Market conditions

By B.J. Richards

When we talk to consultants in Africa, one of the fundamental things they always want us to understand is that it is really a tough place to do business.  Depending on where you are, inadequate transport links may mean you can’t always get where you’re going; the lights may be unreliable and the internet even more so; and a good deal of your work could depend on donor money that may or may not be there tomorrow.

Growth is slowing in the German consulting market.  Having been the most reliable engine of growth for consultants in Europe in the last five years (other markets have sometimes grown more, but have been less dependable), there are signs that growth this year may be 2%-3%, rather than the 6% we saw in 2013.

Competition is fierce in the French consulting market, where a sluggish economy means clients are putting intense pressure on prices and are reluctant to make big investments.  But while firms are busy battling it out for their share of hard-to-find business, they may do well to consider the possibility that the real threat to their survival comes not from each other but from their clients. That’s because with tight budgets and lots of work to do, businesses are increasingly looking to their own staff to do work that would traditionally have gone to consulting firms.