2023 Top Consultants: Raj Sharma

Raj is the EY Americas Vice Chair for Consulting. He is a global business executive and transformative technology leader with over 25 years of experience in commercial and financial services, building businesses and executing strategic growth initiatives. In his role today, Raj leads 22,000 consultants across the Americas. He is committed to the EY Consulting ambition of becoming the world's leading transformation consultancy, trusted to help the largest and most complex clients generate long-term value.

Prior to assuming his current role, Raj served as the Consulting Managing Partner for the EY Americas Area Financial Services Organization (FSO) where he led a multibillion dollar business with double digit growth and spanning 10,000 professionals across the U.S., Canada, Latin America and India.

Raj is dedicated to building and cultivating a diverse workforce that can adapt to quickly evolving customer needs and preferences, elevate enterprise efficiency and resiliency, drive differential business performance, redefine the sustainable workplace, and effectively help manage risk. Raj is determined to shift EY service models to align with our business and tech transformation services. He pushes tech-enabled services and confirms technology is embedded in everything we do.

What has motivated you to excel over the course of your career?

While it sounds cliché, solving our clients' evolving complex problems is really what has kept me excited and motivated throughout my career. Consulting is constantly changing – requiring us to stay on our toes and push ourselves to bring in the right solutions. While my past and current experiences set the foundation of who I am today, it is the possibilities and challenges of tomorrow that keep me going.

What has been the biggest factor in your success so far?

Growing up my mother told me, "Raj, all five of your fingers on your hand are different and unique. And if you pull those five fingers in together to make a fist – that is what makes a team." This anecdote has stayed with me throughout my career and has allowed me to understand and value the power of the team and how diverse perspectives push you to better respond to today's most complex issues.

What do you enjoy most about your career in the consulting industry?

One of the many aspects I enjoy about consulting is the need to reinvent myself. The ever-changing industry encourages me to remain flexible so I can stay ahead of the curve. I am constantly learning about new ideas and improving myself to better serve our clients. As the Vice Chair of EY Americas Consulting, I have the opportunity to blend my technology background with our wide range of consulting. I'm fortunate to work with a very talented EY Americas Consulting team who all share the same passion for consistent evolution. Together, we combine our knowledge and diverse experiences to develop solutions that help our clients achieve their objectives and execute large-scale business and technological transformations.

What is your proudest achievement to date?

My proudest achievement is actually nothing I have done, but rather the accomplishments I have seen my wife attain throughout our lives together. We married when she was still in college, then she supported our family – while in med school! – to allow me to focus on building my career. Today, she runs a successful medical practice. My wife is a constant inspiration to me and our two children on how hard work and dedication can lead to so much more.

What's the best advice you've ever been given?

To always embrace diversity and empower your team. My mother told me as a child: You have five fingers, all are different shapes and each one of them has its own purpose. The power of diversity for leaders is bringing those fingers together to make a strong, impactful fist. Rather than trying to make every finger or person look and function the same, we should champion the power of diversity, bringing our differences together to form a dynamic and more efficient team. In practice, this means bringing people from all different walks of life together to develop a vision — one that differentiates us from our competitors and makes an impact not just on the marketplace, but also on the communities affected by EY solutions.

What does this recognition mean to you?

I'm very honored to be recognized. My goal as EY Americas Consulting leader is to promote a diverse and inclusive atmosphere where our team members feel motivated to use their creativity and unique industry knowledge to develop innovative, out-of-the-box solutions for our clients. I see this award as an indicator that this idea is well received and will help sustain the team's drive to continue on this path.