Boston Consulting Group appoints Rich Lesser as CEO

NEW DELHI: Global management consulting firm Boston Consulting Group today said it has appointed Richard I Lesser as its new President and Chief Executive Officer.

Lesser succeeds Hans-Paul Bürkner, who will become Chairman after serving nine years as President and CEO.

BCG in a statement said, "Lesser takes the helm as BCG embarks on its fiftieth year of operation. He lives in New York and will also have an office in Beijing".

Lesser has been on the firm's Executive Committee since 2006 and served as BCG's Chairman of North and South America since 2009 and before that, he was head of the New York office beginning in 2000.

"Rich's passion and proven commitment to our clients and to building BCG's capabilities will be critical to the firm's continued growth and its role as a catalyst for change," said Bürkner. He presided over a highly successful growth period for the firm, during which BCG nearly tripled its revenues.

BCG's partner group, numbering nearly 800, selected Lesser in an election process that concluded last May. He is the firm's sixth CEO.

BCG was founded in 1963 by the late Bruce Henderson, who led the firm until 1980, when he became Chairman of the Board and was succeeded by Alan Zakon.

Zakon was followed by John Clarkeson, who was CEO from 1986 to 1997 and later Chairman, and then by Carl Stern, who was CEO from 1998 to 2003 and later Chairman.