BERLIN: The consulting industry of the German speaking countries – Germany, Switzerland and Austria (DACH) – has grown by over 6% last year to a size of €8.7 billion. Financial services remains the region’s largest industry for consultants, while strategy consulting is the market’s most important service. The strong growth, in combination with the high share of high-priced consulting work, makes DACH the globe’s most attractive consulting market.
Every year analysts from Source Global Research (Source), a UK-based analyst firm that specialises in the management consulting industry, conducts research into the development of the DACH consulting industry. The firm’s latest analysis, which focuses on the top segment of the consulting industry (mid-and large-sized consulting firms with more than 50 consultants), shows that the German speaking landscape has seen strong growth in 2015 and is forecasted to end this year on a high as well.
Industry driversThe firm’s data estimates the DACH consulting market to be worth €8.7 billion, up 15% since 2012, when the industry for advisory services was said to deliver €7.5 billion in fee income. Germany is with a value of just under €7.5 billion – roughly 7% of the global consulting industry – by a distance the region’s largest consultancy space. Including the turnover of small consulting firms and boutiques, as well as the consultancy contractor market, the country’s market is, according to the BDU (the German association for consulting firms), worth over €27 billion.
Germany was, on the back of strong demand for financial services and manufacturing consultants, also DACH’s fastest growing region in 2015, booking growth of 6.5%, compared to 5.7% for Switzerland (growing to €943 million) and just 2.9% for Austria (growth to €265 million).
