Subsidiary (LLC) | |
Industry | Professional services |
Founded | 1945 |
Headquarters | New York City, New York, U.S. |
Number of locations
|
180 cities in 40 countries |
Key people
|
Julio Portalatin (Chairman and CEO) |
Products | Human resource consulting services, including retirement, health & benefits, human capital, surveys & products, communication, investments, outsourcing, and mergers & acquisitions |
Revenue | $4.2 billion |
Number of employees
|
~20,500+ (2014) |
Parent | Marsh & McLennan Companies |
Website | www.mercer.com |
Mercer is the world's largest human resources consulting firm. Headquartered in New York City, Mercer has more than 20,500 employees, is based in more than 40 countries, and operates internationally in more than 130 countries. Mercer is a subsidiary of global professional services firm Marsh & McLennan.
Started in the United States in 1937 as the employee benefits department of Marsh & McLennan, Inc., the company took the name of “William M. Mercer” in 1959, when Marsh & McLennan acquired William M. Mercer Limited, a Canadian firm founded by William Manson Mercer in Vancouver in 1945. In 1959, Mercer became a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. In 2002, its name was changed to Mercer Human Resource Consulting.
In 2004, the company acquired Houston, TX-based Synhrgy HR Technologies, a human resources technology and outsourcing services company. Also in 2004, Mercer admitted giving the NYSE board a compensation report that contained "omissions and inaccuracies" that led to a $139.5 million pay package for former NYSE Chairman Richard Grasso. Mercer had been brought in to advise the stock exchange on Grasso's 2003 contract and his request for $139.5 million. The consultancy returned $440,000 in fees it collected from the NYSE and provided key documents in the lawsuit.
In 2007, the company became simply "Mercer." Also in 2007, Mercer acquired Höfer Vorsorge-Management, a German actuarial and retirement consulting firm. At the time, the acquisition reportedly gave Mercer the top market position in Germany.
In 2008, Mercer's Italian human capital consulting business merged with Tesi, an Italian competitor. The combined business, Mercer Tesi was noted at the time to be the largest HR consultancy in Italy.
In 2010, Mercer acquired ORC Worldwide, an expert in international work assignments. Also in 2010, Mercer acquired Brecksville, Ohio-based Innovative Process Administration LLC (IPA), a health benefits and technology provider.
In 2011, Mercer acquired Fort Lauderdale, FL-based Mahoney & Associates, a defined contribution plan provider. Also in 2011, Mercer acquired Alicia Smith & Associates, a Washington DC-based Medicaid policy consulting firm.