SlideShare uma empresa Scribd logo
1 de 55
Baixar para ler offline
POSITIONING FOR GROWTH
Buyer Needs & Market Strategies
PREPARED BY: JONATHAN BALLANTINE                                    DATE: JANUARY 2012




                                   A vendor guide for climate change & sustainability
                                          services and thought leadership research
Positioning for Growth:
Buyer Needs & Market Strategies
A vendor guide for climate change & sustainability services and
thought leadership research


Executive Summary


In late 2011, CR Vision conducted a series of interviews with sustainability
executives to ascertain current perceptions and opinions on climate change
business consulting services and thought leadership research offered by
consulting firms.

CR Vision conducted in-depth research with 31 industry practitioners from across
18 business sectors to assess the market landscape in order to provide a buyers´
perspective on climate change business consulting services and thought
leadership research from 13 consulting firms. The responses also provide
valuable insight into thought leadership design, marketing and 2012 investment
priorities, as well as illustrating key decision factors (both internal and external)
that drive vendor selection. Furthermore, this publication includes a report card
for each of the consulting firms, ranking their performance across seven
indicators.

By combining competitive intelligence together with customer insights, this
publication will assist consulting firms position for growth in 2012 and beyond, by
providing unique guidance on business strategy & expansion programmes,
service line development and go-to- market activities.




Ranked most important                                        Key selection factor
PwC & McKinsey                                               Sector Knowledge

Key CC&S progamme                                            Engage consulting firms
Energy Efficiency                                            3 out of 4

Least effective TL tool                                      Most effective TL tool
Surveys                                                      Webinar

Spending plans 2012                                          External TL Partnerships
83% increase                                                 84% state add value




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   CR Vision       Private Use Only   1
Report Focus


This publication is aimed at helping consulting firms understand buyers´
perceptions and attitudes towards hiring external consultants for climate change
and sustainability engagements. The report has four main sections:

!         Profile – this introductory chapter provides an overview of the companies
          and participants involved during the research and development of this
          publication. It also examines industry practitioners’ areas of responsibility,
          current climate change and sustainability programmes, and the level of
          support (both internal and external) required for successful implementation.

!         Buyer Behaviour – summarises the opinions of 31 industry practitioners –
          identifying their perceptions and preferences of external consulting firms for
          the engagement of climate change and sustainability services (CC&S).
          Furthermore, this chapter provides insights into buying behaviour and
          spending plans for 2012 and beyond.

!         Does Thought Leadership Matter? - the publication outlines to what
          degree thought leadership influences spending decisions, identifies what
          sustainability executives consider to be the key fundamentals of
          Authoritative Thought Leadership and determines their channel
          preferences. This chapter also features a perception-based benchmark
          that assesses thought leadership by consulting firms across the two
          dimensions of familiarity and perceived quality.

•         Tell to Win – this concluding chapter highlights the                                                    transformation that is
          happening across many industries, reflecting on                                                          the challenges and
          opportunities this presents consulting firms with                                                         respect to delivery
          engagement, thought leadership research &                                                                marketing, external
          collaboration and business development.


In addition, this publication includes a performance report card for 11 consulting
firms. Following the interviews with sustainability executives a set of indicators
was developed to assess consulting firms across two dimensions – performance
& marketing.

                                                                                      Consulting Firms
                                                                                                                                            SustainAbility
                                                                         Booz & Co.
                                           Accenture




                                                                                                                           McKinsey
                                                       AD Little




                                                                                           Deloitte




                                                                                                                    KPMG
                                                                                                            ERM
                                                                   BCG




                                                                                                                                      PwC
                                                                                                      E&Y




    Indicators
    Performance Scorecard                        7           4       4                4         7      5     7        6         7       8            7
    Market Share                                 2           1       1                1         2      1     2        1         2       2            2
    Track Record                                 2           2       1                1         2      1     3        2         2       3            3
    Geographic Presence                          3           1       2                2         3      3     2        3         3       3            2
    Marketing Scorecard                     12               9       8           10             7      9     9        7     11        12             9
    Website Utility                              3           3       2                3         2      3     3        1         3       3            3
    Content                                      3           2       2                2         2      2     2        2         3       3            2
    External Collaborations                      3           2       2                3         1      2     2        2         2       3            2
    Thought Leadership                           3           2       2                2         2      2     2        2         3       3            2
    Channels




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                   CR Vision                  Private Use Only                        2
Contents

Executive Summary                                                               2

Report Focus                                                                    3

Chapter 1 – Profile                                                             5–9

…Demographic profile
…Geographic coverage
…Annual revenues & emissions
…Survey participants - areas of responsibility
…Climate change becomes a strategic issue for business
…Internal support - enterprise-wide approach
…External support

Chapter 2 – Buyer Behaviour                                                     10 – 14

…First impressions
…2012 investment plans
…Supplier categories – most likely to be hired
…Why buyers´ buy

Chapter 3 – Does Thought Leadership Matter?                                     15 – 20

... External thought leadership partnerships
…Thought leadership & consulting firms

Chapter 4 – Tell to Win                                                         21 – 25

…Toward an open and collaborative process
…Why buyers´ buy
…Motives matter


Thought Leadership for a New Era                                                26 – 33

…Practicing the art of thought leadership
…PwC CEO Survey
…Engaging with your audience
…The rise of social media technologies
…Developing a “Leadership of Thought” platform
…Webinars
…A war on content
…Thought leadership fuelling demand creation


Looking Ahead                                                                   34


References                                                                      35
Appendices                                                                      36 – 53

             1 – Performance Benchmark                                          37

             2 – Report Cards: 11 Consulting Firms                              38 - 49

             3 – Interview Questions                                            50 - 53




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   CR Vision   Private Use Only    3
List of Tables


Table 1: Sector overview                                                                  6
Table 2: Area of responsibility                                                           7
Table 3: Significant climate change programmes                                            7
Table 4: The role of business functions                                                   8
Table 5: Supplier categories                                                              9
Table 6: Consulting firms – first impressions                                             11
Table 7: Spending plans 2012                                                              12
Table 8: Supplier categories – most likely to be hired                                    13
Table 9: Consulting firms most likely to be hired                                         13
Table 10: Reasons for hiring external consultants                                         14
Table 11: Key selection factors                                                           14
Table 12: The fundamentals of thought leadership research                                 16
Table 13: Thought leadership delivery channels                                            17
Table 14: External partnerships – preferred organisations                                 18
Table 15: How to improve thought leadership research                                      18
Table 16: Thought leadership & consulting firms                                           19


List of Figures


Figure 1: Thought leadership perception matrix                                            19
Figure 2: Consulting firms & thought leadership                                           32
Figure 3: Content development matrix                                                      33
Figure 4: Consulting firms´ performance scorecard                                         38
Figure 5: Consulting firms´ performance benchmark                                         38




Legal Disclaimer

Assertions made in this document reflect the opinions of survey respondents and / or the
author. The author shall not be liable for any indirect or consequential loss, including loss
of actual or anticipated revenue or impact to reputation or goodwill, whether arising from
negligence or otherwise.

This publication remains confidential and is for private use only.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   CR Vision    Private Use Only        4
Chapter One

          Profile

          Demographic profile

          Geographic coverage

          Annual revenues & emissions

          Survey participants - areas of responsibility

          Climate change becomes a strategic issue for business

          Internal support - enterprise-wide approach

          External support




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   CR Vision   Private Use Only   5
Profile


This introductory chapter provides an overview of the companies
and participants involved during the research and development of
this publication. It also examines industry practitioners’ areas of
responsibility, current climate change and sustainability
programmes, and the level of support required - both internal and
external - for successful implementation.

Demographic profile

Over 30 industry practitioners, representing 18 industry sectors participated in
this study. The largest number of respondents (3) represented Aviation,
Construction, Retail & Leisure, Utilities and Transport & Logistics. Table 1 below
highlights all the sectors that participated in this publication.

