Event: What's happening in the Dutch consulting industry

22 March 2024 Consultancy.eu

Professionals seeking to gain insight into the latest trends and developments in the Dutch consulting landscape can attend an event by the Swedish Chamber of Commerce and Cinode.

Held on April 11 in the afternoon, the event ‘What’s happening in the Dutch consulting industry’ will shed light on the main developments in the Dutch consulting sector.

Speakers Anders Hagberg, Mattias Loxi, and Lisa Larsson from Cinode will walk through highlights of the industry’s performance, the outlook for the coming year, and stipulate some of trends which are re-shaping the scene – including the rise of freelancers, cloud-based working and generative AI.

According to an estimate from Consultancy.org, the Dutch consulting industry is home to over 1,000 established consulting firms. Beyond that segment, there are an estimated 1,500 to 2,000 other consultancy firms active across the industry’s diverse segments, including strategy, finance, operations, risk & compliance, sustainability, digital transformation, and technology.

Mattias Loxi, Co-Founder of Cinode (a provider of IT platforms to 300+ consultancies in Europe), said in the run-up to the event that the Dutch landscape is characterised by a fragmented market. “While a large share of the market is held by large players, similar to what is seen in other markets, the Dutch landscape has a relatively high share of mid-sized firms, boutiques and specialist niche firms.”

“Across the board, 2023 was a challenging year for consultancies, characterised by slower growth. Yet the Dutch market is highly diversified, with certain sectors experiencing strong demand, whereas others have encountered significant challenges. We will be looking into differences in demand and growth, and single out the ‘hot sectors’ for the period ahead,” said Loxi.

Meanwhile, the Dutch consulting sector has a high share of independent freelancers, with over 100,000 professionals officially registered as independent interim manager, project manager or consultant. Independents enjoy a mature ecosystem – they can tap into dozens of independent communities and hundreds of established intermediaries, brokers and digital matchmaking platforms active in the landscape.

Similarities with the Nordics

With the largest majority of its clients active in the Nordics, Cinode’s experts will also take time to reflect on some of the key similarities and differences between the Dutch and Nordic consulting sectors, and lessons learned that can be learned.

Touching on a number of similarities, Loxi said, “In both markets, we’re seeing a clear shift in client demand to more specialized skills, changes to the way procurement of consulting services are done, and the rise of flex models at consultancies, among other similarities.”