Adam B.

McKinsey, Bank of England, KPMG Experience | Oxford Economist

Studied at University of Oxford

Worked at McKinsey & Company

Available Thursday at 7:30 PM UTC

Usually responds within 12 hours

Protected by the Leland Experience Guarantee

Available Thursday at 7:30 PM UTC

Usually responds within 12 hours

Questions? Start chatting with this coach before you get started.

Adam’s Master’s Programs Qualifications

Adam has helped clients get into these schools:

Hello and welcome! I hold dual Master’s degrees from the University of Oxford—a Master’s in Public Policy and an MBA—as well as a First Class Honours degree in Economics from the University of Cape Town. My academic and professional experiences, including working with organisations like McKinsey & Company and KPMG, have equipped me to guide students through the rigorous admissions processes for competitive graduate programmes. Having personally navigated these challenges and co-founded a student chapter of Effective Altruism, I understand how to craft compelling applications that reflect your unique strengths and aspirations. Whether you’re refining your statement of purpose or building a targeted admissions strategy, I’m here to provide personalised guidance to help you achieve your academic and professional ambitions.

Adam can help with:

Editing

Interviews

School Selection

Secondary Review

Application Strategy

Essays

Resume

Letters of Recommendation

Adam also coaches for MBA, College, and GMAT. View all.

About Adam

I am a development economist from South Africa who came to McKinsey in London after studying at Oxford. I worked with government ministers in South Africa to publish on economic industrial policy and I have also published the analysis completed during my time at the Bank of England. My career in corporate efficiency and operating model strategy also includes time at PwC's Strategy& and KPMG's Deals Advisory practices. I bring this drive for efficiency to my coaching, combining data-driven quantitative analysis with a people-centred approach. Whether you are looking for guidance in academic applications or career strategy, I am here to help you navigate the path ahead with confidence and clarity - and a sense of humour, because working together is great fun.

Why do I coach?

I coach because I genuinely enjoy helping others navigate pivotal moments in their academic and professional lives. Through my own experiences in competitive environments, I have seen how the right support can make a significant difference in shaping opportunities and achieving goals, especially for those times we need someone to walk through the unknown together with us. Coaching gives me the chance to share what I have learned, from crafting compelling applications to approaching challenges with rigour and an open mind. I am naturally curious about people’s stories and what drives them, and I enjoy the process of working together to uncover strengths and refine strategies. For me, coaching is about creating a collaborative and supportive environment where we can focus on your goals and bring out the best in your unique experiences. It is deeply rewarding to see clients move forward with a renewed sense of direction and self-assurance.

Work Experience

Assistant Manager

kpmg

October 2024 - Present

• Developed zero-based budgeting strategies for the IT function of a national energy utility, identifying cost-saving opportunities and optimising resource allocation. • Conducted operational due diligence for a cross-border digital infrastructure company, evaluating business scalability and operational synergies to support investment decisions. • Supported a major railway operator in analysing asset utilisation and operational efficiencies, contributing to strategic planning for long-term growth. • Advised on financial and operational restructuring strategies in the logistics and infrastructure sectors, working closely with stakeholders to deliver actionable insights.

Strategy Consultant

McKinsey & Company

November 2022 - November 2024

• Expanded Vivid Economics’ client base as an intrapreneur post-McKinsey acquisition. Integrated startup agility with established processes by mediating between startup founders, McKinsey partners, new clients, and the technical team managing Planetrics climate analytics suite. • Developed and executed a strategic sales plan for Asia showcasing Planetrics’ ability to quantify, report, and manage climate risks, substantially growing market penetration. • Assisted a multi-trillion dollar international bank with net zero target modelling in novel sectors. Liaised directly with senior stakeholders and the technical team to collect data and create assurance-ready emissions reduction targets. Conducted detailed model explanation workshops with senior leadership to facilitate decision-making. Managed two analysts. • Built a sovereign bond temperature alignment model for a US public pension fund, overcoming data insufficiencies to create climate ambition indicators per scenario. Helped a European insurance group with net zero policy by conducting peer analysis and creating a lighter version of McKinsey's 'Portfolio Alignment Toolkit' to calculate financed emissions.

Editor in Chief

Oxford Strategy Review

October 2021 - November 2022

• Leading twelve editors/writers on strategy, international affairs, and the global economy.

Project Leader

OxfDevConsult

October 2021 - November 2022

Econometrician

Bank of England

March 2021 - November 2021

• Wrote 'The Economics of Bank Lobbying' working paper, of interest to government and business leaders.

Associate Consultant / Senior Associate Consultant

PwC

January 2019 - June 2020

• Conducted site visits for a multi-billion dollar auto company to develop a road-map in the Customer-Centric Innovation division, leveraging first principles thinking to drive change. Assisted startups with design thinking and IPOs. • Facilitated deep tech demos at PwC’s 26th Annual Education & Technology Conference, attended by government ministers and industry leaders. Speechwriter for CEO of PwC Africa and CTO. Designed comms and wrote the Annual Education & Technology Report for distribution across PwC Global after interviewing university VCs to model trends. • Mediated between Africa Senior Partners in PwC’s Office of the Africa Advisory Leader, building team consensus to collaborate on PwC’s 2019 ‘5+1’ strategy.

Co-Founder and Elected Treasurer

Effective Altruism

January 2017 - February 2018

• Co-founded and built credibility for the Effective Altruism Chapter at the University of Cape Town, the first in South Africa, as part of the global movement researching the most effective charities to receive scarce resources. • Focused on fighting malaria in Africa, and strengthening inheritance rights for women. • Elected Treasurer.