Table 1: Sector profile

  Sector                                   No. of Respondents
  Aviation                                                  3
  Construction                                              3
  Retail & Leisure                                          3
  Transport & Logistics                                     3
  Utilities                                                 3
  Food & Beverage                                           2
  Metal & Mining                                            2
  Telecommunications                                        2
  Automotive                                                1
  Banking                                                   1
  Chemicals                                                 1
  Health Care                                               1
  High Tech                                                 1
  Insurance                                                 1
  Media                                                     1
  Oil & Gas                                                 1
  Pharmaceutical                                            1
  Real Estate / Property                                    1


Geographic coverage                                                Annual revenues & emissions

12                         9                                                US $861 billion
Europe                     UK                                      2010 combined annual revenues


3                          7                                                164 MMt CO2
Asia                       US                                       Combined emissions (2010)*

* figure based on CDP 2010 disclosures / public information




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies         CR Vision         Private Use Only   6
Survey participants - areas of responsibility

The study was based on 31 interviews with leading multi-national companies
representing 18 sectors across four geographic zones. Respondents interviewed
were the most senior person responsible for climate change business
programmes within their organisations and had roles such as Head/Director of
Sustainability, Climate Change, Environment; or Corporate Responsibility. Table
2 below outlines their level of responsibility across eight categories.

Table 2: Area of responsibility



     Energy & Resource Efficiency

      Environmental Management

               Ethical Supply Chain

            Reporting & Assurance
                                                                                             Primary !
  Carbon Inventory Management
                                                                                             Secondary !

                Implementation Plan

   Ethics & Integrity Management

           Design of CSR Strategy

                                             0       20   40   60     80      100 120



Climate change becomes a strategic issue for business

All respondents affirmed that climate change/sustainability was both an important
business issue and a strategic issue within their business. This is reflected by the
fact that 84 percent of respondents have board-level commitments for CC&S.

Respondents were asked to outline their three most significant CC&S
programmes. Unsurprisingly, given today´s economic conditions, Energy
Efficiency was the most common activity receiving 21 nominations. Other
programmes included the transition to Low-Carbon / Renewable Energy Systems,
and Emission Reductions. Table 3 below highlights the most significant climate
change programmes.
Table 3: Significant climate change programmes

  Can you describe your 3 most significant                     Results
  CC&S programmes?
  Energy Efficiency                                                      21
  Low Carbon / RES Energy                                                11
  Emission Reduction                                                      9
  Clean Tech (finance & investment)                                       4
  Technology Upgrades                                                     4
  Business Collaboration                                                  3
  CHP / Cogeneration                                                      3
  Efficient use of Resources                                              3
  Innovation / Opportunity                                                3
  CC Investment Strategy                                                  2
  Employee Engagement                                                     1




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies          CR Vision         Private Use Only        7
Internal support - enterprise-wide approach

Climate change and sustainability programmes have become more strategic to
business, represented by the increasing number of core business functions
seen as playing a critical role in their successful implementation. From the
survey responses Facilities Management & Energy was ranked ¨important ¨or
¨most important¨ by the most respondents (26 nominations) – although when
weighted scoring was applied it averages out as third behind Corporate
Responsibility and Health, Safety & Environment.

Table 4 shows the importance of business functions in the implementation of
CC&S programmes. Scoring has been weighted based on five levels.
•         Totally unimportant                       -2
•         Unimportant                               -1
•         Neutral                                   1
•         Important                                 +2
•         Very important                            +3

Table 4: The role of business functions

    How important are the following business functions          Total
    for the implementation of your CC&S programme?
    (1= totally unimportant to 5 = very important)


    Corporate Responsibility                                            67
    Health, Safety & Environment                                        64
    Facilities Management & Energy                                      61
    Finance                                                             56
    Human Resources                                                     46
    IT / Telecoms                                                       42
    Legal & Regulatory Affairs                                          25
    Logistics / Distribution                                            24
    Manufacturing                                                       18
    Marketing                                                           15
    Procurement / Supply Chain                                          13
    Sales                                                               10
    Strategy                                                             8

External support

One of the core objectives of the study was to ascertain the level of external
support required by multi-national companies to implement their CC&S
programmes. From the responses, nearly 3 out of every 4 respondents have
engaged external support during the design or implementation of their CC&S
programmes.

When asked which types of suppliers they felt were important for the success of
their CC&S programmes, respondents scored Environmental Consultants,
Energy Consultants, Not for Profits and Verification Companies positively. By
contrast, Management Consultants, Big Four Accounting Firms were considered
to be on average ¨neutral¨, whereas IT Consultants and Telecoms Companies
were considered to be ¨unimportant¨.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   CR Vision          Private Use Only   8
Table 5 below shows the perceived importance of external suppliers for the
successful implementation of CC&S programmes. Scoring has been weighted
based on six levels.

•         Totally unimportant                       -2
•         Unimportant                               -1
•         Neutral                                   1
•         Important                                 +2
•         Very important                            +3
•         No response                                -1


Table 5: Supplier categories

    How important are the following categories of




                                                          1. totally unimportant




                                                                                                                                    5. very important
    suppliers for the success of your CC&S




                                                                                                                                                                      Weighted Score
                                                                                       2. unimportant




                                                                                                                                                        No response
                                                                                                                     4. important
    programme? (1 - totally unimportant to 5 = very




                                                                                                        3. neutral
    important)




    Management Consultants                                            12                      7              5        3                     1                3             -20
    Big Four Accounting Firms                                         11                      8              2        6                     2                2             -12
    Environmental Consultants                                          5                      6              5       11                     2                2              15
    Energy Consultants                                                             3          3              9       10                     3                3                  26
    Not for Profits                                                    6                      2         12                 7                2                2              16
    IT Consultants                                                    14                      9          3                 3                0                2             -30
    Telecoms Service Providers                                        18                      5              1             0                2                5             -39
    Verification Companies                                                         6          7              7             5                4                2                         8



What is interesting here is that even the highest scoring consulting firms don’t
score that favourably. Is this because a) the market is so fragmented? or b) that
consultants aren’t actually valued that much? Based on the results in Table 9
(page 13) it appears to be a combination of both.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   CR Vision                                                    Private Use Only                                                    9
Chapter Two

          Buyer Behaviour

          First impressions

          2012 investment plans

          Supplier categories – most likely to be hired

          Why buyers´ buy




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   10
Buyer Behaviour


This chapter summarises the opinions of 31 industry
practitioners – identifying their perceptions and preferences
of external consulting firms for the engagement of climate
change and sustainability services (CC&S). Furthermore,
this chapter provides insights into buying behaviour and
spending plans for 2012.

First impressions

Unprompted, respondents were asked to identify which consulting firms
first came to mind when thinking of CC&S business programmes.
Respondents were able to list up to three companies. The clear leader
was PwC, which received 11 nominations, followed by McKinsey (7), with
ERM & WSP scoring 6 & 5 respectively. Table 6 shows the consultant
firms identified, together with the frequency of nominations.


Table 6: Consulting firms – first impressions

  When you think about climate change &                   Results
  sustainability which consulting firms come to
  mind first?
  PwC                                                               11
  McKinsey                                                           7
  ERM                                                                6
  WSP                                                                5
  Accenture                                                          4
  Deloitte                                                           3
  AD Little                                                          2
  Booz & Co.                                                         2
  Forum for the Future                                               2
  SustainAbility                                                     2
  ALTRAN                                                             1
  ARUP                                                               1
  BSR                                                                1
  Bureau Veritas                                                     1
  Carbon Trust                                                       1
  Climate Group                                                      1
  Context                                                            1
  eava                                                               1
  Ecorys                                                             1
  Ernst & Young                                                      1
  First Climate                                                      1
  KPMG                                                               1
  Siemens                                                            1
  The Carbon Neutral Company                                         1
  UL Environment                                                     1
  URS                                                                1




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                  11
The study shows a small contradiction in that Table 5 (page 9) shows that
Management Consultants and Big Four Accounting Firms to be ¨unimportant¨ or
¨very unimportant¨ in terms of success for the delivery of CC&S programmes.

However, what is interesting is that the first consultants people thought of were
PwC and McKinsey. This suggests a few things from the audience:

!         Survey participants tended to name the first consultancies they thought of,
!         They are not really sure which consulting firms can offer practical guidance
          on these issues, and / or
!         Illustrates that both PwC and McKinsey are benefiting from increased
          visibility in the marketplace based on their marketing activities.


2012 Investment Plans

When asked to comment about 2012 spending plans, 83 percent of respondents
stated that budgets would increase/remain the same as in 2011. Respondents
were then asked to outline the business areas in which they were most likely to
invest in during 2012. Approximately 40 percent stated that they would be
investing further across four areas: Developing Strategy; Innovation/Opportunity;
Supply Chain; and Green IT. Table 7 highlights the focus areas where
sustainability executives plan to invest during 2012.


