Government demands transparency on billions in federal contracts
The Trump administration has intensified its scrutiny of federal consulting firms, including Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp and Accenture Plc, demanding they describe their work in plain language without “jargon or gobbledygook,” Bloomberg reported.
Officials have sent letters to the 10 highest-paid consulting firms serving the government, requiring them to disclose details about their multibillion-dollar contracts and outline their plans to “reduce or eliminate spend,” according to Josh Gruenbaum, the General Services Administration’s (GSA) top procurement official.
Administration pushes for cost-cutting measures
“Do not submit a scorecard that does not identify any waste and spend reduction opportunities,” Gruenbaum warned in the letter.
Gruenbaum, a former private equity executive at KKR & Co. and investment banker at Moelis & Co., is leading the administration’s cost-cutting efforts at GSA.
“Scorecards that do not identify waste and spending reductions will not be deemed credible, and your firm will be seen as unaligned with the administration’s cost-cutting goals,” he added.
Reports must be understandable to a teenager
The administration has set a deadline of March 31 for consulting firms to submit recommendations on pricing reductions—written in language that “a 15-year-old should be able to understand,” Gruenbaum emphasized.
On Thursday, Accenture shares tumbled after the company reported a slowdown in its U.S. government contracts, coinciding with Elon Musk’s push to shrink the federal workforce and budget under the DOGE initiative.
Accenture CEO Julie Sweet stated on an earnings call that federal contracts accounted for about 8% of its global revenue and 16% of its Americas revenue in the 2024 fiscal year.
Major consulting firms under government scrutiny
Other consulting giants facing similar demands from GSA include International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), General Dynamics Corp., Leidos Holdings Inc., Guidehouse LLP, HII Mission Technologies Corp., and CGI Federal.
However, none of the companies have responded to requests for comment on the letter.