User:CorporateM/draft Bain

South African Revenue Service Inquiry
In late 2018, a new South African government investigated the South African Revenue Service (SARS) for suspected corruption under the administration of former President Jacob Zuma. It found that in 2015 Bain & Company billed $11 million for consulting projects, where the firm gave bad advice. After interviewing just 33 employees over six days, Bain provided a restructuring plan that included downsizing the SARS Business Centre, which produced one-third of the tax agency's revenues. An investigation found that then-SARS head Tom Moyane followed an unusual procurement process favoring Bain, who Moyane had been in touch with before his appointment at SARS.

Critics claimed Bain intentionally collaborated in then-President Zuma's corrupt acts to favor his wealthy allies and help Zuma avoid taxes, contributing to a dysfunctional tax agency in the process. Bain claimed the consulting firm was an unintentional pawn in Zuma's conspiracies working under the head of the tax agency, a Zuma collaborator that hand-picked the SARS employees Bain interviewed. SARS officials said Bain's reports were based on false and outdated information and that senior SARS officials were not consulted. Bain replaced its executive in South Africa and offered to refund the consulting fees.

Reception
According to The New York Times, the results of Bain's consulting "have often been impressive." An audit by Price Waterhouse found that the aggregate market value of Bain clients increased 456 percent from 1980 to 1989, whereas the Dow Jones industrial average increased 192 percent during the same time period. Bain promises clients it will not work with competitors, but in exchange requires that the client commit to a long-term engagement. The firm's approach to non-competiton was unique and helped Bain growth through word-of-mouth among corporate boardrooms. However, since Bain insists on long-term engagements and implements the advice they provide, competitors claim Bain preys on insecure CEOs that are looking to outsource their jobs. In some cases, Bain's billings increase every year, but the client becomes so dependent, and the firm so embedded in the client's operations, that Bain becomes unfirable.