Forbes collaborated with analytics company Statista to release its annual list of the best... [+]
The U.S. is chock-full of consulting firms, and they claim expertise in every sector imaginable, from aerospace and defense to metals and mining. But which ones give the best advice to businesses across industries?
To compile this list of America’s Best Management Consulting Firms, Forbes worked with analytics company Statista. In addition to traditional management consultancies, Statista considered IT consulting firms, advisory branches of auditing companies (like KPMG Advisory) and consulting arms of tech companies (like IBM) for inclusion.
Click the image below to view the full list, organized by business category.
To see the 12 most highly rated companies across all sectors, listed in alphabetical order, open the gallery.
To create this ranking, Statista ran two waves of online surveys. First, it used information from trade organizations, consulting directories and other sources to build a list of more than 7,000 consulting-firm partners. It invited those partners to an online questionnaire, inquiring which industries they worked in and which consulting firms they held in high regard (excluding their own). A total of 1,207 partners completed the survey in November and December of 2016. The effort produced a long list of consultancies in 32 business categories, ranging from oil and gas to human resources.
Next, Statista used a market research firm to find and survey 1,100 business executives who had worked with the consultancies on the list. This “client survey” asked the executives which industries they worked in, and then prompted them to recommend the best consulting companies in those sectors. 1,100 executives filled out the survey this past January. Statista then identified the firms that received a disproportionately high number of recommendations in each category.
Deloitte received more recommendations than any company measured. It was among the highest-rated firms in 21 of the 32 total categories. McKinsey came in second place, receiving top marks in 17 sectors. Accenture was a close third, with high ratings in 16 categories. Bain drew recommendations in every sector, but wasn’t recommended as frequently as the top three.
In some categories, a single firm stood out particularly strongly among its competitors. Booz Allen Hamilton was the only company with a top rating in aerospace and defense. In metals and mining, McKinsey received high distinction. And in sustainability, PwC showed the strongest reputation.
Michigan-based Health Management Associates has built a positive reputation in the health care niche. It was the only company that received top marks in health care, but didn’t make any other industry list.
For the complete set of America's Best Management Consulting Firms, click here.
