Quants Consulting Inc. has achieved rapid growth, surpassing 150 consultants in just over two years since its founding. Into this firm — running on both technology and strategy — joined Atsushi Kimura, who carries 24 years of career experience at a Big Four firm. We took a close look at the real appeal of a rapidly growing company as seen through a veteran’s eyes — the growth speed impossible at a large firm, and the “one-pool system” that enables a challenge from IT into strategy.
Atsushi Kimura
After the Risk Advisory division of Tohmatsu (now Deloitte Tohmatsu Risk Advisory), joined Quants Consulting. Has extensive experience in IT risk domains — including third-party assessments and advisory work on cybersecurity, IT governance, and system risk for operating companies and financial institutions, as well as IT control development and IT auditing.
From 24 Years at Deloitte to a Newly Founded Firm — The Next Career a Veteran Consultant Had in Mind
— Could you tell us about your career background and how you came to join Quants Consulting?
After graduating from university, I joined Daiwa Institute of Research as a systems engineer and worked there for about four and a half years. Daiwa Institute of Research might bring a think tank to mind, but 80% is the systems division (SI division). At the time I was mainly involved in systems for specialized trading companies and Daiwa Securities group systems centered on mainframes. As a newcomer I also experienced programming, and gradually took on design processes and similar work.
After that, I moved to the Risk Advisory division of Tohmatsu — then still an auditing firm (now Deloitte Tohmatsu Risk Advisory) — and started my consulting career from IT auditing work. The turning point in my career was the enforcement of the Personal Information Protection Act around 2005. Security and personal information protection engagements surged, and I gradually shifted toward advisory work.
— What led to your transition from SIer to the consulting industry?
At the time I was handling the mainframe — an older system — and my career path if I stayed in that division five or ten years ahead was to some degree visible. The world was moving toward open systems and Java and other new technologies, and my desire to take on new challenges grew stronger. I jumped into the auditing firm thinking I would challenge myself in a different industry using IT while I was still young.
— You were at Deloitte for 24 years. Why did you decide to make a move at this timing?
My career at Deloitte was long and comfortable, but upon being promoted to Managing Director, the volume of administrative work increased substantially. Up through Senior Manager I had found my motivation in delivering high-quality outputs to clients at the front line of projects, but my position changed and a gap opened up with what I had wanted to do.
When I thought about my career through to retirement, I felt that a daily life centered on administrative work was different from the picture I had envisioned, and I decided to make a move. Through a recruitment agent, I took my time looking at opportunities in the market before settling on Quants Consulting. I joined Quants Consulting in May 2025.
Rapid Growth Running on Both Technology and Strategy — Where Quants Consulting Stands Today
— What kind of business does Quants Consulting operate?
Broadly, there are two areas: a technology domain and a strategy domain. The technology domain handles a wide range of IT-related engagements — including IT-based BPR, cybersecurity which is my specialty, and IT governance — and accounts for approximately 80%.
The remaining 20% is the strategy domain, which is divided into three teams: strategy, M&A, and legal.
As a partner in the technology domain, I am leveraging my accumulated expertise to play the role of expanding cybersecurity and IT governance engagements.
Demand for cybersecurity is growing very significantly. System failures at mega-banks and cyber attacks on major corporations are frequent triggers, as are the precursor incidents to those events. Attackers tend to target daily infrastructure, and if companies face risks such as information leakage from cyber attacks, there is potential for reputational damage and more.
— Could you tell us about Quants Consulting’s current headcount and future outlook?
As of December 2025, the headcount is around 150. Currently everyone is a mid-career hire, but we plan to welcome our first new graduate employees in April 2026. We are also further strengthening new graduate hiring for April 2027 entry.
— What types of cases are most common in terms of project duration and team structure?
It varies by engagement, so there is a range from small teams to large-scale projects. For example, in the cybersecurity domain that I’m involved in, there are consultations like “we want to advance our security level within a six-month budget” with a cost ceiling — in those cases we might respond with a team of around five people: three members plus a manager and partner, for instance.
In terms of team composition, the most common structure is a partner entering as the responsible party, with a PM and members (consultants) below.
— Could you walk us through the flow of a specific project?
We start with a current state investigation — analysis using what is commonly called a benchmark. From there, for the challenges that surface, we may support tool implementation, or support implementation from the organizational structure angle — such as reviewing operational rules and developing regulations.
However, in our case, we don’t provide the technical implementation itself — such as actual tool implementation. For tool implementation, clients either go to their regular vendors or we introduce vendors we have relationships with.
— What kinds of client counterparts are most common?
Because budget securing is important, we often speak directly with division head-level people from the early stages of engagement formation. We do receive consultations from section head-level people in the field as well, but since escalation through division heads and executives is then required, many cases start with top-line contacts from the outset.
A Culture of “Rewarding Results” — Even “Grade-Skipping” Promotions Impossible at a Big Firm
— What age groups and backgrounds are most common among current mid-career hires?
The center is the younger 20s to 30s demographic. In particular, many applicants are people with around three to five years of system development experience at IT vendors — that is, people aiming for a career change from engineer to consultant.
