A&M adds two senior experts to EMEA digital offering
Professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal has appointed two new Managing Directors to its expanding Europe, Middle East and Africa digital practice. John Woods will lead A&M’s digital supply chain and operations team, while and Karim Chaabouni will spearhead growth of the firm’s digital customer experience team.
Jean Laurent Poitou, Head of Digital for the EMEA region with Alvarez & Marsal (A&M), stated, “The appointments of John and Karim mark another milestone in the continued expansion of the firm’s Digital and Technology offer in EMEA. The deepening of our talent pool comes at a critical time for clients; the economic context is prompting many companies to look for efficiencies and performance improvement mechanisms across their operations, while others are doubling down on growth.”
A&M is a global professional services firm that provides advisory, business performance improvement and turnaround management services. With over 6,500 people across four continents, it supports corporates, boards, creditors, private equity firms, law firms and government agencies facing complex challenges.
Companies are under mounting pressure to drive efficiency, with economic and political headwinds making adaptable digital strategies crucial to their future prosperity. As a result, businesses across EMEA are turning to consultants for help delivering digitally powered business models, products and solutions. This has seen A&M’s digital wing expand rapidly in the region – previously also resulting in the addition of Mathias Bombardi as Digital Strategy Managing Director in September 2022.
John Woods, as the latest addition to the team, will bolster A&M’s digital supply chain and operations practice in London. He joins A&M from Kalypso–Rockwell Automation, a digital automation-focused firm, where he was Global Director and EMEA Lead Principal for its consulting, data science, technology and managed services offer. He brings over 24 years of consulting experience, and also spent 18 years at Big Four firm Deloitte.
Woods said, “I’ve been watching A&M go from strength to strength over the past few years and I’m excited to be playing a part in that growth. Supply chain and operational disruption remains a challenge for clients across many sectors. Helping companies get fit and ready to take advantage of technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science to ensure that supply chains are digitally integrated and more sustainable is a high priority, particularly in the industrial space.”
Karim Chaabouni meanwhile joins the firm’s Paris-based office. He will accelerate growth of digital customer experience services. He was most recently a Managing Director and Partner at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where he focused on industrial and consumer goods sectors and supported the launch and leadership of BCG’s Cybersecurity practice in France. Before BCG, Chaabouni also led Accenture’s global digital service factory offering for industrials and the customer experience practice in Belux.
Chaabouni added, “A&M is a firm prepared to get deep into the detail, offering precise and assertive advice to business as they develop, transform and grow. This aligns with my own ethos and approach to consulting, which is about being laser-focused on creating value via a digitally enhanced customer experience and delivering growth. This is what clients need from their advisors as we face into complex and uncertain times.”
