Engineers wanted: PwC makes its pitch as consulting reinvents itself for the AI future

• PwC's US branch is launching a new career path aimed at engineers.
• Engineers are "vital" to the future of our firm, PwC's US chief people and inclusion officer said.
• Technical talent is in high demand as clients require support with AI.

Engineers: Corporate America wants you.

The Big Four firm PwC, a legacy institution for consultants and accountants, has made hiring engineers a priority.

The firm launched a new engineering track on Wednesday, formalizing an "engineering-first" approach that PwC says it has been quietly building for years.

The move is designed to attract and retain technical talent while helping the firm deliver more AI-native, cloud-based solutions for clients.

"Engineers are central to how we help clients grow and transform, and they're vital to the future of our firm," said Yolanda Seals-Coffield, PwC US's chief people and inclusion officer, in a press release.

This investment in engineers is about building teams with capabilities in advanced software development, deep industry insight, and emerging technologies that will help solve complex business challenges for clients, said Seals-Coffield.

PwC will further expand investment in AI-focused learning experiences to help engineers deepen their expertise, and is launching an initiative for junior recruits called "Engineer Your Career," aimed at recruiting rising college juniors interested in engineering roles.

In November, Mohamed Kanede, global chairman of PwC, told the BBC the firm is looking for hundreds and hundreds of engineers, but is having trouble finding them.

Consulting goes technology-first

PwC's push to elevate engineering to a distinct, firmwide discipline is another sign of how consulting is repositioning itself as a technology-first service.

Clients increasingly need support for multi-year digital transformations as they adapt to the AI-enhanced world, and proposing an army of generalist consultants isn't the solution they want.

As the work changes, technical skills are becoming a top priority across the industry.

Accenture, already one of consulting's most technically sophisticated players, has added nearly 40,000 AI and data professionals in the last two years. They now account for roughly 10% of its global headcount.

EY, another Big Four firm, has added 61,000 technologists since 2023, according to its latest annual report.

This week, Deloitte US even did away with the old job titles.

The firm announced internally that it was renaming all its professionals to better reflect their work. The current talent structure was designed for "a more homogenous workforce of 'traditional' consulting profiles," according to an internal presentation seen by Business Insider.

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