"There's an old adage that goes, "No one ever got fired for hiring [insert consulting firm here]." This rang true for many years, as there was no substitute for consulting 'SaaS' ('scapegoat as a service') - but a reckoning is coming. After nearly a decade of uninterrupted growth, the days of multi-million-dollar, multi-year contracts with governmental entities and private companies are swiftly withering away."
"In just the last few months, Pricewaterhouse Coopers let go 1,500 US workers (2% of its US workforce), following 1,800 cuts in 2024. Accenture announced a round of 19,000 layoffs in 2023, with ongoing reductions continuing. KPMG laid off 4% of its US audit workforce, citing pressure on profit margins. Deloitte, Booz Allen Hamilton, IBM, and Guidehouse were pressured to justify their fees by the Department of Government Efficiency. Microsoft has even completely halted hiring in its consulting business."
Traditional consulting firms face a rapid downturn as multi-million-dollar, multi-year contracts decline and the value of expensive external advice is questioned. Major firms have announced significant layoffs and hiring freezes while government and clients pressure consultancies to justify fees. AI systems can process vast datasets, benchmark, categorize, summarize, and recommend far faster than humans, enabling organizations to reduce initiative costs dramatically. Cost comparisons now make many consulting fees hard to justify. Organizations increasingly have the ability to augment internal teams with AI tools, lowering reliance on external consultants and changing sourcing economics.
Read at Big Think
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