UK consultancies to build talent pool for digital success
UK consultancies believe that investing in IT infrastructure and digital transformation offer the greatest opportunities for growth in the coming year. However, eight-in-ten consulting firms feel they have not invested enough in the skills of their staff to realise the true potential of technological changes.
The technological advances of the present moment present an unprecedented opportunity to businesses, according to a mounting body of research. AI in particular could help the global economy realise a $44 trillion productivity boost, leading to a growing number of firms participating in a gold-rush to invest in the technology.
But over the last decade, it has also become increasingly clear that investing in technology, without backing the staff who will actually use it, will likely doom a transformation to failure. Various studies suggest that two-thirds of digital change programmes do not meet their stated targets – often because they fail to invest in the skills of their employees.
A new survey of decision-makers in the consulting sector from Deltek, suggests that the sector is determined to learn those lessons, as it looks to leverage cutting-edge technology to boost results over the coming year. Deltek polled leaders of 64 UK and Ireland firms with 25 or more employees, about opportunities and challenges, technology trends, and business development. And first and foremost, the researchers found that despite the sensitive state of the market, consultancies across the British Isles are betting big on emerging technologies.
When asked what they felt the biggest opportunities available to them were, the leading response was ‘investing more in IT infrastructure’ – at 20% of respondents. A further 20% said breaking into new markets or segments was a key opportunity – something which the addition of new IT systems could aid – while in third place, 14% said they saw the biggest opportunities in technology innovation.
In this context, it might not be particularly surprising that 74% of consulting firms told Deltek they would increase investment in emerging technologies for the year ahead. Or, that 31% stated that this would be significantly more than the previous year. Amid a slowing consulting market, firms are taking a proactive approach to preserving their profitability.
Neil Davidson, group vice president of the professional services sector at Deltek, said of the findings, “Digital transformation is key to overcoming the rising complexity of projects. It’s clear that projects are more challenging during a period of high inflation and uncertain geo-political and economic pressures, with two-in-five of trading businesses reporting a rise in the price of goods or services and a need to be leaner with budgets. Consultancies recognise the power of emerging technologies in aiding a host of resource management related challenges. There's never been a more important time for firms to enact change programmes across their organisations.”
Importantly, though, consultants acknowledge that simply throwing money at technology is not a guarantee of success on its own. Of all the challenges ahead, Deltek's research highlighted inadequate training and support for employees was seen as the top issue. An 83% majority of consultants said as much – ahead of insufficient resources and budget on 67%, and inadequate planning and preparation cited by 67%.
Along with training their existing workforces, this means that many consulting firms are looking to grow their workforces, casting the net further afield to recruit top talent. Contrary to the behaviour of many of the largest consulting firms in the UK – which have been laying off staff following slowing workloads - 19% consultancies will significantly increase the size of their workforce.
