McKinsey & Company appoints Tarek El Sayed as Managing Partner for the Middle East
McKinsey & Company, a global strategy and management consulting firm, has appointed Tarek El Sayed as its next Managing Partner for the Middle East.
In his new role, the Riyadh-based Senior Partner will lead McKinsey & Company’s strategic direction and operations across the region, overseeing teams in seven cities: Abu Dhabi, Cairo, Doha, Dubai, Kuwait City, Manama, and Riyadh. He will also oversee the firm’s labels in the region, including QuantumBlack, McKinsey Digital, McKinsey Design, McKinsey Implementation, and Leap by McKinsey.
El Sayed has been with McKinsey & Company since 2015, having previously spent a decade with Booz & Company in the Middle East. He succeeds Dubai-based Hasan Muzaffar, who served as Managing Partner for close to three years. Earlier regional leaders include Tarek El Masry and Kito de Boer, who both served successive terms in the office.
McKinsey & Company has been active in the Middle East since 1957, but it wasn’t until four decades later when the firm established its first permanent office in the region (Dubai in 1999), marking the beginning of its broader regional expansion. Today, McKinsey is widely recognized as one of the region’s leading and most prestigious consulting firms – the firm in fact topped Consultancy.org’s latest management consulting ranking for the Middle East.
In a brief statement announcing the leadership change, McKinsey said: “We are delighted to announce Tarek as our next Managing Partner for the Middle East and look forward to our next chapter of growth under his leadership.”
El Sayed’s background
El Sayed leads McKinsey’s Riyadh office, where he has helped strengthen the firm’s position as a strategic advisor to Saudi government entities, businesses, and sovereign wealth funds. He advises CEOs, senior executives, and government leaders on a range of strategic and organizational issues.
His expertise is focused on the energy sector. As a leader in the Energy & Materials practice, he has extensive experience across the energy value chain and has advised clients across the Middle East, Europe, and the United States.
His recent engagements have included leading the development and implementation of an integrated energy strategy for a developing country; supporting the growth strategy of a global power technologies manufacturer; establishing a new renewable energy company; restructuring and redeploying the workforce of a major utility in the Gulf; and establishing an investment company focused on the oil & gas sector.
El Sayed began his career in France after completing a Master of Engineering at Télécom Paris, then joining a French consulting firm. After earning his MBA from INSEAD, he moved to the Middle East, where he built a career advising organizations across the region.
The ambition
Reflecting on McKinsey’s role in helping business leaders navigate disruption and transformation, El Sayed previously said: “Every day, around the world, we partner with our clients to set bold strategies, unlock the potential of their people, embed transformative technologies in everything they do, and innovate sustainably.”
“At McKinsey, the impact we deliver helps clients achieve enduring change in their capabilities and performance – and speeds up the transition to sustainable and inclusive growth.”
