The Top 20 Consulting Firms in the World
Large corporations, as well as moderate and small businesses, rely on the expertise of consulting firms to assist in strategies for growth and productivity. The services of these firms are secured through a payment for consultations on a variety of topics related to the betterment of the company. There are tens of thousands of consultancy firms throughout the world, but what makes a firm the best? This depends on what you’re basing your ranking upon. There are a few ways that consulting firms are judged, and this is in accordance with their prestige, their value, or net worth, employee satisfaction, and growth of the firm. Based upon these factors, we’ve put together a list of the 20 top consulting firms in the world for your consideration.
20. GE Healthcare Partners – Revenue: $18.3 billion
This firm is a subsidiary of GE Healthcare. They are a multinational consulting firm, founded in 1887. They’ve been in operation with headquarters based in London, England for several decades. The company provides clients in the healthcare industry with strategic solutions with a focus on management, analytics, leadership, governance, and technology. They only employ 150 specialists who work remotely throughout 150 locations throughout the globe.
19. Lockheed Martin Corp, IT Consulting – Revenue: $5.04 billion
Lockheed Martin Corp. IT Consulting is classified as the top consulting firm for defense and aerospace consulting. The firm partners with clients including the US Department of Defence, and a variety of government agencies. The headquarters is based in Bethesda, Maryland and they employ over 97,000 workers within 500 cities throughout the globe, in 75 foreign countries fand in the USA.
18. Gartner Inc. – Revenue: $3.3 billion
This firm was founded by Gideon Gartner in 1979. It provides expert consultation and product for HR, Finance, IT, Customer Service and Support, Marketing, Sales, Supply Chain functions, and Legal/Compliance. The headquarters is in Connecticut, but they serve a global clientele with 15,000 employees and 100 offices distributed throughout the globe.
17. L.E.K. Consulting – Revenue: $500 million
LEK Consulting is a management consulting firm that is headquartered in London, England. They provide services for mergers, corporate strategy, operations, and acquisitions. They are an international company which also has a base in Boston, Mass, USA. The company was founded by former Bain & Company partners James Lawrence, Richard Koch and Lain Evans in 1983. It employs 1,200 employed within the 19 offices which are distributed throughout the world.
16. IBM Global Services – Revenue: $77.85 billion
IBM Global Services is owned by the IBM Corporation, offering management consultation to clients throughout the world. It was established in 1991 with headquarters in Armonk, New York. They serve clients in the IT sector providing advisement in technical issues through Silicon Valley experts.
15. A.T. Kearney – Revenue: $1.1 billion
AT Kearney is based in the United States but operates globally, offering specialized management consulting with a focus on operational issues and strategy for government organizations, business, and various institutions. It was founded by Andrew Thomas Kearney in 1926 with headquarters in Franklin Center, Chicago, Illinois. The firm has offices in 50 locations throughout 40 countries employing 3,500 workers. They are an award-winning and prestigious global consulting firm.
14. The Bridgespan Group – Revenue: $75 million
This firm has been rated by Vault as one of the best top consulting firms for selectivity, and for diversity. They maintain a focus on social impact and employ passionate and talented colleagues, providing them with flexibility and support for professional development for a good work-personal balance. They’re a leader in the non-profit consulting sector but the pay is lower than in the for-profit sector. Some find the hierarchy to be frustrating at times, but the work is meaningful and the team is excellent to work with. The Bridgespan Group is global in reach and works with nonprofit organizations as well as philanthropic, impact investing and NG groups. One of their focuses is to break poverty cycles and improve the quality of life for those in need of assistance.
13. EY-Parthenon – Revenue: $80 million
EY-Parthenon is a strategy consulting firm that operates more than fifty offices throughout the world with over 3,000 employees. They advice organizational leaders, business, c-suite and others across a broad array of industries including mobility, education, health care, financial services, life sciences, private equity, technology, energy, manufacturing, media and telecom and more. Their clientele consists of Global 1000 corporations as well as nonprofit groups sand high-potential growth companies. They offer a boutique culture that is engaging and fast-paced with good parental leave plans, great co-workers and growth opportunities. The complex organizational structure sometimes leads to conflicts and the work hours are unpredictable. They’re one of the elite consultancy firms within the Big 4.
