Five consulting firms named a best company to work for in Scotland

Abbott Risk Consulting has been named one of the best companies to work for in Scotland, alongside industrial compatriots Anderson Anderson & Brown, EY, Accenture and Deloitte. The firms were praised by employees for their approaches to pay, charity work and career opportunities, among other areas.

A new survey has named five consulting firms among the best companies to work for in the country. The ranking is based on the results of the 2018 b-Heard survey, a poll of 500,000 employees across 769 organisations in the UK. The questionnaire was conducted by workplace engagement firm Best Companies, which probed participants on how they feel about eight aspects of their working lives to determine a Best Companies Index (BCI) score for each organisation.

The list was topped by car dealership Sytner, which holds dealerships across the UK and specialises in premium franchises such as Audi. The organisation was followed by Chess, a cybersecurity specialist which placed second in the ranking of 50 companies operating north of the border.

As with a recent ranking for the whole UK, released by The Sunday Times, the consulting industry contingent is headed by Abbott Risk Consulting, sitting third overall. Boasting a headcount of 69, the firm, which was established in 2002, provides advisory services to some of the most high-hazard industries in the global economy from 12 sites across the UK and Australia, including a headquarters in Edinburgh. According to Best Companies, 98% of staff agreed that their organisation encourages charitable activities, while also making strides toward clipping its carbon footprint, including having no parking policy at its head office in Scotland’s capital city, resulting in more than 50% of staff either regularly cycling or walking to work.

With a collective staff of 253, Anderson Anderson & Brown follows in 12th place, scoring highly in terms of compensation – 78% of staff are happy with their pay and benefits – and equal opportunities, with at least 40% of senior managers being women. While AAB is traditionally known as an accountancy, the firm launched a dedicated consulting arm in 2018, in order to provide a platform for “rapid growth”, following a hike in demand for AAB’s in-house consulting services. Anderson Anderson & Brown Consulting hopes to hit £5 million in revenues within the next three years.

In 20th, Big Four firm EY boasts a global consulting revenue of $14.5 billion. EY boasts a UK staff of 15,302, and 87% of their employees agree that the experience they gain from their job is valuable for their future. In Scotland, the professional services giant most recently made headlines as it was engaged as an administrator, on behalf of vehicle rental firm TOM.

Following EY, in 27th in Best Companies’ ranking is Accenture UK, having been Best Company accredited every year since the employer analytics group launched in 2009. The consultancy boosted its global headcount significantly last year, amid a rash of acquisitions worth over $1 billion, while in Scotland it has rolled out a programme of free digital training courses in 2018, following a successful pilot with Young Enterprise Scotland.

The final presence from the consulting industry is Big Four competitor Deloitte, ranking 30th overall thanks to positive reviews positively from its Scottish employees. Deloitte has a significant presence in the digital consulting scene in Scotland, having launched a new studio in Edinburgh two years ago. Deloitte Digital has since continued its drive to expand its offering in the region, with the appointment of a new leadership team in 2017, while the professional services giant and fellow consultancy Sopra Steria were recently among a quartet of entities to become strategic partners of a FinTech initiative launched by the Scottish Government.

Commenting on the aims of publishing the employment benchmark, founder and CEO of Best Companies Jonathan Austin said, “The new Best Companies lists will deliver comprehensive regional benchmarking from up-to-date engagement data. Our hope is that companies will be able to see how they compare with similar local organisations to enable them to implement changes and make significant improvements to their engagement levels to make the world a better workplace.”