Satish Shankar named Asia Pacific leader of Bain & Company

Global management consultancy Bain & Company has appointed Satish Shankar as its new regional managing partner for the Asia Pacific.

Company veteran Satish Shankar has been named as global strategy and management firm Bain & Company’s new regional managing partner for the Asia Pacific, effective from the 1st of April. Shankar will take over from former Australia managing partner and current APAC head Dale Cottrell, who has been in the top role for the past six years and will continue on with the firm in client service.

“It’s been a true privilege to serve in this role for the past six years and to have seen the firm continue to achieve monumental success and growth across cutting-edge technology solutions, from AI, machine learning and blockchain to automation, robotics and Internet of Things,” said the outgoing Cottrell, who has overseen ‘unprecedented success’ for Bain in the region during his tenure, including double-digit growth. 

Returning to client service work under what the firm describes as its ‘servant leader’ model – in which “partners regularly rotate into leadership roles and then back to client work” – Cottrell has been with Bain for more than fifteen years, joining in 2002 and going on to serve as managing partner of Bain Australia between 2005 and 2012. Earlier in his career, he spent five years with McKinsey & Company.

Taking over from the beginning of next month, Satish Shankar has been with Bain for more than 20 years, and currently serves as the firm’s managing partner for Southeast Asia – a position he’s held for the past five years. Previously, Shankar headed up Bain’s M&A practice in the Asia Pacific, with further expertise in business turnaround and market entry strategies, operational excellence, and organisational development among other areas. 

“Satish is the perfect leader to drive our APAC region through another period of successful growth, delivering enduring results for our clients, and inspiring Bain’s people to greatness,” said Worldwide Managing Partner, Manny Maceda. “He truly has the ability, experience, and character that fits best with our needs in the region for the years ahead, as we continue to partner and team with our clients around the world.”

According to the Bain, its Southeast Asia business has experienced strong double-digit growth during Shankar’s tenure, with the incoming APAC head having helped to grow the firm’s new offices in Indonesia Malaysia and Thailand over that time. Now, Shankar will be tasked with guiding strategy, operations, training and development across Bain’s 15 Asia Pacific locations, including Australian offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. 

“It is a privilege to take on this new role and to continue working with our talented and diverse team to help our clients across the region achieve exceptional results,” said Shankar. “As we continue to approach our industry with an insurgent mindset, we remain dedicated to helping clients be disrupters, and APAC is an area with exciting growth and significant innovation – which is critical to our firm’s long term success.” 

Both Shankar and Cotrell’s lengthy periods of employment at Bain are a common feature of the company, which claims one of the lowest attrition rates in the industry and regularly features at the top of employer lists, including topping this year’s Glassdoor Best Places to Work list for the fourth time. Bain has also featured as a top-ten graduate employer in Australia according to the Australian Financial Review’s esteemed annual list.