MCN Direct Newswire

Vol. 8 No. 13, 2 November 2009

This issue is sponsored by:

CODA, Freedom Communications and 2009 UK Consulting Industry Half-Year Report

This issue news

1. PwC opens more consulting opportunities to graduates
2. Consulting tops Deloitte revenue growth
3. Financial services leads upswing in consulting spend
4. IBM seals deal at Middlesex University
5. Logica creates intelligent transport centre
6. Further information - feedback/pass on to a colleague/remove from mailing list

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1. PwC OPENS MORE CONSULTING OPPORTUNITIES TO GRADUATES

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) plans to recruit over 1,000 graduates and students to start work in 2010, despite the recession. More management consulting jobs are expected to be available and PwC plans to extend its consulting internship programme.

Key strands of the recruitment programme include: a graduate specialist programme providing opportunities in strategy consulting; over 100 vacancies in the firm's advisory team to meet its management consulting growth strategy, with 20 graduates starting in January; over 200 internship vacancies, including a new consulting internship programme; a graduate generalist programme working in tax or assurance to train as a chartered accountant; and an international internship scheme linking UK students to the firm's network in America, Europe and China.

PwC chairman and senior partner Ian Powell said the decision to maintain a graduate recruitment programme in the recession was commercially imperative. He explained: "We held our nerve in the market and maintained our recruitment levels in 2009 because no matter what the economic conditions, talented people are the lifeblood of PwC and will put our business in the best position in the recovery."

Head of recruitment Sonja Stockton added: "If anything, the war for talent has got more, not less, intense in the recession, for graduates and employers alike. This year's recruitment campaign is not about maintaining our numbers, it's about our ambition and growth in the market."

2. CONSULTING TOPS DELOITTE REVENUE GROWTH

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu's global consulting revenue rose 7% in the latest financial year - the firm's fastest growing function in a year when both audit and tax remained flat.

Total annual revenue from all Deloitte member firms was $26.1 billon (£15.9 billion), a decrease in US dollars of 5% on the previous year and growth of 1% in local currency. Revenue from Deloitte firms in EMEA rose 2% in local currency, with the Americas down 1% and Asia-Pacific up 8%.

Taking a positive stance on revenue, Deloitte CEO Jim Quigley said: "Achieving growth in this exceptionally difficult economic environment was the result of close attention to the needs of clients and a strong commitment to professional excellence by our member firm professionals. Despite the tough economy, we remain focused on our vision to be the standard of excellence and will continue to invest in pursuit of this vision."

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu noted that many member firms had to adjust their cost structures in the fiscal year to 31 May 2009, realigning workforces while competing for talent. The outcome was an increase in the global workforce of 5% to 169,000 employees.

Sponsor

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3. FINANCIAL SERVICES LEADS UPSWING IN CONSULTING SPEND

Financial services firms are expected to return to increased investment in consultancy over the next six months, but organisations in other sectors are showing little sign of a spending recovery.

According to sourceforconsulting.com's Quarterly Trends in Consultancy Buying report, the average large organisation spent 25% less on management consulting in the first half of 2009 than it did in the second half of 2008. But a significant proportion of the financial services firms surveyed said consulting spend had increased, with some noting a rise of 50% or more.

Sourceforconsulting also reported that systems integration is ending its downward trajectory and growth is returning, fuelled by a resurgent banking sector.

In terms of which firms are winning consultancy buyers' money, the report suggests the Big Four are doing best, ahead of specialist consultants, strategy houses, systems integrators and operational consultants.

Sourceforconsulting director, Fiona Czerniawska, commented: "The financial services sector will be the key driver in the recovery of the management consulting industry. A return of confidence to the sector has seen a new wave of consulting projects.

"Despite these more positive signs, the market as a whole remains weak. Consulting firms are continuing to discount their fees and are increasingly working with their clients on a risk and reward basis."

Looking forward, research among 30 major consultancy-buying organisations finds that 24% expect to spend more on consultancy over the next six months, with 33% expecting no change and 43% expecting to spend less. Breaking out financial services, the number of companies in the sector expecting to increase spending by over 50% is double the number for organisations in other sectors.

Sponsor

2009 UK Consulting Industry Half-Year Report

The UK Consulting Industry Half-Year Report is the shorter sister publication to the UK Consulting Industry Report, produced annually by the Management Consultancies Association and published jointly with MCN Direct (owned by NCC).

The Half-Year Report January-July 2009 provides unique data and insight into the state of the UK consulting industry over the last half-year, which has been so critical for the UK and global economies. This 11-page report looks at industry performance across sectors and service lines; changing growth rates, fee rates and income; year-on-year comparisons; and the outlook and challenges for the second half of 2009 and beyond. It provides detailed statistics as well as hard-hitting analysis.

For more information and to order your copy, please click here. Alternatively contact the publishers, NCC. Tel: +44 (0)1494 732830. Fax: +44 (0)870 134 0931. Email: reports@ncc.co.uk.

4. IBM SEALS DEAL AT MIDDLESEX UNIVERSITY

Middlesex University has selected IBM to upgrade and manage its IT infrastructure in a multi-million pound, five-year services contract.

IBM will provide remote managed information services by implementing a hosted, virtualised server and storage environment and using an alternative IBM data centre for emergency back-up.

The university, which already has a campus in Dubai and will soon open another in Mauritius as part of an international expansion plan, chose IBM for its ability to deliver a platform solution that will underpin a dynamic infrastructure and support change.

The university also set efficiency goals that will be met by using virtualisation techniques to reduce the number of servers at the primary data centre from 250 to 25, cut electricity consumption by 40% and reduce IT space requirements from 1,000 to 400 square feet.

Paula Vickers, pro vice chancellor at Middlesex University, said: "By minimising the day-to-day support and maintenance our IT team provides, we can refocus our time on strategic initiatives and new technologies. As a result of this agreement, teaching staff and students will also experience less disruption as routine maintenance work can increasingly be conducted out of hours."

5. LOGICA CREATES INTELLIGENT TRANSPORT CENTRE

Logica has opened a second innovation centre in India that will focus on its expertise in intelligent transport systems.

The centre in Chennai is the company's fifth in a series of global 'Spark' innovation centres and will act as a hub for collaborative innovation between staff, customers and business partners. It will also showcase Logica's solutions for sustainable and intelligent multi-modal transport systems.

Abhay Gupte, CEO of Logica India, said: "Logica's Spark innovation centres enable us to work in collaboration with our customers to ideate for the future and pave the way for next-generation IT solutions. The transportation industry is a burgeoning and thriving industry, and our venture into developing creative, innovative solutions is important."

Logica global innovation director GBS Bindra added: "India has always been a strategic innovation hub for Logica globally. This centre is significant for our drive towards innovative solutions."

Logica established its first Spark centre in May 2008 in Lisbon, Portugal. The centre is dedicated to the energy & utilities sector and demonstrates solutions including energy metering and intelligent grids.

6. FURTHER INFORMATION - FEEDBACK/PASS ON TO A COLLEAGUE/REMOVE

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Written by Sarah Underwood. Copyright 2010 The National Computing Centre Ltd.

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