12. Putnam Associates – Revenue: $8 million
Putnam Associates offers an internship program to assist new associates in learning the business. They’re ranked as one of the best firms for limited travel requirements and top for internal mobility. They view their people as the company’s greatest asset adn offer challenging, impactful and interesting projects, making the work fun and rewarding. The travel mode is low, but there are occasional crunch periods where the work becomes an overload. Workers complain that there are some tough clients with stiff deadlines, the hierarchy can be vague, and the health and life sciences sectors for work are competitive, but the quantitative market research is amazing. They’ve been in business for over 30 years and work with biotechs as well as Fortune 500 companies in the US, as well as globally.
11.Mercer – Revenue: $4.3 billion
Mercr is a consulting firm that was established in 1945 as a subsidiary of Marsh and McLennan. They provide services globally with 180 locations within 40 countries throughout the world. They employ 21,200 workers with a focus on businesses in teh wealth, career and health sectors. They’re big providers for innovation in human resources and were voted as one of the best firms for HR consulting when it comes to idealizing the ecosystem of a workforce.
10. KPMG – Revenue: $26.4 billion
KPMG was established in 1987 when Peat Marwick and Klynveld Goerdeler merged, becoming one of the Big Four. The headquarters is located in Amstelveen, Netherlands and the firm operates in more than 150 countries throughout the world. They employ 188,982 workers throughout the world. They’re best known for their services in management consulting and advisement in financial audit, tax, and revenue shares. They are highly ranked by Fortune for the flexible work culture, compensation, and travel, with a good work-life balance.
9. Ernst & Young Revenues: $34.8 billion
Ernst & Young is a part of the Big Four Accounting Firms. This consultancy as established in 1989 in London, United Kingdom. The company employs 260,000 personnel. They’re known for high employee satisfaction due to strong bonds among team members, executive approval and a good work-life balance. The ambiguity of clear career targets, pay and benefits are not the greatest among consultancy firms, but the congenial culture and diversity are highly valued.
8. PriceWaterhouse Coopers Strategy – Revenues: $37.7 billion
This consultancy provides services to 400 of the Fortune 500 companies. The firm was established by Edwin G. Zooz in 1914 and was the first to coin the term “management consulting.” The name of the company was “Strategy &,” but was later sold to PricewaterhouseCoopers, one hundred years after its founding in 2014, combining the two names. The firm is the fifth-largest in the USA and the 8th top company in the world. Employees claim that the work-life balance is top-heavy with a high frequency of travel and a career-driven mindset. This firm ranks high as a career starting place with multi-sector projects which expose consultancy to a range of experiences, with an entrepreneurial and open-minded approach to conducting business, which creates an elite workforce in a prestigious company.
7. Deloitte Consulting- Revenue: $43.2 billion
Deloitte is ranked by Forbes as one of the most prestigious consultancy firms and is the largest of the Big Four accounting firms with regard to their network of professional services. They employ 286,000 workers throughout the world and is ranked number one in market share consulting with strong business in India and the United Kingdom. The employees appreciate an unconventional culture and the community is vibrant and youthful with an emphasis on teamwork vs competition. It’s ranked high for professional growth opportunities but has a turnover rate due to morale issues because of the challenging workplace culture. The workloads are heavy with a range of initiatives that can become overwhelming if not consistently managed.
