On this site you will find information about the
consulting and auditing industry.
The external links in our web directory will lead you to information
about
- trends
- case studies
- industry data
- management best practices and more
that are specific to the consulting and auditing industry.
We also have compiled a
list of articles on the consulting industry from the themanager.org-team and from our
valued partners in our
publications section.
Some pieces of
information on this site may be outdated. However, these are the papers
that are still available on the web. Maybe, you will find them interesting
in a historic context.
Auditor changes have been an object of scrutiny recently as the
profession and regulators seek to understand the reasons behind such
changes and what they might portend about a company’s health. A
study of auditor changes over the last two years yielded interesting
results that should be of both interest and concern to investors and
regulators. 2005
Peer review is now a licensing requirement for accounting firms in
more than 40 states. Additional jurisdictions are either
implementing enacted legislation or working toward mandatory peer
review requirements. This has created an opportunity for public
accounting firms to expand their line of services. The decision to
become a peer reviewer should be approached in the same manner as
expanding into any new line of service. The following factors should
be evaluated: the market demand for the service, the competition
from other service providers, the cost and investment required to
support the service, the pricing of the service, the institutional
support, and the potential additional benefits (e.g., firm
reputation, networking opportunities) that might accrue from
providing the service. 2008
Has the profile of big-firm partners changed over time? What is the
average age of people making partner? How long does it take to make
partner? Will an advanced degree accelerate promotion? Do audit
partners have personal and professional characteristics similar to
those of tax partners?
Management consulting increasingly appears as a global endeavour as
reflected in the increasing dominance of a few large, global
management-consulting firms. However, features of the consulting
service (e.g. its immaterial and interactional character) as well as
aspects of management (e.g. its cultural anchoredness) highlight the
locality of management consulting.
as the pace of globalization has accelerated, an increasing number
of service firms have extended their operations internationally. The
purpose of this research study was to assess the effects of global
forces on one service sector, management consulting. We hypothesized
that the largest consulting firms would have responded to global
forces by moving some operations (such as accounting, human
resources, research support) to low-cost countries. We also
hypothesized that the effects of globalization on the firms’
clients, many of which are large manufacturers, would have led the
firms to establish offices overseas. pdf 2007
The Worst
Thing about Best Practices
By Michael W. McLaughlin
Few consulting “tools” are more widely abused these days than
so-called best practices. It’s no wonder most banks, supermarkets,
airlines, retailers, and consulting firms look astonishingly
similar—they’ve been busy copying each other’s best practices for
decades. What’s most alarming is how ingrained their use has become
in the language of consultants and clients. Best practices have
joined the long list of meaningless phrases like scalable
strategies, seamless integration, and transformational initiatives.
The Management Consultancy Industry
- An Analysis
The management consultancy industry shows a very fragmented picture
with various segments and player groups. We have analyzed this
industry in its current state and future prospects.
This industry shows an impressive growth. It outperforms the average
GDP growth in many countries. This growth is fuelled by the
developments in its clients industries, which require ever-new
consulting needs. Amongst these drivers, IT is one of the most
important ones. The German Association of Management Consultants
predicts, that about 50% of all consulting assignments will at least
partly include some e-business consulting in 2001. However, this
industry is not without problems. The already fierce competition
will become even harder, driven by new entrants from other
industries and by consolidation amongst their clients. Moreover,
management consultancies do not only compete for clients, but also
for staff. The ability to attract qualified people is one of the
critical success factors in this knowledge-based industry. Read our
two-part analysis Part I - Current State:
Market Segments and Player Groups - html file - 19 KB Part II - Future
Prospects: Driving Forces, Future Developments for Market
Segments and Player Groups, Critical Success Factors for Consulting
Businesses -html file - 26 KB
