In consideration of the opposing opinions on the impact of management consultants and in light of prior investigations, the following research question emerges in this thesis : How can the value-add that is the performance of strategy consultants be evaluated?
In order to answers this research question, the following sub-questions will be addressed as well: Firstly, which roles and activities fulfil consultants and clients during a consulting project? Secondly, which difficulties arise in attempting to evaluate the performance of management consultants? Thirdly, what are the motives and practical relevance from the perspective of the consultants and the clients to evaluate the performance of consulting services? In this context, management consultants are understood as external consultants of major strategy consulting firms aiming to provide solutions to strategic problems. Additionally, the main attention will be on models to evaluate their performance as opposed to others, which focus on determining drivers for consulting project success (e.g. Appelbaum, 2004). Hence, the paper compares scientific approaches, which are originated from sound theoretical investigations and practitioners’ approaches that are derived from evaluation practice.
The aim of this paper, then, is basically threefold: Firstly, provide an understanding for the complexity and heterogeneity of management consulting. Secondly, sketch the most important aspects and difficulties, which arise in the context of performance evaluation of consultants. Since the aim is not to develop a comprehensive model, which can be used to economically evaluate the performance of management consultants, the thesis thirdly aims to rather fill the void, which has been opened since the last major review of performance evaluation models for consulting services a decade ago (e.g. Ernst, 2002; Sangüesa Sánchez, 2003) by presenting an updated review on the major models that have been established since the start of academic research into this area in the 1970s.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Importance and Criticism of Management Consultants and the Controversy to Evaluate their Performance
- Problem Definition and Objectives
- Course of Investigation
- Theoretical Fundamentals of Strategy Consulting
- Concept of Strategy Consulting
- Heterogeneity of the Management Consulting Market
- Phases of the Consulting Process
- Roles and Functions of Management Consultants
- Roles and Motives of Clients
- Client-Consultant Relationship
- Theoretical Fundamentals of Strategy Consultant's Performance Evaluation
- Concept of Performance Evaluation and Service Quality
- Practical Relevance of Performance Evaluation
- Perspectives and Dimensions of Performance Evaluation
- Difficulty and Complexity of Performance Evaluation
- Empirical Approaches to the Performance Evaluation of Strategy Consultants
- Overview and Rational for Selecting the Approaches
- Scientific Approaches
- Approach by Klein 1978
- Approach by Hoffman 1991
- Approach by Gable 1996
- Approach by Fritz and Effenberger 1998
- Approach by Ernst 2002
- Approach by Sangüesa Sánchez 2003
- Practitioners Approaches
- Approach by Kubr 1986
- Approach by Phillips 2000
- Approach by ASCO 2013
- Summary and Final Discussion of the Approaches
- Conclusion
- Concluding Remarks
- Implications for Practice
- Future of Strategy Consulting and Performance Evaluation
- Contributions and Perspectives for Further Research
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This thesis aims to evaluate the value-add of external strategy consultancies, exploring the critical debate surrounding their performance and contributions. The research delves into the theoretical frameworks of strategy consulting and performance evaluation, examining the diverse roles and motives of both consultants and clients. It then analyzes various empirical approaches to evaluating the performance of strategy consultants, drawing on both scientific and practitioner perspectives. The paper aims to contribute to the understanding of this complex and influential industry.
- The growing importance and criticism of management consultancies
- Theoretical foundations of strategy consulting and performance evaluation
- Diverse perspectives and dimensions of performance evaluation
- Analysis of empirical approaches to evaluating strategy consultants
- Implications for practice and future research
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The introduction delves into the historical context of management consulting, highlighting its significant growth from the 1980s to the present day. It also addresses the controversy surrounding the value-add of consulting services and the challenges of objectively evaluating their performance. The chapter concludes by defining the research problem and outlining the objectives and methodology of the thesis.
Chapter 2 provides a comprehensive overview of theoretical fundamentals related to strategy consulting. It defines the concept of strategy consulting, analyzes the heterogeneity of the management consulting market, and explores the different phases of the consulting process. The chapter further examines the various roles and functions of consultants, the motivations of clients, and the dynamic nature of the client-consultant relationship.
Chapter 3 focuses on the theoretical foundations of strategy consultant's performance evaluation. It defines the concept of performance evaluation and service quality, discusses the practical relevance of evaluating consulting services, and analyzes different perspectives and dimensions of performance evaluation. The chapter concludes by highlighting the difficulties and complexities inherent in evaluating the performance of strategy consultants.
Chapter 4 provides a comprehensive overview of both scientific and practitioner approaches to evaluating the performance of strategy consultants. It systematically examines various approaches, including those by Klein (1978), Hoffman (1991), Gable (1996), Fritz and Effenberger (1998), Ernst (2002), Sangüesa Sánchez (2003), Kubr (1986), Phillips (2000), and ASCO (2013). The chapter concludes with a summary and discussion of the strengths and limitations of each approach.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The main keywords and focus topics of this thesis are: strategy consulting, management consulting, performance evaluation, service quality, empirical research, client-consultant relationship, consulting value-add, industry growth, and academic debate.
- Quote paper
- Daniel Fischer (Author), 2014, External Strategy Consultancies. Evaluating Their Value-Add, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/939299