6. Booz Allen Hamilton – Revenue: $5.48 billion
This firm was founded in 1914 and owns over 80 offices throughout the world. They offer engineering services and products with a reputation for being one of the strongest in the world with business lines throughout the public and nonprofit sectors. Employees must work with demanding clients, but travel is very little. The focus is upon federal consulting and the salaries are lower at entry pay levels as well as being less competitive than some other top firms. The culture of the firm is one of a top-down structure which is consistent yet some find it stifling. While some employees are frustrated with the bureaucratic atmosphere and slow movement, others find this an excellent place to work. There is a wide range of career growth opportunities for those who work at Booz Allen Hamilton with a strong infrastructure that recognizes talent early and provides incentives for accelerated growth.
5. Oliver Wyman – Revenue: $2.0 billion
Oliver Wyman employs 4,500 workers in 27 countries throughout the world with 60 offices open and functioning. The company formed in 2007, when Mercer Oliver Wyman and Mercer Management Consulting joined together. The headquarters is located in New York City with connections in the Asia Pacific region and Europ. Fortune listed it as one of the best work environments for working moms and Millenials. Although not as highly recognized as some rivals with regard to brand, it’s one of the top-rated firms in the world with a fun and collegial atmosphere for the entry-level workers, which aids in the adaptation process for newcomers.
4. Accenture – Revenue: $35 billion
Accenture was founded in the 1950s by Arthur Andersen. They introduced General Electric to computers and this was one of tehir first professional consultancy projects. They employ 459,500 workers who focus upon technology services, with high selectivity in the clients that they choose to work with. It’s a prestigious company that can pick and choose their clients and still stays in business. Ninety-five percent of the Fortune Global 100 companies work with Accenture’s services. The company is at work in the United States, the Philippines, and India. The three top tier consulting firms in the entire world are Bain & Company, Boston Consulting Group, and McKinsey & Company. These Fortune 1000 companies are ranked in accordance with their high revenues, reputations, and prestige within the consultancy industry, and are considered the only three in the elite tier.
3. Bain & Company Revenue: $3.7 billion
The Bain and Company firm was developed by Bill Bain, who had previously served as the vice president of the Boston Consulting Group. He left BCG to form his own firm in 1973. Bain established Bain & Company in Boston and employs 11,200 workers with a starting salary of $77,000 per year. Just as BCG had brought reform to the consulting industry, this was also the case with Bain & Company. The firm accepted one client from each industry to focus upon unique needs and try a number of strategies until they came up with a win. This strategy ws not commonly practiced but it earned them an approval rating of 99 percent, which is remarkably high. Bain & Company also looks out for the best interests of their employees and has been named “Best Employer by multiple organizations on several occasions.
2. Boston Consulting Group Revenue: $5.6 billion
The Boston Consulting Group is headquartered in Boston, Massachusettes. The firm employs 18,800 workers with a starting salary of $80,000 per year. Bruce Henderson founded the firm in 1963. He had previously spent 18 years working for the Westinghouse Corporation. When the company started it was a subsidiary of the Boston Company but went independent in 1975. Henderson developed a means of developing business strategies by writing essays on the topics and he titled the works, Perspectives. The Boston Consulting Group is credited with using this influential style of consultation from early in its development through the present day. Many of the phrases commonly used in consultancy today were coined by Henderson through his innovative approaches and some of them include”Time-based consumption, “cash cow” and “the experience curve.” The firm continued to grow and spread overseas, becoming an international company, and among the most prestigious in the world today.
1. McKinsey & Company Revenue: $8.8 billion
McKinsey & Company is based with headquarters in New York. This company employs 26,200 workers with a starting salary of $80,000 per year. James McKinsey founded the firm in Chicago, Illinois in 1926. He was a professor at the University of Chicago where he taught accounting. He brought Andre Thomas Kearney on board as a partner. The company experienced tremendous growth in the 1940s and ’50s. The first product offered was a management tool which provided counseling on the principles of accounting. The firm grew and offered specific branded products including Growth-Share Matrix, and others which focused on industry specializations. McKinsey & Company has achieved the status of becoming a Fortune 1000 company and is ranked as the top firm in the world in terms of revenue, reputation and number of years in business.