The 2022 Best Firms to Work For: FTI Consulting

Client Industries Served: Aerospace & Defense, Agriculture, Airlines & Aviation, Automotive & Industrial, Construction, Energy, Power & Products, Environmental Solutions, Financial Services, Health Care & Life Sciences, Hospitality, Gaming & Leisure Insurance, Mining, Private Equity, Public Sector & Government Contracts, Real Estate, Retail & Consumer Products, Telecom, Media & Technology, and Transportation & Logistics.

Consulting Service Lines: Corporate Finance & Restructuring, Forensic & Litigation Consulting, Economic Consulting, Technology, Strategic Communications

CMAG: How would you say you've managed to stay among the industry's Best Firms to Work For amid these unprecedented times?

We have shown that if we do the right things for our business over any medium-term period, even during periods where markets or world conditions fluctuate substantially, through those efforts we can build a powerful growth engine. This means not overreacting to the temporary factors and being willing to support our strong positions and people in the face of short-term market headwinds, because we believe if we do the right things for our business over any medium-term period, we will become more capable, more relevant and more able to help our clients navigate their most significant opportunities and challenges.

These principles have helped guide us through these unprecedented times in a way that has allowed us to attract and support talented professionals to extend our global footprint and ensure we are able to continuously deliver on our clients' ever-evolving needs.

CMAG: Were there any specific programs or initiatives (internal or external) that contributed to you being a Best Firm to Work For?

We did, I think, a terrific job during the COVID-19 pandemic of maintaining connectivity remotely. We put in place Teams, Zoom and other tools and processes to ensure we delivered for our clients and remained connected as a firm. More important, our people made tremendous efforts to support their clients and remain connected emotionally to each other during the height of COVID, which was critical to our success.

That said, in my experience, in any high-powered professional services firm that works on complex, high-stakes litigation in big teams, you need to invest in face-to-face connection among your people. To that end, we have made efforts to reestablish that connectivity, and invested heavily to bring our people together this year for in-person team meetings and talent development programs. For example, we have historically held an annual in-person Senior Managing Director Meeting and Milestone Training Programs for newly hired and promoted professionals each year. We were thrilled to bring those back this year and to have supported numerous global training and segment-related meetings for our professionals.

CMAG: What's unique about your firm? What sets it apart?

Over time, we have shown ourselves able to attract great talent, to support the growth of that talent in our organization, to double down and reinforce our core positions in core markets, to expand into new adjacencies, and as a result, make ourselves better able to serve our clients, which in turn allows us to build our businesses and our brand.

We believe what sets us apart is our commitment to not overreact to short-term factors. This commitment has enabled us to build businesses that great people want to be a part of — segments and practices that attract talented people, that support their ambitions and development and that allow them to build positions and client relationships that, through the short-term headwinds and tailwinds, become sustainable, powerful, durable and resilient growth engines.

CMAG: What's the top priority over the next 6 to 12 months?

The most potential critical gating factor for our bold growth ambitions is attracting sufficient numbers of the best professionals and continuing to retain and develop them. These are the levers that have supported our growth over the past five years, and as long as we continue to do that and support the development of the right attitudes and the right capabilities, which is a commitment to clients first and foremost, I believe we will maintain our strong growth trajectory.

When you look at the remainder of this year and 2023, what excites you? What opportunities do you see in your future?

Success in our hiring efforts is critical because reaching the bold growth aspirations that we all have requires attracting great people at all levels of the organization. We are adding senior talent across all geographies, and we are hiring junior people who can grow in their own right. For example, this fall we are welcoming the largest class of campus hires we've had by far, reflecting the commitment we've made to build our presence on campus and our commitment to the most core source of organic growth, which is hiring great people at the most junior levels and developing them up through the ranks.

CMAG: What impact do you think being a Best Firm to Work For has on the firm? Employees? Clients?

We are proud of the progress we have made and the external recognition we have received. My experience is, when you have great people and great bets to make, you commit to those people, you commit to those opportunities, and you make those bets. Because if you do, even if there are dislocations in the short term, the company will soar in the medium term, delivering for your clients and delivering for your people whose energy and ambition make the success happen.

CMAG: Thank you and congratualtions.