BAIN AND COMPANY

Client example: Economic Development in the Middle East

Taking economic development from vision to reality
Bain worked with several economic development entities in a Middle Eastern country to help make industrial development objectives a reality on
the ground. Over several years, the work has encompassed all key strands from sector/region development, to economic zone strategy, to driving
entrepreneurship.
Client example: Family Services Government Entity
Preserving and enhancing the role of the family in social development
Bain worked with a government entity providing services to families in a Middle Eastern country. Together, we helped redefine the strategy to
focus on the most important family-related issuesand launched several new programs with an immediate improvement in feedback from the
beneficiaries.
Client example: City of Chicago's Department of the Environment
Partnering with local government to achieve environmental goals.
Bain worked with the City of Chicago's Department of the Environment (DOE) on pro bono cases for 5 years in an effort to help turn Chicago into
"America's Greenest City." Bain developed a series of green strategies to enhance Chicago's efforts and several have been expanded nationally.
Trends
Rise of Big Four in the strategy consulting market

Big Four audit firms (Deloitte, KPMG, PwC, Ernst & Young) have been investing significantly into the strategy consulting market since
2010.[9] In 2012, Deloitte acquired Monitor Group now Monitor Deloitte while PwC acquired Booz & Company in 2013 now
Strategy&. From 2010 to 2013, several Big Four firms have tried to acquire Roland Berger.[10]
Government consultants

The use of management consulting in governments is widespread in many countries but can be subject to misunderstandings and
resultant controversy.[citation needed]
United States

In the US, Computer Sciences Corporation's Federal Consulting Practice, Accenture,[11] Booz Allen Hamilton, and Deloitte
Consulting LLP, amongst others, have established a profile for consulting within government organizations and functions.
United Kingdom

In the UK, the use of external management consultants within government has sometimes been contentious due to perceptions of
variable value for money. From 1997 to 2006, for instance, the UK government reportedly spent 20 billion on management
consultants,[12] raising questions in the House of Commons as to the returns upon such investment[13]
The UK has also experimented with providing longer-term use of management consultancy techniques provided internally, particularly
to the high-demand consultancy arenas of local government and the National Health Service; the Local Government Association's
Improvement and Development Agency and the public health National Support Teams; both generated positive feedback at cost
levels considered a fraction of what external commercial consultancy input would have incurred.
India

In India, NABARD Consultancy Services (NABCONS) provides consultancy services in the field of agriculture, rural development and
management. It is the wholly owned subsidiary of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)which is the apex
bank of the country with regard to agriculture and rural development. NABARD is owned by Government of India and Reserve Bank of
India. Agriculture Finance Corporation Limited provides consultancy mainly to governments and related institutions.

Europe

European Standard EN 16114:2011 "Management consultancy services" [14]

New Zealand

In New Zealand the Government's role in providing some infrastructure and services is greater than in some countries because of
insufficient scale in the private sector, smaller capital markets and historic political support for government service provision. New
Zealand governments do, however, hire in expertise to complement the advice of professional public servants. While management
consultants contribute to policy and strategy development the Government tends to use management consultants for strategic review
and for strategy execution. There is a distinction between management consultants (who generally provide advice and fixed
deliverables, often for a fixed fee) and professional contractors (who work for an hourly or daily rate providing specialist services).
Official figures from 2007 to 2009 show annual expenditure of about NZ$150 -NZ$180 Million by the NZ Government on consultants
but this is understated.[15] While multinational consultancy firms provide advice on major projects and in specialist areas the majority
of management consultants providing advice to the New Zealand government are sole practitioners or members of small consultancy
practices. The range of services provided is large covering change management, strategic review, project and programme
management, procurement, organizational design, etc.[16]
Criticism

Despite consistently growing revenues, management consultancy also consistently attracts a significant amount of criticism, both from
clients as well as from management scholars.
Management consultants are sometimes criticized for overuse of buzzwords, reliance on and propagation of management fads, and a
failure to develop plans that are executable by the client. A number of critical books about management consulting argue that the
mismatch between management consulting advice and the ability of executives to actually create the change suggested results in
substantial damages to existing businesses. In his book Flawed Advice and the Management Trap, Chris Argyris believes that much
of the advice given today has real merit. However, a close examination shows that most advice given today contains gaps and
inconsistencies that may prevent positive outcomes in the future.[17]
More disreputable consulting firms are sometimes accused of delivering empty promises, despite high fees, and charged with "stating
the obvious" or lacking the experience upon which to base their advice. These consultants bring few innovations, instead offering
generic and "prepackaged" strategies and plans that are irrelevant to the clients particular issue. They may fail to prioritise their
responsibilities, placing their own firms interests before those of the clients.[18]
Another concern is the promise of consulting firms to deliver on the sustainability of results. At the end of an engagement between the
client and consulting firms, there is often an expectation that the consultants will audit the project results for a period of time to ensure
that their efforts are sustainable. Although sustainability is promoted by some consulting firms, it is difficult to implement because of
the disconnect between the client and consulting firms after the project closes.
Further criticisms include: disassembly of the business (by firing employees) in a drive to cut costs, only providing analysis reports,
junior consultants charging senior rates, reselling similar reports to multiple clients as "custom work", lack of innovation, overbilling for
days not worked, speed at the cost of quality, unresponsive large firms and lack of (small) client focus, lack of clarity of deliverables in
contracts, not customizing specific research report criteria and secrecy.[19]
Top 10 Tools of 2015

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Customer Relationship Management

Customer Relationship Management is a process companies use to understand their customer groups and respond quickly
and at times, instantlyto shifting customer desires.

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Benchmarking

Benchmarking displaced strategic planning from the number one spot during the downturn. Although benchmarking still tops
the list in this year's study, its use varies by region as executive priorities begin to shift toward growth and the tools that
support it.

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Employee Engagement Surveys

Employee Engagement Surveys measure whether employees are fully involved and enthusiastic about their work and
company.

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June 10, 2015
Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning is a comprehensive process for determining what a business should become and how it can best achieve
that goal.

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Outsourcing

Outsourcing is among the cost-cutting tools that appear to be losing favor as executives seek growth. Along with downsizing
and shared service centerswhich also are used to reduce headcountoutsourcing earns below-average satisfaction
scores.

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Balanced Scorecard

A Balanced Scorecard defines what management means by "performance" and measures whether management is achieving
desired results.

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Mission and Vision Statements

Along with strategic planning, mission and vision statements are among the most widely used tools, and consistently rank
above average in satisfaction.

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Supply Chain Management

Supply Chain Management synchronizes the efforts of all partiessuppliers, manufacturers, distributors, dealers, customers,
and so oninvolved in meeting a customer's needs.

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June 10, 2015
Change Management Programs

Change Management Programs are a new addition to our study this year, and are particularly favored by European firms,
who are the leading users.

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Customer Segmentation

Customer Segmentationanother growth oriented toolis most effective when a company tailors offerings to segments that
are the most profitable and serves them with distinct competitive advantages.