— Among those with engineering experience, what kind of profiles tend to be a good fit?
People with knowledge and experience in areas such as application development processes, networking, and operating systems are good fits.
In the cybersecurity domain in particular, experienced young professionals are almost absent from the market, so it’s rare for job listings to attract experienced candidates. For that reason, we ask IT-experienced young people “Are you interested in cybersecurity?” and have motivated members learn through OJT. Everyone takes to it positively, so their growth is fast. Communication skills — being able to explain in one’s own words in front of clients — are also emphasized.
With these experiences and skills in mind, I believe there are two qualities that lead to success here. The first is being interested in growing the organization. The company still has immature aspects as an organization, and people who can find the fun in building the company together are a strong fit. The second is having a proactive desire to grow. Because the company is still not large, younger members are sometimes entrusted with responsible work. It is not uncommon for a Senior Consultant to be promoted to Manager in one year. People who are not satisfied with their current work content and are always taking on the challenge of fulfilling new roles are, I believe, well suited here.
— Concretely, how fast is the pace?
For example, there are members who have been promoted “skipping a grade” from Associate to Senior Consultant. At the large firm I came from, even for the most outstanding people, two consecutive years of promotion was inconceivable — so this speed is simply not possible there. Being able to properly reward positions and salaries when results are delivered — because of the current scale — this is, I think, a major attraction of Quants Consulting.
Entering as an IT Consultant, You Can Still Challenge “Strategy” — The Career Possibilities That the One-Pool System Opens Up
— Beyond the growth speed, are there other appeals or experiences that can be gained at your company?
The fact that despite being a newly established and still small organization, the company operates on both the technology and strategy axes. At many consulting companies, the typical path is to first build a foundation with IT consulting, and then expand into other domains once the scale is larger. In that respect, what is distinctive about our company is that we operate on both axes despite being a small, newly founded organization.
— Could you tell us about the appeal that dual-axis operation creates?
We have adopted a one-pool system. Even members who joined in the technology domain can, after accumulating sufficient experience and passing an internal test, challenge strategy engagements — such as management strategy and M&A. Building experience as an IT consultant while being able to raise your hand for the strategy engagements running alongside you — this is an appeal in expanding career breadth that not many other consulting companies can offer.
— Many people join without consulting experience. What does the education system look like?
For those without consulting experience — for example, SE or programmer backgrounds with three to five years of experience — we provide training to catch up on the soft skills of a consultant, such as logical thinking and document creation output. Before joining, they watch training videos hosted by a Senior Manager covering basic thinking and skills. For example, there are practical videos like “the skill of creating PowerPoint presentations quickly.” After joining, the main approach is project-based OJT to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills.
— How about the working style?
Where there is no on-site residence at client locations, the default is office attendance — but attendance is not compulsory. That said, we want people to value lateral connections with members outside of projects, so as a company we do send messages encouraging office attendance at all-company meetings and similar occasions. Remote work can of course be flexibly arranged as long as it is reported to a manager. Working styles like “remote in the morning, office in the afternoon” or “going straight home from the client and working from home” are also possible.
— How is internal socializing?
We hold a “monthly return-to-office movement” once a month, gathering as many people as possible at the office for a get-together. We prepare pizza and drinks and hold it in a casual atmosphere. Representative Director Sagami also participates, and it is a good opportunity for junior members to speak directly with the president. It’s something we see as uniquely possible because the company is still small and flat.
— Finally, could you tell us about the vision you have for the future?
First, I want to further expand services in the technology domain. For example, AI utilization — which has very high market demand — is an area where rather than simply implementing it, we will strengthen support that applies governance and uses it under certain rules to improve operational efficiency and create new businesses.
On the other hand, in the cybersecurity domain that I specialize in, we are still small in number and governance-related engagements are mainly centered on developing regulations and rules. Going forward, we will work toward building a structure capable of providing services end-to-end from regulation development through to system-level implementation, aiming to become a domain that contributes even more to the company’s growth.
【Post-Interview Note】
What I felt through this interview was the scale of the “room to challenge” and “growth speed” that Quants Consulting possesses. Despite being a newly established organization, the fact that it operates on both technology and strategy axes, and has a one-pool system in place that allows seamless challenges from IT through to the strategy domain — this was very impressive.
Even junior members are entrusted with responsible roles early, and the evaluation system where grade-skipping promotions are achieved based on results has, I feel, a culture of genuine meritocracy at its roots. Unlike the highly siloed environment of a large firm, there are experiences to be gained here that are uniquely available because the company is in a phase where everyone can be involved in building the organization itself. I came away with the strong sense that this is a very compelling option for those seeking to broaden their career from engineer to consultant, and for those who want to raise their market value in a fast-paced environment.
ConsulNext Senior Consultant
Masahito Tsukada
Quants Consulting Inc. — Company Information
| Address | Marunouchi Trust Tower N 18F, 1-8-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0005 |
| Founded | October 17, 2023 |
| Capital | ¥25,000,000 |
| Representative | Representative Director: Shunsaku Sagami |
| Business Activities | Comprehensive consulting business |
