Press Release
6 May 2026

Rahul Guha and Alexander Aganin Earn Top Consulting Honors from Consulting Magazine

CEO Rahul Guha and Senior Vice President Alexander “Sasha” Aganin receive top honors for lifetime achievement and excellence in thought leadership.

Consulting Magazine named Dr. Guha and Dr. Aganin to its 2026 Top Consultants list, recognizing their major contributions to Cornerstone Research and the broader legal and economic fields.

Dr. Guha received the Lifetime Achievement award, recognizing a career-long influence on consulting practices, client success, and firm culture.

Dr. Aganin earned the Thought Leadership & Intellectual Capital award, honoring his pioneering research and creativity in addressing complex issues—efforts that drive clear client impact across a wide range of financial instruments, markets, and institutions.

These honors reflect the extraordinary dedication that both Rahul and Sasha show to our firm, our clients, and our profession. Their accomplishments embody Cornerstone’s intellectual integrity and excellence.

—Kristin Feitzinger

“These honors reflect the extraordinary dedication that both Rahul and Sasha show to our firm, our clients, and our profession,” said Kristin Feitzinger, chair of Cornerstone’s board of directors. “Rahul’s visionary leadership has elevated our firm globally. Sasha’s rigorous research has defined industry standards in securities litigation. Their accomplishments embody Cornerstone’s intellectual integrity and excellence.”

Consulting Magazine’s Top Consultants awards recognize influential leaders who drive innovation and deliver top-tier client service. The 2026 honorees adapt rapidly to industry shifts, leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and guiding clients through complex global challenges.

Honorees and Their Achievements

Rahul Guha
Lifetime Achievement

Dr. Guha joined Cornerstone as an analyst in 1996 and has contributed to the firm’s growth for nearly three decades, assuming the role of CEO in 2020. As CEO, he has led significant global expansion—increasing headcount by more than 50%, scaling the London office, and establishing a new presence in Brussels.

Dr. Guha has also modernized the firm’s technical capabilities, from appointing its first Chief Innovation and Technology Officer to integrating advanced analytics through the Applied Research Center and Data Science Center. These initiatives have reinforced Cornerstone’s reputation for technical innovation and intellectual rigor.

“Leading a firm that values collaborative expertise and intellectual independence is a privilege,” Dr. Guha said. “This recognition belongs to our talented Cornerstone team. I am proud of the culture we built—one that empowers our professionals to tackle the world’s most complex litigation challenges with precision and care.”

Sasha Aganin
Lifetime Achievement

As cohead of Cornerstone’s finance practices, Dr. Aganin has led the Securities Class Action Filings report series for more than twenty years. Produced in collaboration with the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse, the report serves as a key benchmark for the legal industry. Dr. Aganin’s work has institutionalized key indices that allow lawyers and insurers to move from anecdotal observation to empirical, data-informed decision-making.

“I am honored to receive this award and grateful for our research team at Cornerstone and for our partners at Stanford,” Dr. Aganin noted. “Our goal is to provide the industry with a clear, rigorous framework for quantifying litigation risk in the Securities Class Action Filings report. We will continue to evolve our analysis for complex securities litigation frontiers, from cryptocurrency to AI.”