Watchdog finds 'strong perception of favoritism' toward McKinsey in some government contracts

The federal procurement watchdog says the government has created a "strong perception of favouritism" in awarding certain contracts to the consulting firm McKinsey & Company.

A report released by Canada's procurement ombudsman Alexander Jeglic last month examined government contracts awarded to McKinsey between April 2011 and March 2023.

Jeglic also noted that most of the contracts awarded to McKinsey were sole-sourced and primarily came through a "standing offer" — an agreement between the government and a contractor to provide goods and services under pre-established terms and costs.

Jeglic also concluded that most of the call-ups issued under the standing offer "were void of any description of the requirement-specific work to be carried out by McKinsey and by extension, proper PSPC oversight"

In his McKinsey report, Jeglic noted that "general deficiency of documentation observed is an ongoing area of concern" in government procurement.

"[The ombudsman] has identified this same issue in numerous procurement practice reviews conducted over the past few years, involving more than a dozen departments and agencies," the report says.