Table 7: Spending plans 2012


  How would you describe your spending plans
                                                                              2. yes – next 12


                                                                                                 3. will consider




  for the following types of CC&S services in                                                                                           No Response
                                                          1. will spend




                                                                                                                        4. no further



  2012? (1 – will spend to 4 – no further
                                                                                   months




                                                                                                                           spend



  spend)




  Develop Strategy                                                11                         7                      4          7                      2
  Conduct Risk Assessment                                                 5                  8                      6          9                      3
  Governance / Remuneration                                               3                  3                      5       17                        3
  Climate & Energy Strategy                                               5              10                         6          5                      5
  Carbon Management Strategy                                              6                  7                      3       10                        5
  Stakeholder Engagement                                                  5              12                         4          5                      5
  To provide an Assurance Statement                                       9                  6                      6          5                      5
  Supply Chain and Operations                                     10                         8                      4          5                      4
  Water Footprint                                                  7                         4                      8          7                      5
  Green IT                                                        10                         8                      5          5                      3
  Compliance / Regulation (REACH, ETS)                             9                     11                         2          6                      3
  Innovation / Opportunity                                        11                      5                         4          7                      4



Supplier categories – most likely to be hired

Given the current economic conditions it was no surprise to see Energy
Consultants ranked the highest with 22 respondents stating that they are ¨likely¨
or ¨certain¨ to hire them in the next 18 months.

Verification Companies were ranked second with 10 respondents stating that they
are ¨likely¨ or ¨certain¨ to hire them in the next 18 months. Table 8 highlights their
preferences regarding supplier categories.


Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                                                                   12
Table 8: Supplier categories – most likely to be hired


  How likely are you to hire one of the




                                                          1. very unlikely
  following consultant firms in the next 18




                                                                                                                                         no response
                                                                                 2. unlikely


                                                                                                   3. neutral



                                                                                                                            5. certain
                                                                                                                4. likely
  months to deliver a CC&S engagement?
  (1= very unlikely, 5 = certain)



  Management Consultants                                             14                        8        1           2           2                      4
  Big Four Accounting Firms                                          12                        7        1           3           3                      5

  Environmental Consultants                                                  8                 3   11               3           2                      4
  Energy Consultants                                                         2                 5        3       14              4                      3
  Not for Profits                                                     8                        5        7           3           2                      6
  IT Consultants                                                     13                        4        6           1           0                      7
  Telecoms Service Providers                                         16                        5        2           0           1                      7
  Verification Companies                                                     7                 1        9           6           4                      4



Using a predefined list of 13 consulting firms, respondents were asked to
identify the specific consulting firm they were most likely to engage with over
the next 18 months. Based on ¨likely¨ and ¨certain¨ scores PwC and
McKinsey scored most favourably with 6 & 4 nominations respectively. By
contrast, based on ¨very unlikely¨ and ¨unlikely¨ scores, ICF and AD Little
scored least favourably with 25 and 24 nominations respectively.


Table 9: Consulting firms most likely to be hired

  How likely are you to hire one of the
                                                          1. very unlikely




  following firms in the next 18 months to
                                                                                                                                                no response
                                                                                 2. unlikely


                                                                                                   3. neutral



                                                                                                                            5. certain




  deliver a climate change engagement? (1=
                                                                                                                4. likely




  very unlikely, 5 = certain)




  Accenture                                                          19                        4        0           3           0                      5
  AD Little                                                          21                        3        1           1           0                      5
  BCG                                                                19                        2        3           0           0                      7
  Booz & Co.                                                         21                        4        0           0           0                      6
  Deloitte                                                           15                        6        1           2           1                      6
  Ernst & Young                                                      17                        4        1           2           2                      5
  ERM                                                                10                        9        3           2           1                      6
  ICF                                                                21                        4        0           1           0                      5
  KPMG                                                               17                        6        2           2           0                      4
  McKinsey                                                           13                        6        3           2           2                      5
  PwC                                                                11                        7        3           4           2                      4
  SustainAbility                                                     17                        2        2           2           1                      7
  URS                                                                19                        2        1           1           1                      7



Why buyers´ buy

Responses provide valuable insights into why companies hire external
consulting firms to support their CC&S programmes. The two most prominent
responses were: Lack of Expertise/Resources; and Independent Advice (or
Sounding Board). See Table 10 for additional responses.


Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                                                                       13
Table 10: Reasons for hiring external consultants

    What are the top 3 reasons why your company           Results
    would seek consulting help for your climate
    change initiatives?

    Lack of Expertise / Resources                               17
    Independent Advice / Sounding Board / Specialist            13
    Knowledge
    Strategic Development / Global Action Plan                   7
    Risk Analysis                                                6
    New Ideas / Innovation                                       4
    Third-Party Certification                                    4
    Build Internal Capacity                                      3
    Staff Changes                                                2
    Legislation Changes / Compliance                             2
    Bespoke Research                                             1



As a follow up, respondents were asked to explain their three key decision criteria
or selection factors for hiring a consulting firm to support their CC&S
programmes. Although Price was the most widespread response (11
nominations) it only featured once as the top answer. Respondents considered
Sector / Business Knowledge (9 nominations) to be the key decision factor when
selecting a consulting firm.

Several respondents commented that as climate change and sustainability
becomes more pervasive within their organisation – Sector / Business Knowledge
would become increasingly more valuable – with some suggesting it would be
more important than specific subject expertise. Although the ability to leverage
both provides a unique point of differentiation between consulting firms. Table 11
highlights the key decision factors for supplier selection. Scoring has been
weighted on three levels.

•         First                                     3
•         Second                                    2
•         Third                                     1

Table 11: Key selection factors

    What would be your top 3 decision criteria            1st    2nd     3rd   Score
    when hiring a consulting firm for climate
    change and sustainability initiatives?
    Understanding of our business / sector                 7         2    0        25
    knowledge
    Price                                                  1         7    3        20

    Subject Expertise                                      6         1    0        20

    Track Record                                           1         2    3        10
    Composition of Team                                    0         1    2            4
    Reputation                                             0         0    3            3
    Implementation Driven                                  0         2    0            4




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                    14
Chapter Three

          Does Thought Leadership Matter?


          External thought leadership partnerships

          Thought leadership & consulting firms




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   15
Does Thought Leadership Matter?


In this section, the publication tries to understand to what degree
thought leadership influences spending decisions, outlines what
sustainability executives consider to be the key fundamentals of
Authoritative Thought Leadership and determines their channel
preferences. This chapter also features a perception-based
benchmark that assesses thought leadership by consulting firms
across the two dimensions of familiarity and perceived quality.

Respondents were asked to what extent can thought leadership research from
consulting firms influence perception and ultimately spending decisions. The
results are ambiguous in the sense that approximately 40 percent of respondents
say it has no influence, whereas 45 percent state that the quality of thought
leadership can influence behaviour change / spending decisions.

During the interviews with practitioners they were asked what they considered to
be the key fundamentals for high impact, authoritative research.

Relevance was ranked as the key component in thought leadership research with
30 respondents rating it as either ¨important¨ or ¨very important¨. Practicality was
rated second with 28 nominations. By contract, Novelty was considered to be the
least important with 22 respondents rating it as either ¨neutral¨, ¨unimportant¨ or
¨totally unimportant¨. Table 12 highlights what practitioners considered as the key
             1
components of authoritative thought leadership research.


Table 12: The fundamentals of thought leadership research

  In your definition of what constitutes as
                                                                                                                           5. very important
                                                                          2. unimportant




  ¨Authoritative Thought Leadership¨ - how important
                                                                                                        4. important
                                                            unimportant




                                                                                           3. neutral
                                                             1. totally




  are the following components? (1 - totally
  unimportant to 5 = very important)



  Relevance                                                           0          0              1               12                             18
  Practicality                                                        1          2              0               11                             17
  Clarity                                                             1          0              4               10                             16
  Validity                                                            2          0              6                      5                       18
  Focus                                                               0          0              8               13                             10
  Rigor                                                               0          0              8               10                             13
  Novelty                                                             6          6         10                          8                        1



Thought leadership has existed in various forms for over 50 years, notably in the
published form (publications, newsletters & surveys). However, during this time
we have seen a rapid transformation in how people produce/consume content.

The study wanted to ascertain buyers´ channel preferences in the face of an
ever-changing media landscape.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                                                         16
One 2 One meeting with a lead-partner was, not surprisingly, ranked the highest
with 27 respondents rating it as either ¨important¨ or ¨very important¨. Within the
more traditional realms of thought leadership publishing, Case Studies were
ranked the highest with 21 nominations.

