BrazilThree trends for management consultants in 2025
The world of management consulting is constantly evolving. A new report from LexisNexis sheds light on some of the key trends that consulting leaders need to address this year – the spotlight on the top three.
1: Personalised solutions
The first trend revolves around customisation. According to LexisNexis, clients are becoming increasingly critical of the approach that consulting firms use, with the researchers noting that the consulting market is “more saturated than ever and clients are no longer satisfied with a standard, one-size-fits-all approach”. As a result, clients are instead looking for strategies that match their specific needs, the market and their long-term goals.
In this context, it is becoming essential for firms to seamlessly align their services – from proposals and pitches to methodologies and project delivery – with the wishes and situation of their clients. Previous studies have already shown that this can lead to more satisfied clients and better results.
“When management consultants take the time to gain insight into the unique business dynamics of clients, this leads to greater customer loyalty and customer satisfaction,” the LexisNexis report notes. Demonstrating this, internal research from Deloitte found that clients who received personalised consulting solutions were 27% more satisfied and 35% more likely to work with the firm again for future projects.
Consulting firms that want to put this into practice are advised to build a 360-degree view of their client, including the business environment and the competitive landscape. They should then conduct “targeted research into the specific issue and offer customized solutions”.
According to the LexisNexis research, during a project, consultants should work to ensure consistent communication with clients – keeping them informed at all times, and tailoring the method and frequency of communication to their preferences in real-time. McKinsey & Company previously reported in its own research that projects that use this kind of personalised customer communication have an 18% higher success rate, mainly because key stakeholders are more involved and committed.
“Conduct targeted research into the customer's specific challenges and goals and provide customised solutions.”
2: AI-enhanced consulting
Artificial intelligence will be an indispensable part of business services by 2025, according to another LexisNexis report. The study found that over 80% of management consultants now use the technology in their daily work. A 36% portion indicated that AI contributes to at least half of all their work processes – including the conducting of research, summarising and analysing documents, writing emails and fine-tuning presentations.
Importantly, consultants say this saves them large amounts of time. For example, 56% of consultants said the technology helped them free up three to four hours every day. With less time spent on repetitive tasks, 40% noted a significant increase in productivity, including in more value-adding activities.
These results support the findings of a number of other papers focused on the impact of AI on professional services. For example, a Harvard Business School study at Boston Consulting Group found that management consultants who integrated AI tools into their work saw significant improvements in their performance, completing tasks 25% faster and performing 12% more tasks overall.
By working more efficiently, consultants also contribute to the productivity growth and profitability of their firm. Similarly reflecting this, Bain & Company determined after an internal analysis that the productivity of its consultants increased by 22% through AI automation. Meanwhile, another study from SPI showed that consultancies which are ahead in the use of AI perform better on KPIs such as project pipeline, revenue per consultant and profit per consultant.
Additionally, the LexisNexis report notes that AI can also make a significant contribution to improving the first trend – of personalised solutions. This is because the ability to use AI “for real-time analysis and predictive insights” means consultants have more time to deliver more customised solutions, while real-time insights driven by AI can further help win clients “in today’s fast-paced market.”
3: The hybrid delivery model
Following the lockdown phase of the Covid-19 pandemic, consulting – like many industries – has increasingly become a hybrid working environment. Where most consultants used to be at the client's office day in, day out, they now combine working on-site with their consultancy’s office, as well as working remotely.
According to an estimate by SPI, 58% of consulting work is currently done off-site. This movement is creating new needs from both clients and consultancy firms themselves.
Clients are placing higher demands on the delivery of hybrid work, especially around digital tools, processes and governance. For example, research by Bain & Company shows that customer satisfaction is 16% higher at companies who have robust tools for remote working than at companies that do not have these tools. This includes tools for communication, collaboration, project work environments, data access and knowledge.
The need for smart tooling also applies internally. For example, partners and project managers want to be able to keep a grip on the performance of their teams that work remotely/hybridly. And having a grip pays off. For example, a case study by Deloitte in the US showed that the use of remote collaboration tools can lead to a 23% increase in project yield.
A key recommendation of the LexisNexis report is that consultants should continue to monitor this trend closely, especially because the business landscape can change quickly in this regard. For example, while some companies like PwC have suddenly announced a full return to the office (in some countries), a client’s vision may differ from that of a professional services firm. On top of that, the effectiveness of on-site or remote working can vary per phase of a project.
“Closely monitor customer feedback through surveys and periodic check-ins so that you can adjust online strategies and continuously improve the quality of your hybrid model,” the researchers advise.
Other trends
According to LexisNexis, consulting leaders would do well to keep these three trends in focus. But they are by no means the only ones, and many other developments are taking place within the sector.
Other trends to consider in 2025 are the use of big data to create strategic decision-making, digitalisation within the business operations of consulting firms, professionalising project-based work with automation and business intelligence, and optimising capacity with a flexible staffing model.
