China Market Research ...'s  Instablog

It has been a tough year for the economy and a lot of press has focused on the collapse and declining fortunes of various financial institutions like Lehman Brothers and AIG.  Less has been said about management consulting firms which have had an equally brutal year.  Rumors  abound that even the big 3 consulting firms have been forced to scale back operations, reduce salaries, and trim workforces in order to weather the storm.  There have been some casualties.   

The most recent news is that Marakon Associates will be bought by management and financial consulting firm CRA International.  CRA’s bought Marakon (also known as Trinsum) after  Trinsum Group’s bankruptcy www.trinsum.com/. Marakon positioned itself at the high end, competing with McKinsey and having some heavy hitters in its senior management ranks.

Katzenbach Partners got scooped up by Booz Allen after its # of consultants dropped  precipitously in the past 6 months.  Marakon and Katzenbach's problems highlight the rough times that consulting firms have been having as their typical clients -- corporations and PE firms stop investing and planning growth strategies.

But just like in banking where smaller, fast growing operations like Greenhill & Co., and Lazard Brothers continue to do well, the same is true in consulting and market research. 

Alex Partner which got the GM bankruptcy deal is thriving.   CMR is continuing to hire and is looking for talented people.  For more information take a look at our careers page. www.cmrconsulting.com....