One key finding was that Webinars scored more favourably than White Paper /
Publication – with 16 nominations versus 12 nominations. However, the surprise
finding was that the Survey, the cornerstone of consulting firms´ thought
leadership research portfolio, was rated as ¨important¨ by only 8 respondents, or
more bluntly was rated as ¨neutral¨, ¨unimportant¨ or ¨totally unimportant¨ by 3 out
of every 4 respondents. Table 13 highlights buyers´ channel preferences.


Table 13: Thought leadership delivery channels


    What is your preferred channel for consuming




                                                                                                                                 5. very important
                                                                        2. unimportant
    Thought Leadership research? (1 - totally




                                                          unimportant




                                                                                                              4. important
                                                                                             3. neutral
    unimportant to 5 = very important)



                                                           1. totally

    One 2 One meeting                                               0                    0                4           15                     12
    Case Studies                                                    0                    4                6           14                             7
    Hosted Event                                                    0                    3          11                13                             4
    Webinar                                                         1                    8                6           11                             5
    White Paper / Publication                                       1                    7          10                       9                       4
    Video                                                           6                    7                9                  8                       1
    Survey                                                          3                    6          14                       8                       0
    Social Media                                                    4             10                10                       5                       2



External thought leadership partnerships

More and more companies are turning to business partnerships or collaborations
to support long-term business objectives. The very nature of thought leadership
has resulted in consulting firms going alone – however, responses from the study
provide new evidence that this model should evolve and that there are benefits
for consulting firms to engage more collaboratively in the design, development
and delivery of thought leadership.

Survey respondents were asked their opinions on the value of partnering with
different organisations. Eighty-four percent stated that external partnerships
would add creditability. Table 14 shows their preferred choice of external
organisation. Scoring has been weighted on five levels.

•         First                                     5
•         Second                                    4
•         Third                                     3
•         Fourth                                    2
•         Fifth                                     1




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                                                              17
Table 14: External partnerships - preferred organisations


    In priority order, please rank which                  1st       2nd   3rd   4th   5th   Total
    organisations add the greatest value or
    creditability to a consulting firms thought
    leadership research?

    1. Stakeholder Organisations (such as                       8     6    11     1    5      104
    WBCSD, WEF)
    2. Businesses                                           10        4     6     6    5      101
    3. Academics / Business Schools                             6    10     2     6    7       95
    4. NGOs (such as WWF or Greenpeace)                         3     7     5    12    4       86
    5. Sector Focused Association                               4     4     7     7    9       80



Respondents were asked what consulting firms could do in order to improve their
thought leadership research. The responses from the interviews provide practical
suggestions that consulting firms could embrace in order to improve their
approach to thought leadership research (see Table 15).


Table 15: How to improve thought leadership research

    What 3 things can consulting firms do to improve their approach to            Responses
    Thought Leadership research?

    Make it relevant, practical and delivery focused Balance / Reality                        16
    Check - understand timeframes and our constraints
    Work collaboratively with business to produce meaningful studies                           6
    Show better understanding of sector knowledge                                              5
    More genuine / sincere                                                                     5
    Greater transparency on assumptions and frameworks                                         5
    Better Examples / Real Case Studies                                                        5
    Conclusions should not be linked to services offered                                       3
    Look to have research published externally (business and                                   2
    sustainability publications
    Be honest / admit failures or lack of knowledge                                            2
    Stop Bragging                                                                              1




Thought leadership & consulting firms

Respondents were asked to rate their familiarity / perceived quality of the thought
leadership research from a predefined list of 13 consulting firms.

Table 16 highlights mean scores based on the two dimensions of familiarity and
perceived quality. Scoring has been based on six levels.
•         Totally Unfamiliar                        -2
•         Unfamiliar                                -1
•         Neutral                                    1
•         Familiar                                  +2
•         Very Familiar                             +3
•         No Response                                -1




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                             18
Table 16: Thought leadership & consulting firms


  How familiar are you with the CC&S Thought
  Leadership research offerings from the                  Familiarity        Perceived quality
  following 13 consulting firms? (1 = totally             (mean score)       (mean score)
  unfamiliar to 5 = very familiar).
  Please also rate its perceived quality
  (1= low quality to 5 = high quality)

  Accenture                                                              8                       8
  AD Little                                                         -16                     -14
  BCG                                                                -5                      -9
  Booz & Co.                                                        -19                     -20
  Deloitte                                                           14                          5
  Ernst & Young                                                          5                       4
  ERM                                                                14                          8
  ICF                                                               -38                     -38
  KPMG                                                               11                          4
  McKinsey                                                           30                     29
  PwC                                                                38                     31
  SustainAbility                                                     20                     21
  URS                                                               -32                     -35



The below matrix (figure 1) highlights mean scores based on the two dimensions
of familiarity and perceived quality.


Figure 1: Thought leadership perception matrix




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                              19
Figure 1 suggests that although certain organisations have high brand recognition
both in general and, specifically, in terms of thought leadership – it doesn’t
necessarily correlate with their perceived abilities/strengths in the CC&S area – if
it did, then they would have scored more highly when respondents were asked to
state who they were most likely to work with in the future.

Combining this data with the results from Table 5 (Supplier categories) and Table
9 (Consulting firms most likely to be hired), the inference that can be made is that
many consulting firms may be winning in terms of ¨presentation¨ in the sense of
gaining recognition by getting well-presented thought leadership out there, but the
general consensus from respondents was that for the majority of consulting firms
their content lacks real penetration.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                          20
Chapter Four

          Tell to Win

          Toward an open and collaborative process

          Why buyers´ buy

          Motives matter




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   21
Tell to Win


This concluding chapter highlights the transformation that is
happening across many industries, reflecting on the opportunities
this presents consulting firms with respect to delivery engagement,
thought leadership research, marketing activities, external
partnerships/collaborations and business development.


Authoritative thought leadership research is the lifeblood of consulting firms.
When conducted with a genuine interest in the subject and client´s need, the
ideas and concepts can be very powerful, and can grab the hearts and minds of
the target audience (think SWOT Analysis, BCG´s Growth-Share Matrix and,
more recently, McKinsey´s Greenhouse Gas Abatement Cost Curve).

Responses from the interviews provide practical suggestions on how consulting
firms can redesign their approach to thought leadership research – where 1 out of
every 2 respondents stated making it more ¨relevant¨ and ¨practical¨. One
respondent from the Oil & Gas sector commented ¨ it must be practical /
pragmatic – a real hands on approach¨. Other comments included:




¨Show better technical                                    ¨Focus on the hypothesis
knowledge of the industry they                            before getting stuck into the
are talking to.¨                                          data. Have something to say.¨

Logistics                                                 Utility



¨Make it relevant, practical                              ¨Provide something new that
and delivery focused.¨                                    isn't already out there.¨

Aviation                                                  Metals & Mining



¨Try to get promoted through                              ¨Detailed thought leadership -
leading sustainability journals/                          which talks about solutions
magazines.¨                                               and trade-offs not
                                                          blue-sky thinking.¨
Publishing
                                                          Pharmaceutical



Toward an open and collaborative process

A recurring theme from sustainability executives was the lack of practicality and
depth on thought leadership combined with a desire to see what is in the "black
box" which many felt was at odds with what the consulting firms were willing to
show. Furthermore, several respondents commented that as environmental and
social issues become more pervasive across their organisation, sector knowledge
and experience would become increasingly more valuable, with some
respondents suggesting that it would be more important than subject expertise.


Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                 22
For many consulting firms where CC&S is a new service line there could be
significant opportunities to collaborate with mainstream business lines to provide
an integrated approach to thought leadership and delivery engagements.


This meeting point between functional and subject expertise will be
critical in helping clients go beyond incremental improvements.
According to Art Kleiner (of Booz & Co.) this is where the ¨magic
happens¨.2

Responses from the survey provide valuable insight into the role of external
partnerships for thought leadership design and delivery – where 84 percent of
respondents believed that external partnerships would add creditability. One
respondent from the automotive sector suggested that before publishing thought
leadership, consulting firms should go to the trouble of ¨organising a trustable
peer review process¨. Other comments included:


¨Draw on Academic research.¨
Retail & Leisure

¨Engage with businesses to develop case studies.¨

Food & Beverage

¨Engage with stakeholders.¨
Retail & Leisure


Consulting firms such as Accenture, Booz, McKinsey and PwC have already
established partnerships with ¨stakeholder organisations¨ such as the World
Economic Forum or the World Business Council for Sustainable Development
(WBCSD), and NGOs such as WWF or The Climate Group for their thought
leadership programmes. Sixteen respondents also suggested that consulting
firms work in collaboration with ¨business¨ or ¨academics¨ in order to produce
¨meaningful studies¨.


