Bales was a Director of McKinsey & Company from 1978 to 1998, where he held senior leadership positions, including founding the Firm’s practices in environmental management, information and media, and state and local government. He left McKinsey in 1998 but continues as an Emeritus Director and Senior Advisor to the Firm.

Early in his career, Bales served as Assistant Budget Director for the City of New York where he developed the City’s program budgeting system and led the development of New York’s air pollution, solid waste management, and water supply programs

Mr. Bales has been active in environmental matters for more than 25 years. In recent years, he has focused on climate change and how greenhouse gas emissions can be abated in cost-effective ways. In 2007, he worked with McKinsey to produce the report entitled

Reducing U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions: How Much at What Cost? In 2008 and 2009, he worked with Project Catalyst and other initiatives in framing the economics of carbon abatement strategies.

Mr. Bales is widely viewed as an expert in the environmental field and has published a number of articles and is in demand as a speaker on the topic. His latest article

Containing Climate Change(co-authored with Rick Duke) appeared in Foreign Affairs (September-October 2008). He has also served on the boards of a number of leading environmental organizations, including The Nature Conservancy and the Center for Market Innovation at NRDC.