Members of the MCA (Management Consultancies Association) are today making their own New Year’s resolutions, pledging to uphold new principles of ethical behaviour, client service and value and professional development in 2017, and providing evidence of how they do this in practice.
Over 20 MCA member firms, including global names such as KPMG and IBM as well as many specialist consulting firms, have joined the first wave of consultancies publishing online declarations setting out their commitments and approach.
The Consulting Excellence scheme was launched by the MCA to promote the highest standards within the consulting industry and facilitate the sharing of good practice. The declarations published today set out for the first time the detailed policies and processes of each consulting firm.
The MCA anticipates that the scheme will become the recognised hallmark of quality for the UK’s £10bn world-leading consulting industry. Consulting Excellence will help clients to identify and purchase high-quality consulting services and individual consultants to see their firm’s commitments to excellence set out in practice.
Under Consulting Excellence:
- Consulting firms show how they live up to Nine Principles of Consulting Excellence in ways that suit their clients and specialisms.
- Firms also submit a Consulting Excellence Declaration which is published on the MCA website (22 are being published today) and provides concrete evidence of their commitments in practice
- The MCA will conduct two major annual surveys to support Consulting Excellence: one of consultants and a second of clients.
Consulting Excellence has already achieved strong support from both public and private sector clients.
John Manzoni, Chief Executive of the Civil Service, has stated that:
“the Government wholeheartedly supports MCA’s Consulting Excellence scheme and encourages member firms to fully incorporate its principles” (Letter to MCA).
Ian Howes, Director of Argos Commercial Supply Development said: “Consulting Excellence will drive even more beneficial outcomes for us as clients; this is a welcome development for the industry and we are very supportive of the initiative.”
Alan Leaman, CEO of the MCA, said:
“Most New Year’s resolutions fall by the wayside after a month or so, but Consulting Excellence is a commitment for the whole of 2017 and way beyond.
“Consulting Excellence puts the consulting industry on the front foot at a time when everyone in business is under greater scrutiny than ever. Its relevance is clear as both government and business seeks the right advice and support for navigating Brexit but also creating new economic opportunities.
“These Declarations provide clients of consulting firms with clear evidence of our commitment to quality, value and service.”
Speaking about the Principles of Consulting Excellence, Howard Tollit, President of the MCA and Executive Partner at IBM, said:
“As the consulting industry adapts quickly to meet new needs and expand into new service areas, it is more important than ever that all our best firms identify, strengthen and promote their good practice in these areas. These are the core consulting skills and qualities that bring us together as an industry and enable us to continue to deliver value to clients and the wider economy.”
The nine Principles of Consulting Excellence are grouped under the three pillars of Ethical Behaviour, Client Service and Value, and Professional Development. As signatories to Consulting Excellence, MCA members firms commit themselves to adopt the Principles.
Ethical behaviour
1. We are responsible and good citizens
2. We conduct our business ethically
3. We foster an ethical culture
Client service and value
4. We provide excellent consulting services which deliver the outcomes clients seek and need
5. We are transparent with clients and respond to their concerns
6. We always strive to improve the value we can deliver to our clients
Professional Development
7. We undertake training and professional development planning each year
8. We promote strong core consulting capabilities and specialisms in our consultants and teams
9. We support our employees’ career progression, professional development and welfare
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
1. The MCA is the representative body for management consultancy firms in the UK. Its mission is to promote the value of management consultancy for the economy and society as a whole. The MCA's member companies represent around 65 per cent of the UK consulting industry in fee income, employ around 38,000 consultants and work with over 90 of the top FTSE 100 companies and almost all parts of the public sector. The UK consulting industry is amongst the best in the world and a vital part of the business landscape. MCA members include global players such as the Big Four Accounting Firms, Accenture and IBM as well as smaller specialist consulting firms.
2. The MCA member firms that have published their Consulting Excellence Declarations today are:
- Arcadis
- Arup
- Atkins
- Atos Consulting
- BAE Systems Applied Intelligence
- BDO LLP
- BearingPoint
- BMT HI-Q Sigma
- Bourton Group LLP
- Chaucer Consulting
- Decision Technology
- The Gap Partnership
- GE Healthcare Finnamore
- Greengrass Consulting
- IBM Global Business Services
- iMPOWER
- KPMG
- LCP Consulting
- Managementors
- Oakland Consulting LLP
- The Observatory International
- Sysdoc
- Turnstone Services