Anand says McKinsey contracts for defence department did not involve ‘state secrets’

The Department of National Defence has awarded about $30 million in work to McKinsey through 15 contracts since 2011, Anand told a House of Commons committee probing the contracts.

Defence Minister Anita Anand is dismissing opposition concerns about millions of dollars in contracts between her department and McKinsey & Company, saying the company’s work was “not a matter of state secrets.”

Anand made the comments on Monday while testifying to the House of Commons government operations committee, which is looking into the federal contracts awarded to McKinsey and other consulting firms since 2011.

The Department of National Defence has awarded about $30 million in work to McKinsey through 15 contracts since 2011, Anand told committee members. Most of that work dealt with improving the management of human resources and data, she added.

“All of the subject matters of the contracts were in relation to corporate improvement, improvements in the way in which the institutions function,” she said. “This was not a matter of state secrets that were being provided.”

As an example, Anand said the military recently turned to McKinsey to help with its culture-change efforts, which included organizing and reporting on consultations with thousands of Canadian Armed Forces members across the country.

The company also worked with the Royal Canadian Navy to better integrate digital technology into its long-term plans, the committee heard, and helped develop a long-term human-resources strategy for the Canadian Joint Operations Command.

That command is responsible for overseeing all Canadian military operations at home and abroad, sparking Conservative concerns about potential security breaches.

The Tories noted that the company has previously worked with Russia and China, ties that have previously been raised in the U.S. due to McKinsey’s work with the Pentagon.