Korn Ferry Completes Acquisition of AMS
September 2, 2026 – Korn Ferry (NYSE:KFY) has completed its acquisition of U.K.-headquartered AMS from OMERS Private Equity. The combined organization brings together two highly complementary organizations across geographies and industries with a shared commitment to drive business performance. The collective firm will have more than 16,000 colleagues. In accordance with the terms of the acquisition agreement and in the context of the lock-box structure of the transaction, at the closing, Korn Ferry paid a combination of approximately £473 million and $326 million in cash (as consideration to the sellers, in repayment of AMS’s indebtedness, and in satisfaction of other AMS transaction obligations) and issued 3,118,628 shares of Korn Ferry common stock to the sellers.
“By bringing AMS into the Korn Ferry family, we are expanding our ability to help clients solve their most critical organizational challenges,” said Gary D. Burnison, CEO of Korn Ferry. “Despite all of the technological innovations of yesterday, today and tomorrow, the real driver of organizational success is people. And with our AMS colleagues we will be stronger together than apart. Over almost 20 years I have watched AMS grow and evolve, with deep admiration and respect. I am convinced that the culture and values of both companies are completely aligned. And it all starts with people. This is indeed a significant milestone for Korn Ferry and I am excited about the future that we will shape together.”
For decades, executive search firms, RPO providers, leadership advisors, and consulting businesses largely operated as separate segments within the broader talent ecosystem. That distinction is disappearing. Organizations are asking fundamentally different questions than they were a decade ago. Rather than seeking isolated hiring solutions, they increasingly want partners capable of helping solve broader workforce challenges spanning executive hiring, organizational design, skills development, workforce planning, leadership assessment, and long-term capability building.
“The market continues moving away from standalone talent solutions toward integrated platforms that can advise clients across the entire workforce lifecycle,” said Evan Berta, an associate at Hunt Scanlon Ventures. “Organizations increasingly want strategic partners that can help solve leadership, workforce, and capability challenges through a single relationship.”
The Korn Ferry-AMS combination reflects that evolution. Rather than simply expanding service offerings, the acquisition strengthens Korn Ferry’s ability to support clients through every stage of workforce transformation, from leadership acquisition and organizational consulting to large-scale recruiting and workforce planning.
Capabilities Become the New Currency
The transaction also reflects a broader evolution in what buyers value. AMS brings approximately $650 million in annual fee revenue, roughly $100 million in adjusted EBITDA, and more than $1.5 billion in contracted future revenue. Those long-term client relationships provide greater revenue visibility while expanding Korn Ferry’s presence across many of the world’s largest employers. Increasingly, however, the most valuable assets being acquired are not simply contracts or revenue streams. They are capabilities.
“The competitive advantage today comes from helping organizations build capabilities rather than simply filling positions,” states Mr. Berta. “Whether that’s leadership assessment, workforce planning, skills development, or enterprise hiring strategies, clients increasingly expect integrated solutions that connect talent strategy directly to business performance.”
That expectation is only becoming more pronounced as organizations attempt to modernize operating models while simultaneously responding to rapid advances in AI, changing workforce expectations, and persistent shortages of specialized talent.
Recurring Relationships Drive Long-Term Value
Another notable aspect of the acquisition is the continued movement toward recurring, embedded client relationships. Historically, executive search firms generated revenue primarily through individual search assignments. RPO providers and workforce solutions businesses operate differently, embedding themselves within clients’ hiring strategies over multi-year engagements that provide deeper operational insight and more consistent collaboration.
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Those recurring relationships are becoming increasingly valuable because workforce planning itself has become continuous rather than episodic. Organizations are no longer solving isolated hiring problems. They are managing ongoing capability gaps, leadership succession, workforce redesign, and changing skill requirements.
“The firms commanding the strongest valuations today are those that become embedded within their clients’ operating models,” claims Mr. Berta. “Recurring advisory relationships create opportunities to influence broader talent strategy rather than simply supporting individual hiring decisions.”
As organizations seek greater continuity from their talent partners, firms with long-term strategic relationships are becoming increasingly attractive acquisition targets.
AI Accelerates Platform Strategy
Technology also plays an important role in explaining the rationale behind the transaction. Both Korn Ferry and AMS have invested heavily in AI, analytics, and data-driven workforce solutions, creating an opportunity to combine broader datasets with deeper advisory capabilities.
Technology alone, however, is no longer the differentiator. Organizations increasingly need partners capable of combining AI, workforce analytics, and data with human judgment, leadership expertise, and organizational consulting. As workforce decisions become more complex, technology is becoming an enabler rather than a replacement for advisory expertise.
“The organizations creating the greatest value are combining technology with leadership insight,” said Mr. Berta. “Clients still need trusted advisors who can interpret workforce data, assess leadership capability, and translate talent intelligence into business decisions.”
A New Chapter for Human Capital
The Korn Ferry-AMS transaction reinforces a broader trend that has been building across the human capital sector for several years. The traditional boundaries separating executive search, leadership advisory, consulting, workforce solutions, and talent intelligence continue to narrow as organizations seek more integrated approaches to managing talent.
For executive search firms, the implications are significant. Competitive advantage is increasingly being defined by breadth of capability, recurring client engagement, and the ability to connect talent strategy with broader business transformation. For clients, the message is equally clear: the future of human capital is becoming less about individual services and more about integrated platforms capable of solving increasingly complex workforce challenges.
As consolidation continues across the sector, transactions like Korn Ferry’s acquisition of AMS may represent more than a single strategic acquisition. They increasingly illustrate how the next generation of human capital firms will compete. Bringing together leadership advisory, workforce solutions, consulting, AI, and talent intelligence to help organizations build stronger, more adaptable workforces for the future.
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