According to the White Space report ¨2010 was not a vintage year
for thought leadership and that thought leadership is generally less
well-researched than it used to be.¨ 3

The White Space report asserts that in the aftermath of the global financial crisis,
consulting firms may have scaled back investments in thought leadership. The
report argues that this may be ¨false economy¨ as uncertain times leave clients
¨hungry for new perspectives and ideas¨.

Taking a collaborative approach to thought leadership could provide numerous
benefits to consulting firms. Firstly, it provides additional resources and
viewpoints – adding resilience and rigor.       Secondly, it can support the
dissemination of seminal ideas by opening up a new indirect target audience.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                          23
Why buyers´ buy

With 3 out of every 4 respondents engaging consultants, the demand for
expertise is vital in resolving climate change and sustainability issues. Seventeen
respondents acknowledged a lack of ¨internal expertise¨ or ¨resources¨ as the
main reasons for engaging external support. Some of the comments from
respondents included:


¨For a project roll-out.¨                                 ¨Changes in Legislation¨
Food & Beverage                                           Retail & Leisure

¨To provide knowledge and                                 ¨Build internal skills /
experience where we lack it¨                              capacity¨
Real Estate / Property                                    Construction

¨External/independent                                     ¨Innovation / opportunity
assurances we are taking                                  focused goal¨
correct path¨
                                                          Insurance
Transport & Logistics



During the interviews, respondents specified the key qualities they look for in
consulting firms prior to selection. When weighted scoring was applied Industry
Knowledge was considered the top decision criteria when selecting a consulting
firm - rated more important than Price. One respondent from the Retail & Leisure
sector also commented ¨Responsiveness to customers¨. Other comments
included:


¨They must possess a deep                                 ¨Composition of the dedicated
understanding of our                                      team, profiles of its members
business¨                                                 and confidence in their ability¨

Oil & Gas                                                 Healthcare

¨Technical knowledge of our                               ¨True passion for
industry (hard to find)¨                                  sustainability¨
Logistics                                                 Utility

¨Good cultural fit with our                               ¨As sustainability matures
organisation – like the people¨                           sector knowledge will become
                                                          increasingly more important
Aviation                                                  for us¨
¨Combination of sustainability                            Pharmaceutical
and sector experience/insight¨
Insurance




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                24
Motives Matter

In uncertain times consulting firms must continuously innovate to create new methods and
services that enable clients to resolve complex issues. From a client standpoint selecting a
consulting firm entails significant risks. Thought Leadership research that is centred on
earning trust and creditability is essential for giving buyers confidence. Once trust has been
established prospective clients will then turn to that company.

A consulting firm´s commitment to thought leadership can reveal whether or not they are really
passionate about what they do or are just simply in it for the money. Several respondents from
the survey had questions about the underlying motives of a number of consulting firms –
citing, for the majority, their lack of history in the CC&S space. A general consensus from the
respondents was that given a lack of sector knowledge possessed by the majority of
consulting firms a significant proportion of time was used teaching and training ¨MBAs with
spreadsheets¨


¨Many big firms are only in this space for the marketing opportunity ... not
many have a long-track record or for that matter a genuine interest or
understanding in and of the issues. Typically smaller companies were founded
by passionate leaders - and this comes across in our engagements with
them.¨
Pharmaceutical


When communicating to prospective clients either through thought leadership or other
marketing activities, the end-user should be able to tell by themselves whether or not the
consulting firm has the required expertise or the experience to serve them. In practice,
prospective clients do not pay attention to what companies assert about themselves – many of
the respondents believed that consulting firms are ¨always trying to be right¨ and ¨never admit
failure¨ or ¨lack of knowledge¨.


¨Conclusions and recommendations should not be directed at their
solutions/products¨
Real Estate / Property


Thought leadership must be focused around the current needs and challenges of prospective
clients. Conclusions that are aligned to service offerings reveal a consulting firm´s true
underlying motives. Prospective clients want to learn how consulting firms will help them to
achieve their goals or resolve a complex issue. Clients, just like people, make perception
judgements based on motives more than on self-proclaimed expertise or extensive listings of
service offerings.

Many respondents cited ¨Global Capabilities¨ or ¨Global Rollout¨ as key reasons for engaging
with major, international consulting firms. As these firms cast their eyes on emerging markets
a strong portfolio of thought leadership, combined with a strong industry perception can
increase exposure in these new economies where name recognition goes a long way.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                       25
Suggestive Approaches

          Thought Leadership for a New Era

          Practicing the art of thought leadership

          PwC CEO Survey

          Engaging with your audience

          The rise of social media technologies

          Developing a “Leadership of Thought” platform

          A war on content

          Thought leadership fuelling demand creation

          Optimising thought leadership process to support lead nurturing




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                     26
Thought Leadership for a New Era

The world is transforming, where several industries are facing major disruption
from emerging technologies and changing consumer preferences. Over the
last decade we have witnessed the dismantling of the music industry. The
publishing industry wrestles with the challenge of going from print to digital
while still maintaining revenues – and looks set to face a similar onslaught
from Amazon & Co. Likewise the automotive industry is facing a similar
transformation as it moves grudgingly from petrol to electronic engines. This
section provides practical suggestions on how consulting firms can reposition
themselves by embracing a new model of leadership.



It is almost fifty years ago since McKinsey launched its management journal, the McKinsey
Quarterly – and by consequence created the birth of the thought leadership movement. The
McKinsey Quarterly was a coffee-table style publication that enabled them to target executive
readership. Other firms followed suit by creating their own publications and by the 90s
consulting firms were beginning to resemble publishers.

For many businesses, marketing has transformed from talking about yourself (advertising) to
listening to your customers and creating content around their needs (publishing) - many of the
new marketing techniques are actually publishing initiatives (blogs, e-newsletters). Joe Pulizzi,
                                                                                4
author of Get Content Get Customers, states that ¨we are all publishers today¨.

Consulting firms (as publishers) are perhaps one step ahead of this curve. However, the
world of publishing is also transforming and demands consulting firms to embrace a new
model of leadership.




Practicing The Art of Thought Leadership

Transformation is creating a level playing field for all – the tools and technologies are available
for a one-man consultant to produce and disseminate thought leadership. From a client
perspective this creates advantages, as it should raise the bar for authoritative thought
leadership; and secondly increase the number and presence of specialist providers.

For large consulting firms they need to invest considerably more in the development and
leadership of thought. Moving forward the art of thought leadership revolves around four key
pillars:

1.        Content – developing a strong point of view
2.        Audience – the power of the secondary target market
3.        Segmentation – aligning content to specific audiences
4.        Connecting - engaging with your audience




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                           27
Content                                Historically, developing a proprietary argument or point of view
                                       was key to developing authoritative thought leadership. Although this is still
                                       true in today´s world, this study advocates that there are alternative ways in
                                       how consulting firms can develop their point of view, depending on the topic
                                       at hand and market forces.

                                       For certain issues it may be suitable for consulting firms to adopt a position of
                                       ¨Thought Leader¨ - where through extensive primary research they can earn
                                       themselves a leadership position. However, in a crowded market achieving
                                       this status will become increasingly more difficult.

                                       Perhaps, the alternative and requires a paradigm shift for many consulting
                                       firms is to become ¨leaders of thought¨ - given the complexity and scale of
                                       climate change subjects, there could be numerous opportunities to adopt a
                                       more open and transparent approach to content development one which
                                       means involving prospective clients into the process.

                                       An OpenSource approach is being used in many industries where
                                       intellectual property is a key asset. Proctor & Gamble, IBM and
                                       GoldCorp are creating value to gain competitive advantage by
                                                                                                   5
                                       opening themselves up to the concept of mass collaboration.

Audience                              Typically thought leadership was a direct communication tool – sent directly to
                                      the primary target audience. Given the fragmentation in media channels –
                                      each creating silos of interest - there is an ever-growing secondary market
                                      which can help influence a consulting firm´s primary audience.

                                      There is an added advantage in that what people say about you has
                                      creditability than what you assert about yourself. Therefore, marketing
                                      programmes need to be expanded to include a secondary market.

