Kroll is a global risk consulting company headquartered in New York. Since its founding in 1972 by Jules B. Kroll, the company has expanded beyond private investigation and security services into all areas of corporate risk mitigation including background screening, business intelligence, market intelligence, forensic accounting, electronic discovery, and data recovery, among others. It is a subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies.
[edit] HistoryKroll began its trademark line of investigative work in the financial sector in the 1980's, when corporations in New York City approached Kroll to profile investors, suitors and takeover targets, with special attention to any perceived connections to disreputable organizations, suspicious business practices, personality and integrity issues, or any kind of corporate malfeasance. Kroll developed a name for itself as Wall Street's premier "private eye". In the 1990's, Kroll went beyond its traditional business intelligence and investigations work, as a growing client base with considerable activity in mergers and acquisitions allowed Kroll to acquire other firms specializing in forensic accounting, background screening, drug testing, electronic data recovery and market intelligence. In 2002, Kroll acquired Kelly McCann's firm Crucible Security Services. McCann is now Senior Vice President of Kroll's security services and training departments. Kroll was itself acquired by professional services firm Marsh & McLennan Companies in July 2004. Lead on the Marsh side as chairman and CEO was Jeffrey W. Greenberg, the son of AIG CEO Maurice R. Greenberg, but he had to resign from his posts at Marsh on October 25, 2004 in favour of Michael G. Cherkasky, who was formerly with Kroll. [edit] Geographic reachKroll is headquartered in New York City, and has important offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, Eden Prairie, San Francisco, Dallas, Miami, and Washington DC. The Miami office serves as the headquarters for Kroll's operations in Latin America, where it also has offices in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Colombia. The Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region is one of Kroll's most important. Kroll's EMEA headquarters are in London, and the company has a strong presence in Spain, with offices in Madrid and Barcelona. The EMEA region is supported by offices in Paris and Milan, while Kroll's office in Dubai provides risk consultancy services in the Gulf. Kroll's Asian operations are carried out by offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Mumbai, Beijing, Singapore and Tokyo. [edit] Range of operationsKroll maintains various lines of business, and there are plans to further integrate them. Kroll's parent company MMC is reportedly staving off Kroll's business lines which it does not consider to be "core Kroll", or consistent with MMC's other operating companies (which include Marsh, a risk brokerage, or the management consultancy Oliver Wyman). The following are core Kroll activities: [edit] Business Intelligence and InvestigationsKroll's traditional business of delving into the backgrounds of companies and individuals has been strengthened by an active forensic accountancy division, and a larger group focused on financial investigations. Kroll's success at BI&I has seen numerous "copycat" companies spring up, offering similar services to Kroll and following a similar marketing "risk consulting" moniker. Many of these "risk consultancies" are headed by former Kroll directors. [edit] Ontrack and Electronic Data RecoveryKroll acquired a data recovery company named Ontrack, which has revolutionized Kroll's business operations. Kroll Ontrack has patented technologies and capabilities in recovering seemingly deleted files, including internet-based information that was never downloaded onto the computer and cleared from the cache. Kroll Ontrack's technology is expanding in-house, amplifying Kroll's capacities in its other divisions. [edit] Background ScreeningKroll is capable of doing background screens on job candidates for universities, banks, law firms, and other corporations. [edit] Security ConsultingKroll offers consulting services on building and construction security, covering fire escapes, resistance to impact, CCTV camera placement, and other security matters. Kroll was previously known for its merger with O'Gara, an armoured-vehicles provider, as well as its physical security services, with numerous military and special forces veterans providing protection services. This side of the business was reportedly found to not be in line with Kroll's development as a risk consultancy driven by intellectual firepower and fact-finding expertise, and was spun off. [edit] Historical cases[edit] The Heroin Trail caseIn 1987, in the prominent First Amendment case over The Heroin Trail stories in New York Newsday, attorney Floyd Abrams enlisted Kroll's help to find an eyewitness: "But was it conceivable that we could come up with an eyewitness who could be of help? I called Jules Kroll, the CEO of Kroll Associates, the nation's most acclaimed investigative firm, to ask him if he could inquire, through the extensive range of former law enforcement officials employed by him, whether Karaduman was known to be a drug trafficker in Istanbul."[1] Kroll came through: two weeks into the trial the firm produced Faraculah Arras, who was prepared to testify he was involved in one of Karaduman's drug deals. "I was stunned," recalled Abrams. Abrams used Kroll again in 1998 to investigate claims by CNN's Newstand documentary that sarin nerve gas had been used in Vietnam in 1970 as part of Operation Tailwind.[2] [edit] WTC & Sears Tower securityKroll were responsible for revamping security at the World Trade Center after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.[3] They also took on responsibility for security at Chicago's Sears Tower following the September 11, 2001 attacks.[4] [edit] Other products - Identity Theft ShieldKroll entered into a joint marketing agreement with legal service plan provider Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. in 2003, to distribute an identity theft product to consumers, called the Identity Theft Shield, the first time Kroll offered a service to individuals.[5] As of June 30, 2006, Kroll had over 560,000 customers, according to Pre-Paid Legal's quarterly report.[6] In addition to the Pre-Paid Legal subscribers, Kroll's Identity Theft Shield serves about 500,000 other consumers. [edit] External links
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