PwC’s Executive Shuffle Aims to Mend Saudi Relations After Neom Clash

Editorial Team

Last updated 20-04-2025

4 min

PwC is reshuffling senior executives in the Middle East to ease tensions with Saudi Arabia.

The move follows a fallout after attempting to recruit a senior figure from Neom.

Several key PwC board members are stepping down amid friction with Saudi authorities.

PwC's advisory contracts with Saudi Arabia's PIF are banned, affecting its lucrative consultancy operations.

Saudi Arabia's focus on domestic talent is impacting international consultancy firms like PwC.

PwC is reshuffling its senior executives in the Middle East to smooth tensions with Saudi Arabia's powerful sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF). This follows a recent fallout after the finance giant attempted to headhunt a key senior figure from Neom, the kingdom's highly ambitious mega-city project.

The professional services heavyweight, known as one of the 'Big Four', recently informed its regional partners that several senior board members would be stepping down following friction with Saudi authorities. Among those set to leave are Mohamed ElBorno, PwC's head of assurance, and Emma Campbell, who leads partner affairs. Both have had long careers with PwC, making their exits all the more striking.

Rumour has it that these departures might just be the tip of the iceberg, with further senior figures possibly following suit in the coming weeks. PwC's Middle East operations employ around 12,000 staff across a dozen countries, and the region has become increasingly influential, boosting earnings significantly in recent years.

Indeed, back in September, PwC announced that sales from its Riyadh-based Middle Eastern operations had surged by a tidy 26 per cent—dwarfing the comparatively modest 3 per cent growth the company saw at home in the UK. It's safe to say, losing favour with the Saudis is something PwC could surely do without.

Relations with the kingdom soured in February when the Saudi Public Investment Fund hit PwC with a year-long ban on new advisory contracts. Although PwC's auditing arm won't be affected by the sanction, the advisory side of their business—which draws lucrative fees from providing consultancy expertise—will undoubtedly feel the sting. At nearly a trillion dollars in size, the Saudi fund holds significant stakes in high-profile global firms including Uber, Meta, and Heathrow airport.

It turns out that the hiring approach PwC made toward Jason Davies, previously Neom's chief internal audit officer, sparked this latest fallout—but those familiar with the matter suggest there'd been undercurrents of discontent between the consulting giant and the Saudis for some time before that.

PwC had previously held consulting contracts with Neom, the $500 billion desert city billed as a carbon-free metropolis at the core of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 development plan.

In response, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development recently pressed ahead with its 'Nitaqat' programme—or Saudisation—which mandates firms to hire more Saudi nationals and scale back on employing foreign workers.

PwC acquired its Middle Eastern operations for £15 million back in 2009, and the investment has paid off hansomely, becoming a solid source of income as the UK's consulting services market hits more challenging waters.

PwC isn't the only firm to cash-in on huge state projects; other global consultancy giants, including Big Four rivals EY, KPMG, Deloitte, and familiar US names like Bain, McKinsey, and Boston Consulting Group, have also landed healthy contracts throughout the GCC states.

According to Source Global Research, a firm that tracks developments in consultancy markets, spending on external advisory in the Gulf is forecasted to leap by 12 per cent this year, which comfortably outpaces the global average and sits at double the rate expected in the US—the largest consultancy market worldwide.

As the old saying goes, "you don't bite the hand that feeds you." It's clear PwC is keen to rebuild bridges quickly in order to prevent long-term damage in one of its most profitable regions. Whether quick executive departures alone will be enough to placate the Saudis remains to be seen, but there's no doubt plenty at stake for both sides in this ongoing saga.

No one from PwC offered any comment about this recent shake-up. Meanwhile, among Arageek regulars and corporate-watchers alike, we'll certainly be keeping an eye open for further developments.

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