Segmentation                          Changing communication platforms together with a reprioritisation of the
                                      target audience requires greater flexibility or agility in content delivery. The
                                      challenge or opportunity moving forward is to realign or segment content to
                                      meet changing consumption trends and expanding target audiences. A
                                      broader audience suggests that marketing departments should segment and
                                      target specific parts of their content so that it engages different audiences.

                                      Consulting firms must assume that no one reader wants to read their research
                                      in its entirety – by arranging segments of content based on the readers´
                                      interests and preferences, consulting firms can broaden both their reach and
                                      impact.

Connecting                             How clients and prospective clients consume information
                                       should dictate how consulting firms engage with them.

                                       Clients today are far better informed than at any time in history,
                                       thanks to the Internet, with analysts like Gartner reporting that 90% of
                                       all purchase decisions are now made based largely on internet
                                                 6
                                       research.

                                       A review of the 13 consulting firms shows that the majority of thought
                                       leadership delivery channels to be publications (survey, newsletter, briefing,
                                       case-study), webinars or video. Some have adopted new social media
                                       technologies (Twitter, Blogs) – but like many companies they have not fully
                                       adapted their communication methods to utilize these emerging channels.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                                28
PwC´s Global CEO Survey




How PwC segments its survey content

Last year, for the first time, PwC began to offer the survey in multiple formats, including
customised reports by industry and geography, as well as multimedia versions of specific
          7
sections.

•   Full Main Report
•   19 Sub-reports by industry and region
•   Key issue data sets
•   Video interviews of six global CEOs
•   Video interview of PwC’s CEO
•   Transcripts of full CEO interviews
•   Various other customised reports


Resource Revolution: Climate Change Thought Leadership hits McKinsey´s homepage


                                                          In December 2011, McKinsey devoted its
                                                          opening homepage to its new report Resource
                                                          Revolution. The new McKinsey report "Resource
                                                          Revolution: Meeting the world’s energy,
                                                          materials, food, and water needs" shows that the
                                                          resource challenge can be met through a
                                                          combination of expanding the supply of
                                                          resources and a step change in resource
                                                          productivity. The research was developed by the
                                                          Sustainability & Resource Productivity practice
                                                          and the McKinsey Global Institute, the business
                                                          and economics research arm of the firm.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                         29
The rise of social media technologies

What is important to remember about social media it that it’s not about the technologies
themselves, but rather the change in behaviour. This is not a mere trend; it is a new form of
communication.

This new way of communicating goes against the grain of what consulting firms have been
typically doing – top down, broadcast-type communications with no interaction or dialogue with
their audiences. What social media has done is to turn this model upside down, by creating a
bottom-up, democratised communication platform. Incorporating social media effectively into
traditional communication strategy presents numerous challenges to consulting firms, notably a
change in posture from “push” to “pull”.

Consulting firms entering this space need to realise that social media is not another advertising
or media channel – even though it can facilitate business development and improve reputation.
An effective starting position for consulting firms is to listen to what is being said about key
issues.


Social media has been a quick success – and has caught many companies by
surprise. In less than a decade we have seen a massive shift in the way content
is being generated, distributed and consumed across global communities.

Once a consulting firm (or any company) begins its approach it is imperative that it is done in a
transparent, authentic and consistent way. There can be no dipping in and out – you have to
make a full commitment and try to become part of the conversation and the community. Content
needs to be kept fresh and relevant – although it does not necessarily have to be new or even
proprietary. Content in this instance could be providing one half of a potential conversation.


Based on discussions with social media leaders the critical success factor for
any social media marketing activity is for it to be genuine. If it seems or feels
inauthentic, it will fail.

A company’s communications team has a key role to play in the internal development of social
media engagement, by incorporating key components of social media within the organisational
communication strategy. However, if the two fundamental principles of social media
engagement are authenticity and transparency, then social media cannot be the exclusive
domain of the communications department in the longer term. To fully realise the potential of
social media, consulting firms need to make it a part of their DNA by embedding social media
across different business units – with all employees acting as ambassadors.

In many cases, client-facing personnel are better placed to engage at the micro-level and
convey a company’s message to their specific communities, rather than working through a
centralised communicator. Marketing and subject experts can benefit immensely, and can go a
long way towards humanising a company through their participation. All of this can generate
significant upside in the form of brand equity, research data, and much more.


Developing a “Leadership of Thought” platform

Business executives want depth of information, but they donʼt want to dig through a lot of raw
material to find what is relevant to them.

Content must be designed as a collection of organised subtopics that lets the user quickly dial
in on what is most important to them. Microsites provide this lightweight structure by offering a


Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                         30
few simple, interrelated navigation choices without getting bogged down with the baggage of
the main websiteʼs navigation structure.

By breaking topics into subtopics, consulting firms can deliver deeper content while making it
easier for users to consume. Microsites enable consulting firms to aggregate its collective
expertise on an issue in one place to provide a platform for clients / prospects interested in
that topic.

                                                          PwC´s 13th Global CEO
                                                          Survey provides an excellent
                                                          example from the consulting
                                                          industry.

                                                          Another example from the
                                                          consulting industry is
                                                          McKinsey´s What Matters

                                                          McKinsey´s What Matters
                                                          microsite brings together
                                                          researchers, academics,
                                                          journalists, policy makers
                                                          and executives to address
                                                          ten big questions.

                                                          Both PwC and McKinsey are
                                                          leading the way in consulting
                                                          firms’ use of microsites. The
                                                          one area where PwC could
                                                          improve is by incorporating
                                                          interactive dialogue tools that
                                                          foster exchange amongst the
                                                          community.

                                                          McKinsey´s What Matters
                                                          features a Debate Zone that
                                                          enables users to engage
                                                          with McKinsey professionals
                                                          and or with their peers.


Webinars

A key finding from the study was the growing importance and value of webinars – perhaps a
consequence from a reduction in conference attendance by industry professionals. Done well,
webinars can help consulting firms engage with their audience around a particular business
issue. The webinar presentation must be developed no differently from any high-level piece of
thought leadership – centred around the current needs and challenges facing clients.
Prospective clients will want to learn how the consulting firm will help them to solve a current
problem.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                      31
A war on content

Poor thought leadership can erode reputation therefore deciding not what to do is perhaps as
strategic as what should be done. Consulting firms should develop a process for thought
leadership development based on a combination of internal and external factors to develop their
sweet-spot.

Thought leadership has become a competitive battleground for consulting firms. Figure 2 below
highlights the competitive landscape for services and thought leadership activities of 11
consulting firms.*

Figure 2: Consulting firms´ services & thought leadership




                                                                                                                Ernst & Young




                                                                                                                                                              SustainAbility
                                                                                        Booz & Co.
                                                          Accenture




                                                                                                                                             McKinsey
                                                                      AD Little




                                                                                                     Deloitte




                                                                                                                                      KPMG


                                                                                                                                                        PWC
                                                                                  BCG




                                                                                                                                ERM
 Services / Thought Leadership
 Assurance
 Adaptation / Resilience
 Biodiversity
 Branding
 Carbon
 Cities
 Energy & Resource Efficiency
 Finance
 Green IT / Facilities / Buildings
 Lifecycle Assessment
 Opportunity / Innovation
 People / Talent
 Renewables / Clean Tech
 Risk / Governance & Compliance
 Sector Focus
 Smart
 Stakeholder Engagement
 Strategy
 Supply Chain / Procurement
 Trading
 Transport
 Transactions
 Waste Management
 Water


                                                                                                                       Key
                                                                                                                                 Low Presence / or No Activity

                                                                                                                                 Some Presence / Some Activity

                                                                                                                                 High Presence / Activity




*The analysis is not conclusive and merely serves as an illustration to help facilitate the thought leadership content
process.



Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                                                                                        32
The (imperfect) analysis in Figure 2 enables consulting firms to develop their thought leadership
sweet-spot by identifying the green white space. From this a simple matrix can be developed to
assist consulting firms plan their thought leadership strategy (see figure 3 below).


Figure 3: Content development matrix




The matrix enables consulting firms to take a portfolio approach to developing thought
leadership where, depending on internal expertise, they will want to publish a range of research
within each of these quadrants. This matrix also assists in determining the appropriate delivery
channel. For example, in the top right hand corner ¨Lead¨ - it would be viable for consulting
firms to develop their own high-level platform such as a Microsite or Event.

Consulting firms must understand that not all prospects are ready for thought leadership or have
sufficient trust in their company / information. Instead, consulting firms must create multiple
pieces of content relevant to the prospective client´s stage in the buying cycle.


