WASHINGTON - The Trump administration is escalating its probe into consulting firms doing work for the US government, including Booz Allen Hamilton and Accenture, warning them that they must explain what they do in plain language rather than “jargon or gobbledygook”.
In a letter to the 10 highest-paid consulting firms working for the government, the top procurement official at the General Services Administration requested a trove of information on the companies’ billions of dollars in government contracts.
The letter also asks the firms to explain how they intend to help “reduce or eliminate” spending, according to a copy obtained by Bloomberg News.
“Do not submit a scorecard that does not identify any waste and spend-reduction opportunities,” Josh Gruenbaum, who is leading cost-cutting efforts at the GSA, said in a letter to the consulting firms’ executives.
“Scorecards that do not identify waste and spending reductions will not be deemed credible and your firm will be seen as unaligned with the Administration’s cost cutting goals.”
Gruenbaum, a former private equity executive and investment banker tapped by President Donald Trump for the procurement role, asked for the companies to make recommendations on how to reduce pricing by March 31 in language that “a 15-year-old should be able to understand”.
The letter comes after the GSA asked federal agencies to justify their contracts with the consulting firms, which also include industry giants such as Deloitte.
Accenture shares tumbled on Thursday after the company said its US government work had slowed amid Elon Musk’s push to slash the federal workforce and budget through his Department of Government Efficiency.
Accenture chief executive officer Julie Sweet on an earnings call said federal services accounted for about 8% of its global revenue and about 16% of its Americas revenue in the 2024 fiscal year.
Other companies targeted by DOGE, including Science Applications International Corp, have said the impact so far to their contracts has been limited, but left open the possibility that could change as the Trump administration continues a scorched-earth campaign against what it calls “waste, fraud and abuse” in the federal government.
The federal government obligated $759 billion in federal contracts in 2023, tapping outside firms to provide professional services, technology support and research and development, according to data from the Government Accountability Office.
Proponents of the practice say it helps the government save money by allowing it to tap expertise and technology it may not have within the federal workforce.
Other firms in the GSA’s crosshairs include IBM, General Dynamics, Leidos Holdings, Guidehouse, HII Mission Technologies, and CGI Federal.
None of the companies immediately responded to requests for comment on the GSA’s letter.
The GSA is asking the consultants to complete a form which includes sections on how much the companies were paid by agencies between 2019 and 2024, the kinds of work they are doing and their pricing models.
So far, the GSA has cancelled 1,700 consulting contracts, according to internal data the agency provided to Bloomberg News earlier this week.