Consulting Partner Compensation Strengthens as AI and Private Equity Reshape the Market

November 4, 2026 – The North American consulting market is showing signs of renewed strength, with improving revenue performance and resilient partner compensation. A new report from The Barton Partnership examines how compensation, ownership structures, and career expectations are evolving as consulting firms navigate shifting business models and growing private equity investment. The findings also point to mounting concerns over artificial intelligence, compensation transparency, and the long-term retention of senior consulting talent.

The Barton Partnership’s 2026 North America Partner Compensation Report draws on insights from 146 consulting partners across the United States and Canada, representing strategy consulting, including MBB, Big 4, large multi-disciplinary, and boutique firms. Conducted during mid-2026, the research examines how partner compensation, ownership, career intentions, and market sentiment are evolving across the North American consulting market.

“The 2026 North America Partner Compensation Report presents a consulting market in a stronger commercial position than two years ago,” The Barton Partnership said. “Revenue performance has improved, partner earnings have proven resilient, and six in ten respondents expect their compensation to increase over the coming year.”

Yet the findings also highlight concerns among senior consulting professionals. “Compensation satisfaction remains moderate and more than four in ten respondents describe their firm’s compensation process as lacking transparency,” the Barton report explained.

Revenue Performance Strengthens

Revenue performance has strengthened since 2024, according to The Barton Partnership. The study found that 34 percent of respondents reported revenue above internal expectations, compared with 19 percent below, while 41 percent said performance was broadly in line.

“This represents a reversal from 2024, when 32 percent reported revenue below expectations and only 25 percent reported outperformance,” the report noted. “While the recovery is not uniform, the balance of responses suggests a more favorable trading environment than two years ago.”

Performance also differs by consulting model. Boutique and Big 4 respondents reported the highest incidence of revenue above expectations, while strategy consulting respondents were more concentrated around in-line or below-plan performance.

The Barton Partnership also found that partner turnover has moderated. Twenty-one percent of respondents reported attrition above expectations, down from 26 percent in 2024, while just over half said partner movement remained broadly in line with expectations.

“Where departures have occurred, there is no single dominant cause,” the report said. “Partner-driven exits (23 percent), business-driven exits (22 percent) and business reorganization or reprioritization (17 percent) all feature, suggesting mobility continues to reflect both individual career decisions and firms reshaping their partner populations.”

Partner Compensation Remains Resilient

Partner compensation varies substantially across the North American consulting market, both between firm types and within them, according to The Barton Partnership. Firm model, tenure, pay mix, and participation in equity all influence the shape of total reward.

The Role of the CFO in PE-Backed Businesses

The CFO role in private equity-backed businesses is expanding well beyond traditional financial oversight as sponsors demand greater involvement in value creation, operations, and execution. A new report from The Barton Partnership finds that CFOs are increasingly central to investment strategy, data infrastructure, and business performance. The findings highlight how rising expectations are reshaping both the mandate and the capabilities required of today’s PE-backed finance leaders.

Mean total cash compensation rises from $852,000 among partners with less than three years’ tenure to $1.09 million at five to 10 years, reaching $1.41 million among those with more than a decade at partner level.

The report found that traditional partnerships have the highest mean annual cash compensation at $1.36 million, followed by founder-owned firms at $991,000, private equity-backed firms at $927,000, hybrid structures at $867,000, and publicly listed firms at $785,000.

“Ownership structure is also closely associated with the composition of partner reward,” the Barton report explained. “Traditional partnerships report the highest mean annual cash compensation, while publicly listed firms sit at the lower end of the range.”

Despite continued pressure across the consulting market, 75 percent of respondents reported no reduction to fixed or on-target earnings during the previous financial year, up from 67 percent in 2024.

“The findings show a relatively stable environment for partner earnings despite continued change across the sector,” the firm said. “Most partners have maintained their fixed and on-target compensation, while six in ten expect their earnings to increase over the next twelve months.”

Private Equity Reshapes Partner Reward

Private equity investment is also changing how consulting partners are compensated. According to The Barton Partnership, 88 percent of respondents at PE-backed firms participate in equity, with PE-linked carry or exit participation the primary mechanism for 57 percent. For 71 percent of those receiving equity, value converts to cash only on an exit or transaction.

“Partner reward in these firms is therefore more heavily deferred and tied to future value realization,” the report explained. “The economics are less centered on annual distribution and more closely aligned with the investment horizon and eventual value realization.”

The report found that mean total cash compensation among respondents at PE-backed firms was $927,000, around 15 percent below the $1.09 million reported across the rest of the market.

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Near-term earnings expectations remain positive, with 62 percent of PE-backed partners expecting compensation to increase over the next twelve months, broadly in line with the wider market. Career intentions, however, are more mixed. Only half expect to remain in consulting over the next three years, compared with 73 percent elsewhere.

Compensation Transparency Remains a Concern

While earnings have remained relatively stable, satisfaction with compensation continues to be moderate. The Barton Partnership found that partners reported an average compensation satisfaction score of 5.5 out of 10.

Transparency emerged as a more significant concern, with 43 percent describing their firm’s compensation process as only slightly or not at all transparent. Meanwhile, 39 percent considered it very or extremely transparent. “This points to a relatively divided partner population when it comes to understanding how compensation decisions are made,” the report said.

Nevertheless, 60 percent of respondents expect their compensation to increase over the next twelve months, compared with just eight percent anticipating a decrease. Boutique partners were more cautious, with 48 percent anticipating higher compensation over the coming year.

Nearly One-Third Uncertain About Consulting Careers

Despite positive compensation expectations, the report found that 31 percent of consulting partners are unsure about or unlikely to remain in the profession over the next three years. Uncertainty is highest among boutique and strategy consulting respondents, at 39 percent and 36 percent, respectively.

“Compensation and reduced confidence in the consulting model are the joint leading motivations for considering a move, each cited by 24 percent,” the Barton report explained.

General management in a large corporation was the most frequently identified next role at 27 percent, followed by another consulting firm and entrepreneurial ventures, each at 22 percent. The findings suggest that retaining senior consulting talent will require firms to look beyond compensation alone, with long-term career opportunities and confidence in the consulting business model playing increasingly important roles.

AI Tops the Leadership Agenda

Artificial intelligence has emerged as the most significant challenge facing consulting firms, according to The Barton Partnership. The study found that 71 percent of respondents identified the impact of AI as a critical challenge, followed by adapting the business model at 58 percent and pricing and margin pressure at 52 percent.

“These structural priorities sit well ahead of more traditional market concerns, including competition (23 percent) and client demand uncertainty (21 percent),” the report said. AI is also reshaping how firms approach service delivery, team structures, and pricing, the study noted.

“The prominence of business model adaptation alongside both issues suggests that partners are thinking beyond individual challenges to the shape of the consulting model itself,” the report explained.

For consulting firms, the implications extend beyond compensation. The Barton Partnership concluded that competitive reward, transparency, and compelling long-term opportunities will play an important role in attracting and retaining senior talent as the sector continues to evolve.

To read the full 2026 North America Partner Compensation Report from The Barton Partnership, click here.

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media