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James Oscar McKinsey (June 4, 1889 – November 30, 1937) was an American
accountant An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certifi ...
, management consultant, professor of
accounting Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "languag ...
at the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
, and founder of
McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...
.Flesher, Dale L. and Tonya K. Flesher.
McKinsey, James O. (1889-1937)
" In ''History of Accounting: An International Encyclopedia,'' edited by Michael Chatfield and
Richard Vangermeersch Richard G.J. Vangermeersch (born 1940) is an American economist, and Emeritus Professor of Accounting at the University of Rhode Island, particularly known for his ''History of Accounting: An International Encyclopedia,'' edited with Michael Chat ...
. New York: Garland Publishing, 1996. pp. 410–411.


Biography


Youth, education and early career

McKinsey was born in 1889 in
Gamma, Missouri Gamma is an unincorporated community in northeast Montgomery County, in the U.S. state of Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and te ...
, son of James Madison McKinsey and Mary Elizabeth (Logan) McKinsey.Allen G. Debus, ''World Who's Who in Science,'' Marquis Who's Who, Inc. 1968. p. 1148 After attending regular public school, McKinsey initially received training as a
teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
at the Warrensburg Teachers College, now
University of Central Missouri The University of Central Missouri (UCM) is a public university in Warrensburg, Missouri. In 2019, enrollment was 11,229 students from 49 states and 59 countries on its 1,561-acre campus. UCM offers 150 programs of study, including 10 pre-profes ...
, where in 1912 he obtained his Bachelor of
Pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...
.John J. Kahle. ''American Accountants and Their Contributions to Accounting Thought (RLE Accounting): 1900-1930.'' Routledge, 5 feb. 2014. p. 17 McKinsey continued to study law at the
University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkans ...
, where he obtained his law degree one year later, in 1913. In 1914 he studied
bookkeeping Bookkeeping is the recording of financial transactions, and is part of the process of accounting in business and other organizations. It involves preparing source documents for all transactions, operations, and other events of a business. Tr ...
at the
St. Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private Jesuit research university with campuses in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, and Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, it is the oldest university west of the Mississip ...
, and started his working career by teaching bookkeeping at St. Louis University. Next McKinsey entered the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
, where in 1917 he obtained his BPhil degree. After serving in the U.S. Army in
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, he returned to the University of Chicago. There in 1919 he obtained his MA in commerce and passed the
Certified Public Accountant Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the title of qualified accountants in numerous countries in the English-speaking world. It is generally equivalent to the title of chartered accountant in other English-speaking countries. In the United Sta ...
(CPA) examination, to act as certified public accountant in the State of Illinois.


Further career

In 1917 McKinsey had joined the accounting faculty of the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
, and would continue to lecture there on and off until 1935. In 1926 he was promoted to full professor. In the college year 1920-21 he had lectured accounting at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, and in 1921 had joined a private accounting practice. In 1922 he published his first major work, entitled ''Budgetary Control.'' In 1926 McKinsey founded his own consultancy firm,
McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...
, in Chicago, where he served as senior partner until 1935. In 1935 he accepted the appointment as chairman of the board at
Marshall Field & Company Marshall Field & Company (commonly known as Marshall Field's) was an upscale department store in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in the 19th century, it grew to become a large chain before Macy's, Inc acquired it in 2005. Its eponymous founder, Ma ...
, a department store in Chicago, and made
Andrew Thomas Kearney Andrew Thomas "Tom" Kearney (1892–1962) was the founder of Kearney, one of the world's oldest management consulting firms. Biography Andrew Thomas Kearney became part of James O. McKinsey's firm, McKinsey & Company, three years after it was fo ...
managing partner of the Chicago office. In 1936 he was also elected chairman of the American Management Association. Flesher & Flesher explained that McKinsey "soon turned Marshall Field's red ink into profit, but he may have done so at the cost of his health. He died of pneumonia on November 30, 1937."


Selected publications

* Hodge, Albert Claire & James Oscar McKinsey,
Principles of accounting
'' Chicago, Univ. of Chicago Press, 1920. * McKinsey, J.O.
Bookkeeping and Accounting, Volume 1
'' Cincinnati: South-Western, 1920. * McKinsey, J.O.
Bookkeeping and Accounting, Volume 2
'' Cincinnati: South-Western, 1920. * McKinsey, James O.
Budgetary control
'' New York: The Ronald Press, 1922. * McKinsey, James Oscar. ''Managerial Accounting.'' Vol. 1. University of Chicago Press, 1924. * McKinsey, James O. ''Business Administration''. South-Western Publishing Co, Cincinnati, Ohio 1924.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McKinsey, James O. 1889 births 1937 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in Illinois American accountants American consultants American people of Scottish descent University of Central Missouri alumni University of Arkansas alumni Saint Louis University alumni Saint Louis University faculty University of Chicago faculty Columbia University faculty People from Montgomery County, Missouri McKinsey & Company people