BOSTON, February 21, 2013—The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is the best overall provider of change-management services among the strategy and operations management consulting firms reviewed, according to a new report by Kennedy Information, the industry's leading research and publishing firm.
BCG scored "very strong" or "strong" in 8 out of 10 change-management capabilities—the highest number among its segment of consulting firms in Kennedy's report, "Change Management Consulting Market," published this month.
Citing BCG's relative breadth and depth of change-management capabilities, Kennedy calls the company a "vanguard" firm that "has been at the forefront of change management" for half a century: "Founder Bruce Henderson wrote one of the first pieces of thought leadership on the subject in 1968, and the firm has not stopped evolving its thinking or services since."
The report also highlights the firm's "comprehensive set of tools and tactics" that gather, measure, and translate data into insights that help senior executives manage risk and course-correct on a real-time basis: "BCG is committed, as well, to ensuring that behavioral change is embedded in the client's culture without the burden of bureaucratic process."
Perry Keenan, global leader of BCG's Change Management practice, noted that BCG took an early stand on the need to blend the "soft" and "hard" sides of change management to ensure project success. The Kennedy report acknowledges this leadership, saying, "The firm’s DICE and Roadmapping tools…have achieved iconic status for their ability to codify client-specific success factors for change and provide executive insights based on hard data. Clients appreciate BCG's approach to accelerated change by focusing on what needs to be accomplished rather than overburdening project teams with bureaucratic processes that deliver little or no real value."
"BCG thought leadership on change management has stood the test of time and is included in several Harvard Business Review anthologies that are top sellers in the HBR catalogue," the report points out. Among its other specific findings:
On BCG's Cultural DNA: "Change management is part of BCG's DNA and is an active consideration in a high proportion of the work it does. As a result, the firm has built a solid base of experiential data that supports both the business and financial cases for change."
On Tools and Methodologies: "BCG's tools and methodologies have not only been tested for decades, but adopted widely by clients and by related disciplines, such as project management. This strengthens BCG's ability to show evidence of success, reducing the element of risk inherent in change projects."
On Project Management: "BCG's Rigorous Program Management methodology ensures that all stakeholders are encouraged and supplied with the right resources and insights to execute change successfully."
For more information on the Kennedy report, click here.
For more on BCG's thought leadership on change management, go to bcgperspectives.com.
To arrange an interview with a BCG change-management expert, please contact Alexandra Corriveau at +1 212 446 3261 or corriveau.alexandra@bcg.com.