Company made $6 billion in revenue and had 19,000 employees. In January 2024, Christophe De Vusser was chosen to be the new global chief executive, starting in July. He will be the first European to hold this top position.
What Services Does Bain Offer?
Advising Top Companies
Bain & Company mainly provides advice to CEOs of large companies, often those on the Fortune 500 list. They help with many different business areas, such as:
- Private equity investments: Helping firms decide where to invest their money.
- Mergers & acquisitions: Advising companies on buying or combining with other companies.
- Corporate strategy: Helping businesses plan for their future.
- Finance and operations: Improving how a company manages its money and daily activities.
- Market analysis: Understanding what customers want and how the market is changing.
They also have teams that focus on customer loyalty, word-of-mouth marketing, and digital technology. Most of their work is about helping companies create their overall business strategy.
Helping the Community
In 2000, Bain helped create The Bridgespan Group, a separate organization that works with non-profit groups. Bain & Company also has its own team that focuses on social impact. In 2015, they promised to invest $1 billion in free consulting services by 2025. This work helps with things like social and economic development, climate change, education, and local community projects.
Bain has helped organizations like UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency), the World Childhood Foundation, and Teach for America. In 2015, Bain's free work was recognized with an award for "Excellence in Social and Community Investment."
In the 2000s, Bain also started offering specific service packages, for example, for improving a company's supply chain. They also became very involved in helping private equity firms. They advise these firms on which companies to buy, how to make them better, and then how to sell them for a profit. In 2006, Bain began selling its Net Promoter Score system, which helps companies measure how happy their customers are.
Bain's Culture
A Secretive Company
Bain & Company is known for being quite private about its work. In the 1980s, some people even called it the "KGB of Consulting." Clients are given secret code names. Employees have to sign agreements promising not to share client names and must follow a "code of confidentiality."
Who are "Bainies"?
Employees at Bain are sometimes called "Bainies." This used to be a slightly negative term, but employees now use it as a friendly nickname. According to Fortune magazine, if Bain & Company were a person, it would be "articulate, attractive, meticulously well groomed, and exceedingly charming." It would also be "a shrewd, intensely ambitious strategist, totally in control."
A Top Place to Work
Bain is often ranked among the best places to work in yearly surveys by Glassdoor and Consulting Magazine. Bain mostly hires people with advanced business degrees (MBAs), but it was one of the first firms to hire consultants right after they finished their bachelor's degree.
The company is organized by its different offices around the world, with each location having some independence. It also has teams that focus on specific business areas (like mergers or technology) and specific industries (like financial services or healthcare). The worldwide managing director, who leads the company, can serve up to three three-year terms.
Images for kids
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Headquarters at 131 Dartmouth St, Boston, Massachusetts
See also
In Spanish: Bain & Company para niños