This is a profile image of Varun Marya

Varun Marya

Senior PartnerBay Area

Helps aerospace, defense, and private-equity companies enhance value by transforming their organizations and accelerating their performance

Varun leads our Aerospace and Defense Practice in the Americas. In this capacity, he serves as a core Americas Advanced Industries leader.

A strong advocate for tech-enablement, Varun previously led our Americas manufacturing work, where he focused on the shift from regular to digital manufacturing. He co-led the creation of our Digital Capabilities Center in Chicago. He was also one of the architects of a multiyear knowledge collaboration with the World Economic Forum on the Future of Production.

Since joining McKinsey in 1998, Varun has used his organizational, commercial, operational, manufacturing, and supply-chain expertise to help industrial companies thrive, particularly in the aerospace, private-equity, and high-tech sectors. Varun has led corporate-wide transformations for a range of advanced industries and private-equity portfolio businesses, often helping to accelerate comprehensive turnaround efforts.

Examples of his work include the following:

  • driving multifunctional transformations (such as pricing, design-to-value, lean, and sales effectiveness) for several private-equity portfolio companies to increase profitability
  • overseeing a multiyear global cost-savings initiative across functions and programs for a major aerospace company
  • working with a major high-tech company to drive a transformation of the supply chain and planning function

Varun began his McKinsey career in our Johannesburg office and transferred to the San Francisco office in 2001. He serves on the leadership council of Tipping Point, a Bay Area organization that screens local nonprofits and then supports their efforts to educate, employ, house, and otherwise assist people in need. He also serves on the advisory board of the Center for a New American Security, an independent, bipartisan, nonprofit organization that develops strong, pragmatic, and principled national-security and defense policies

Published work

Navigating the gray-to-green transition in aerospace & defense,” McKinsey & Company, March 2023

How technology is shaping learning in higher education,” McKinsey & Company, June 2022

Using machine learning to improve student success in higher education,” McKinsey & Company, April 2022

Digital: The next horizon for global aerospace and defense,” McKinsey & Company, May 2021

Seizing the moment: Talent challenges and opportunities in aerospace and defense,” McKinsey & Company, April 2021

Call to action: How A&D companies can build the workforce of the future,” McKinsey & Company, August 2020

The great remake: Manufacturing for modern times,” McKinsey & Company, August 2017

Excellence in cost management: A new era for aerospace,” McKinsey & Company, August 2013 (PDF–793 KB)

Education

University of Cambridge
BA, MEng, manufacturing engineering