BCG · Tech Consulting · Medium · 25-35 min

Family-Owned Conglomerate Digital Transformation

Last updated 2026-07-29

What is this case about?

A KSA family conglomerate — SAR 8B revenue across retail, real estate, F&B, and contracting. The chairman has come back from Davos asking for 'an AI strategy across the group' in 90 days. There is no Chief Data Officer, no data lake, finance still closes on Excel, and the four business units do not share a customer master. The chairman's son, recently appointed group COO, is your sponsor.

Where strong candidates start

  • Reframe the ask — 'AI strategy' is the wrong starting question; replace it with 'where does data and AI move the group P&L'
  • Inventory the four BUs and identify the two or three where data/AI creates disproportionate value (likely retail, then F&B)

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