Booz Allen Hamilton is a management and technology consulting firm whose largest customer, by far, is the United States government. Its leadership orbit, headed by chairman and chief executive Horacio Rozanski, runs an enterprise that derives the bulk of its revenue from federal work, much of it for the defense and intelligence communities.
Founded in 1914 and publicly traded since a 2010 IPO that followed a Carlyle Group buyout, Booz Allen sits at the center of the national-security contracting world. The firm reported a record fourth-quarter backlog around $38 billion for fiscal 2026 and continued growth in its national-security portfolio, even as a 2025 federal cost-cutting drive pressured consulting contracts across government.
The firm's executives form a recurring node of power: a private, profit-seeking company staffed heavily by cleared personnel and former officials that performs work once reserved for government itself, from analysis to cybersecurity to AI for intelligence agencies.
What they control
- A large book of U.S. federal consulting contracts across defense, intelligence, and civilian agencies
- A workforce heavy with security-cleared analysts and former government officials
- Cybersecurity, data, and AI services embedded in national-security operations
- A record fiscal-2026 fourth-quarter backlog around $38 billion
- A revolving-door pipeline between the firm and the agencies it serves
Key institutions & holdings
Derives the majority of revenue from the U.S. government.
Booz Allen provides analysis, cyber, and technology services across the national-security enterprise.
Key facts
- Founded in 1914; one of the largest U.S. government services contractors.
- Horacio Rozanski has been chief executive since 2015 and chairman since 2024.
- The Carlyle Group acquired a majority stake in 2008; the firm went public in 2010.
- Reported a record fourth-quarter backlog around $38 billion in fiscal 2026.
- In 2026 named Kristine Martin Anderson president and Troy Lahr chief financial officer.
- Agreed in 2023 to pay $377.45 million to settle False Claims Act allegations over cost charging.
Timeline
- 1914Booz Allen Hamilton is founded.
- 2008The Carlyle Group acquires a majority stake in the firm.
- 2010Booz Allen completes its initial public offering.
- 2013Contractor Edward Snowden, then a Booz Allen employee at the NSA, leaks classified surveillance documents.
- 2023Pays $377.45 million to settle False Claims Act allegations over improper cost charging.
- 2026Leadership changes name Kristine Martin Anderson president and Troy Lahr CFO.
Controversies
The Edward Snowden leaks · 2013
Snowden was a Booz Allen contractor assigned to the National Security Agency when, in 2013, he leaked documents exposing mass-surveillance programs, spotlighting how much secret work is handled by private contractors.
$377 million False Claims Act settlement · 2023
In 2023 Booz Allen paid $377.45 million to resolve allegations that, from roughly 2011 to 2021, it improperly charged commercial and international costs to its government contracts. A whistleblower received about $69.8 million.
The national-security revolving door · ongoing
Booz Allen's heavy reliance on former intelligence and defense officials, and the migration of staff between the firm and its government customers, raises recurring questions about oversight of privatized security work.
Network
- Horacio RozanskiChairman and CEOHas led Booz Allen as CEO since 2015 and as chairman since 2024.
- The Carlyle GroupFormer majority ownerBought control of Booz Allen in 2008 and took it public in 2010.
- Kristine Martin AndersonLieutenantChief operating officer who also became president in 2026.
Why this matters
When core intelligence, surveillance, and defense functions are outsourced to a single publicly traded contractor, decisions affecting national security are made partly inside a profit-seeking firm. That raises questions about oversight, the revolving door between government and industry, and how much of the secret state operates beyond direct public accountability.