Over more than two decades with the firm, Yermolai has worked extensively across the metals, mining, energy, and transportation industries. Beyond the traditional areas of strategy, capital productivity, organizational systems, and operations, in recent years, he has focused on digitization and transformation programs more broadly. Yermolai relocated to Shanghai in 2022 after working for many years in Russia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Before joining McKinsey, Yermolai spent several years working in China, and later served as a consultant.