The Ghosn family affair with the strategy consulting sector

Ex-Nissan head Carlos Ghosn's three daughters are awaiting the outcome of their father's detention in Japan while overseeing their own careers in three very different sectors - although, in common, they all started out in the management consulting realm. 

As the celebrated Brazilian-born French-Lebanese business executive Carlos Ghosn stands accused of corruption in Japan while at the helm Nissan – in part for charging family vacation expenses to the automotive company – and Nissan seeks to recover $1.7 million in consulting fees paid to Ghosn’s sister in Rio, a picture has emerged of the Ghosn family’s ties to the world of strategy consulting, with three of his four children getting their breaks at the MBB.

Firstly, Ghosn denies any wrong-doing, and as his incarceration continues in Tokyo, the French government – part owner of Renault, where Ghosn remains chairman and CEO – has until now stood behind their man, with reports only just surfacing that it would seek his removal from the post in the coming days in response to the mounting allegations of financial misconduct stemming from an original charge of failing to disclose over $80 million in compensation.

A classic rise and fall story in the making, the events to date have captured the public’s attention in part due to Ghosn’s back-ground and path to the top. Born to Lebanese immigrants in Brazil, and returning to Lebanon with his mother during his youth, Ghosn later moved to Paris to pursue an engineering degree. From there, he rapidly rose to the top of the automotive industry as a revered turn-around specialist, credited with saving both Renault and Nissan from the future scrap-heap.

Along the journey, Ghosn has become a celebrated figure both in Japan and abroad with a jet-setting life-style and glamorous young family in tow, including his three daughters, who have since spoken out about their father’s innocence with claims his arrest was politically motivated from within Nissan. Thes daughters, meanwhile – Caroline, Maya and Nadine – have all forged their own paths in the international business and entrepreneurial worlds, via roles at the MBB.

The eldest, Caroline Ghosn, is the co-founder and CEO of Levo, a network which helps young female professionals through workplace guidance and access to mentors and other resources. The idea was developed while Ghosn was employed at McKinsey & Company and launched in 2012 with three of her McKinsey colleagues (before an internal ruction would see the brand relaunched in its current guise). Ghosn joined McKinsey in 2007 following a BA in International Relations at Stamford.

Now a Manager – Justice & Opportunity for the Mark Zuckerberg and Pricilla Chan founded Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, which seeks to ‘advance human potential and promote equality in areas such as health, education, scientific research and energy’, Caroline’s youngest sister Maya also started out at the New York office of McKinsey, where she worked for over three years as an engagement manager, business analyst, and social sector fellow from 2013 to 2016.

Meanwhile, Carlos Ghosn’s middle daughter Nadine is a recognised name in luxury fashion as the founder and creative director of Nadine Ghosn Fine Jewelry, counting Karl Largerfeld and Beyoncé among her celebrity clientele. Like her sisters, Nadine started out her career in the world of strategy consulting, in this instance with Boston Consulting Group as an associate in its luxury and consumer goods practice before joining a two-year management programme at Hermès.

Although remaining Ghosn sibling Anthony didn’t gain professional experience at any of the big American strategy firms, he is the co-founder and current CEO of financial services firm Shogun Enterprises and has a background in due diligence and business planning while at venture capital firm 8VC. Carlos Ghosn’s step-son however, Anthony Marshi, the youngest son of his second wife Carole Nahas, is currently an associate at the New York office of BCG.