Thought Leadership fuelling demand creation

The buying process is highly emotional, and requires consulting firms to make both an
intellectual and personal connection. There are two emotions that will impact the prospective
client – fear or greed. More often than not it is fear which presents itself in two forms:
organisational; and personal.

Consulting firms must do their best to minimise this fear by eliminating risk, best achieved by
illustrating (not asserting) their capabilities, experience and services. A genuine, long-standing
commitment to practical thought leadership helps consulting firms build trust and long-term
engagement with prospective clients. Thought leadership that is well researched and delivered
enables consulting firms to make both an intellectual connection and personal connection with
prospective clients – helping to reduce any organisational / personal risk.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                        33
Looking Ahead

We are moving away from a world dominated by traditional printed media to one in which blogs,
twitter etc predominates. This doesn’t just mean that individuals and organisations have to
utilise these channels to communicate; they also have to adapt the content and tone to reflect
this new reality. What is often overlooked is that the language and style of writing favoured by
these new interactive channels is very different to that to be found in traditional publications.

There is a much greater expectation that content has to be tailored to the needs of the individual
– or, at least, the individual is free to select what interests him rather than be spoon-fed. This
has enormous implications both in terms of design of/investment in “smarter” communication
tools – the PwC CEO Survey serves as a great example of content segmentation to align to the
specific needs and interests of a broadening target audience.

More fundamentally, it requires a change in the corporate culture which, hitherto, has focused
on controlling outgoing information in order to a) project clear and common messages (e.g.
there is a McKinsey view of the world); and b) avoid the possibility that one part of the business
says one thing while some other part says the complete opposite!

What this requires is a willingness to “trust” employees to represent the organization’s
views/positions consistently. This requires a much more holistic approach to managing
knowledge within consulting firms to ensure that those who engage with the outside world have
some basic understanding of the new research concepts their employees are articulating.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                        34
References


                                                              Publication /
  Number              Title                                   Company                  Date
  1                   Learning from Success: Survey           Alterra Group                  2009
                      reveals the keys to more effectively
                      developing and marketing intellectual
                      capital
                      How Booz & Company Develops and         The Bloom Group                2011
  2                   Markets Consulting Concepts
  3                   White Space Report                      Source for Consulting          2011

                      Joe Pulizzi                             Online Marketing               2009
  4                                                           Summit
                      Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration      Anthony D. Williams &          2007
  5                   Changes Everything.                     Don Tapscott
  6                   JOINED UP CUSTOMER                      Peter Smith - How to           2011
                      SERVICE? DON'T MAKE ME                  trot marketing
                      LAUGH!
                      How PwC Repackages Content              Source: Claire                 2010
  7                                                           McDermott – Content
                                                              Marketing Institute
                                                              2010
  8                   How the B2B Buying Process has          Inbound Sales
                      changed                                 Network



Related Research




  Title                                                       Company                 Date
  Green Quadrant Sustainability Business Consulting           Verdantix                      2011
  2011 (UK)
  5 Growth Areas for Sustainability Spending 2012             Verdantix                      2011

  UK enviro consulting market assessment &                    Environment                    2011
  competitor analysis                                         Analyst
  White Space Report                                          Source for                     2011
                                                              Consulting
  Global Environmental Consulting Strategies and              Environment                    2011
  Competitor Analysis 2011                                    Analyst
  Corporate Social Media                                      Useful Social Media            2010
                                                              / Jonathan
                                                              Ballantine
  Vendor Needs & Strategies                                   IDC                            2009




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                             35
Appendices

          1. Performance Benchmark

          2. Report Cards: 11 Consulting Firms

          3. Interview Questions




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies   36
Appendix 1

Performance Benchmark


Following interviews conducted with sustainability executives a set of indicators were developed
to assess consulting firms across two dimensions – performance & marketing.


Performance Scorecard


Market Share                           based on ratings made by survey participants.

Track Record                           based on relevance of core experience, proven
                                       expertise of leadership team and history in the delivery of climate
                                       change business consulting engagements.

Geographic Presence                    It was important to identify the breath of reach consulting firms have in
                                       order to support global roll-outs or emerging market strategies.



Marketing Scorecard

Website utility                        rates the ease of navigation in finding relevant services, leadership and
                                       insights from sustainability sections. In addition it assess the ease in
                                       finding sustainability services from the main homepage.

Content                                rating is based on the frequency of thought leadership produced and
                                       the perceived quality and familiarity as rated by survey participants.

Collaborations                         the number of partnerships or external collaborations the consulting
                                       firm is engaged in for either thought leadership research or client
                                       service engagements.

Channels                               rating based on innovation in content delivery – in terms of fostering
                                       engagement



Scoring has been based on three levels

3 = Leading
2 = Average
1 = Limited




The scorecard on the following page is based on opinions of survey respondents, and
represents perceived findings in 2011.




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                      37
Figure 4: Consulting Firms´ Performance Scorecard



                                                                                      Consulting Firms




                                                                                                                                       SustainAbility
                                                                         Booz & Co.
                                           Accenture




                                                                                                                      McKinsey
                                                       AD Little




                                                                                        Deloitte




                                                                                                               KPMG
                                                                                                         ERM
                                                                   BCG




                                                                                                                                 PwC
                                                                                                   E&Y
  Indicators
  Performance Scorecard                     7              4        4           4           7       5     7      6          7     8           7
  Market Share                              2              1        1           1           2       1     2      1          2     2           2
  Track Record                              2              2        1           1           2       1     3      2          2     3           3
  Geographic Presence                       3              1        2           2           3       3     2      3          3     3           2
  Marketing Scorecard                      12              9        8          10           7       9     9      7         11    12           9
  Website Utility                           3              3        2           3           2       3     3      1          3     3           3
  Content                                   3              2        2           2           2       2     2      2          3     3           2
  External Collaborations                   3              2        2           3           1       2     2      2          2     3           2
  Thought Leadership                        3              2        2           2           2       2     2      2          3     3           2
  Channels



Figure 5: Consulting Firms´ Performance Benchmark




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                                                                                                 38
Appendix 2

          Report Cards: 11 Consulting Firms

                !      PwC – Global Sustainability Services

                !      Deloitte - Sustainability & Climate Change

                !      Ernst & Young - Climate Change & Sustainability

                !      Accenture Sustainability Services

                !      AD Little – Sustainability / and Carbon Advisory

                !      BCG – Sustainability

                !      Booz & Co – Low Carbon & Sustainability

                !      KPMG – Climate Change & Sustainability

                !      McKinsey - Sustainability & Resource Productivity

                !      SustainAbility

                !      ERM - Sustainability and Climate Change




Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies                    39
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012
Positioning for growth 2012

Mais conteúdo relacionado

Mais procurados

Schweiger & Associates - Overview
Schweiger & Associates - OverviewSchweiger & Associates - Overview
Schweiger & Associates - OverviewVishal Khushalani
 
Strategy Map Templates
Strategy Map TemplatesStrategy Map Templates
Strategy Map TemplatesClive Keyte
 
Aberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi Cover
Aberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi CoverAberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi Cover
Aberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi Covermikewillard
 
Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011
Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011
Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011Jon Johnson
 
MedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring Results
MedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring ResultsMedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring Results
MedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring ResultsMedSpanResearch
 
Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing
Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing
Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing WNS Global Services
 
Programs to Drive Loyalty and Profitable Growth
Programs to Drive Loyalty and Profitable GrowthPrograms to Drive Loyalty and Profitable Growth
Programs to Drive Loyalty and Profitable GrowthGeehan Group
 
Customer management maturity
Customer management maturityCustomer management maturity
Customer management maturityJoHawkins
 

Mais procurados (11)

Stateofthecio2008 1210987739793979 8
Stateofthecio2008 1210987739793979 8Stateofthecio2008 1210987739793979 8
Stateofthecio2008 1210987739793979 8
 
Schweiger & Associates - Overview
Schweiger & Associates - OverviewSchweiger & Associates - Overview
Schweiger & Associates - Overview
 
Strategy Map Templates
Strategy Map TemplatesStrategy Map Templates
Strategy Map Templates
 
Aberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi Cover
Aberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi CoverAberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi Cover
Aberdeen Talent Assessment Strategies Report Pi Cover
 
Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011
Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011
Frost and-sullivan-award nov-2011
 
MedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring Results
MedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring ResultsMedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring Results
MedSpan Research -- Igniting Effective Partnerships and Measuring Results
 
Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing
Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing
Gaining Competitive advantage through Knowledge process outsourcing
 
Programs to Drive Loyalty and Profitable Growth
Programs to Drive Loyalty and Profitable GrowthPrograms to Drive Loyalty and Profitable Growth
Programs to Drive Loyalty and Profitable Growth
 
Csac02[1].p
Csac02[1].pCsac02[1].p
Csac02[1].p
 
Enews 09-28-06
Enews 09-28-06Enews 09-28-06
Enews 09-28-06
 
Customer management maturity
Customer management maturityCustomer management maturity
Customer management maturity
 

Semelhante a Positioning for growth 2012

Bridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinar
Bridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinarBridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinar
Bridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinarCraig Martin
 
Manda project1
Manda project1Manda project1
Manda project1tarulatta
 
Vendor Performance Management
Vendor Performance ManagementVendor Performance Management
Vendor Performance ManagementGerald Ford
 
PPM and PMO In The Current Market
PPM and PMO In The Current MarketPPM and PMO In The Current Market
PPM and PMO In The Current Marketerwin_dunnink
 
Performance Conference
Performance ConferencePerformance Conference
Performance Conferencejcevelyn
 
Whitepaper - Effective Business Analysis
Whitepaper - Effective Business AnalysisWhitepaper - Effective Business Analysis
Whitepaper - Effective Business AnalysisPeter Bricknell
 
Laird Enterprises 11.11
Laird Enterprises 11.11Laird Enterprises 11.11
Laird Enterprises 11.11crawford46
 
Changing Landscape of Information Technology
Changing Landscape of Information TechnologyChanging Landscape of Information Technology
Changing Landscape of Information TechnologyAbhinav Mishra
 
Strategic Insights Into The Global Consulting Industry
Strategic Insights Into The Global Consulting IndustryStrategic Insights Into The Global Consulting Industry
Strategic Insights Into The Global Consulting IndustryNetscribes1
 
Business-Alignment and Developing An It Strategy
Business-Alignment and Developing An It StrategyBusiness-Alignment and Developing An It Strategy
Business-Alignment and Developing An It Strategycjlyes
 
The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9
The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9
The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9led4lgus
 
pManifold Introduction to Consulting Practice
pManifold Introduction to Consulting PracticepManifold Introduction to Consulting Practice
pManifold Introduction to Consulting PracticepManifold
 
ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE 2009
ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE   2009ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE   2009
ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE 2009Tariq Elsadik
 

Semelhante a Positioning for growth 2012 (20)

Bridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinar
Bridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinarBridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinar
Bridging business analysis and business architecture - The Open Group webinar
 
BAL Pg
BAL PgBAL Pg
BAL Pg
 
Manda project1
Manda project1Manda project1
Manda project1
 
Vendor Performance Management
Vendor Performance ManagementVendor Performance Management
Vendor Performance Management
 
PPM and PMO In The Current Market
PPM and PMO In The Current MarketPPM and PMO In The Current Market
PPM and PMO In The Current Market
 
2011 10 corporate introduction
2011 10 corporate introduction2011 10 corporate introduction
2011 10 corporate introduction
 
Performance Conference
Performance ConferencePerformance Conference
Performance Conference
 
Whitepaper - Effective Business Analysis
Whitepaper - Effective Business AnalysisWhitepaper - Effective Business Analysis
Whitepaper - Effective Business Analysis
 
Laird Enterprises 11.11
Laird Enterprises 11.11Laird Enterprises 11.11
Laird Enterprises 11.11
 
Smart com
Smart comSmart com
Smart com
 
Changing Landscape of Information Technology
Changing Landscape of Information TechnologyChanging Landscape of Information Technology
Changing Landscape of Information Technology
 
Strategic Insights Into The Global Consulting Industry
Strategic Insights Into The Global Consulting IndustryStrategic Insights Into The Global Consulting Industry
Strategic Insights Into The Global Consulting Industry
 
Business-Alignment and Developing An It Strategy
Business-Alignment and Developing An It StrategyBusiness-Alignment and Developing An It Strategy
Business-Alignment and Developing An It Strategy
 
Sb 85 Alberta's Competitive Review Presentation
Sb 85 Alberta's Competitive Review PresentationSb 85 Alberta's Competitive Review Presentation
Sb 85 Alberta's Competitive Review Presentation
 
Balanced scorecard 1
Balanced scorecard 1Balanced scorecard 1
Balanced scorecard 1
 
Balanced scorecard
Balanced scorecardBalanced scorecard
Balanced scorecard
 
The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9
The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9
The Compass of Local Competitiveness v0.9
 
pManifold Introduction to Consulting Practice
pManifold Introduction to Consulting PracticepManifold Introduction to Consulting Practice
pManifold Introduction to Consulting Practice
 
Balanced Scorecard Eng
Balanced Scorecard EngBalanced Scorecard Eng
Balanced Scorecard Eng
 
ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE 2009
ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE   2009ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE   2009
ITSM Conference, Dubai, UAE 2009
 

Positioning for growth 2012

  • 1. POSITIONING FOR GROWTH Buyer Needs & Market Strategies PREPARED BY: JONATHAN BALLANTINE DATE: JANUARY 2012 A vendor guide for climate change & sustainability services and thought leadership research
  • 2. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies A vendor guide for climate change & sustainability services and thought leadership research Executive Summary In late 2011, CR Vision conducted a series of interviews with sustainability executives to ascertain current perceptions and opinions on climate change business consulting services and thought leadership research offered by consulting firms. CR Vision conducted in-depth research with 31 industry practitioners from across 18 business sectors to assess the market landscape in order to provide a buyers´ perspective on climate change business consulting services and thought leadership research from 13 consulting firms. The responses also provide valuable insight into thought leadership design, marketing and 2012 investment priorities, as well as illustrating key decision factors (both internal and external) that drive vendor selection. Furthermore, this publication includes a report card for each of the consulting firms, ranking their performance across seven indicators. By combining competitive intelligence together with customer insights, this publication will assist consulting firms position for growth in 2012 and beyond, by providing unique guidance on business strategy & expansion programmes, service line development and go-to- market activities. Ranked most important Key selection factor PwC & McKinsey Sector Knowledge Key CC&S progamme Engage consulting firms Energy Efficiency 3 out of 4 Least effective TL tool Most effective TL tool Surveys Webinar Spending plans 2012 External TL Partnerships 83% increase 84% state add value Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 1
  • 3. Report Focus This publication is aimed at helping consulting firms understand buyers´ perceptions and attitudes towards hiring external consultants for climate change and sustainability engagements. The report has four main sections: ! Profile – this introductory chapter provides an overview of the companies and participants involved during the research and development of this publication. It also examines industry practitioners’ areas of responsibility, current climate change and sustainability programmes, and the level of support (both internal and external) required for successful implementation. ! Buyer Behaviour – summarises the opinions of 31 industry practitioners – identifying their perceptions and preferences of external consulting firms for the engagement of climate change and sustainability services (CC&S). Furthermore, this chapter provides insights into buying behaviour and spending plans for 2012 and beyond. ! Does Thought Leadership Matter? - the publication outlines to what degree thought leadership influences spending decisions, identifies what sustainability executives consider to be the key fundamentals of Authoritative Thought Leadership and determines their channel preferences. This chapter also features a perception-based benchmark that assesses thought leadership by consulting firms across the two dimensions of familiarity and perceived quality. • Tell to Win – this concluding chapter highlights the transformation that is happening across many industries, reflecting on the challenges and opportunities this presents consulting firms with respect to delivery engagement, thought leadership research & marketing, external collaboration and business development. In addition, this publication includes a performance report card for 11 consulting firms. Following the interviews with sustainability executives a set of indicators was developed to assess consulting firms across two dimensions – performance & marketing. Consulting Firms SustainAbility Booz & Co. Accenture McKinsey AD Little Deloitte KPMG ERM BCG PwC E&Y Indicators Performance Scorecard 7 4 4 4 7 5 7 6 7 8 7 Market Share 2 1 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 2 2 Track Record 2 2 1 1 2 1 3 2 2 3 3 Geographic Presence 3 1 2 2 3 3 2 3 3 3 2 Marketing Scorecard 12 9 8 10 7 9 9 7 11 12 9 Website Utility 3 3 2 3 2 3 3 1 3 3 3 Content 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 2 External Collaborations 3 2 2 3 1 2 2 2 2 3 2 Thought Leadership 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 2 Channels Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 2
  • 4. Contents Executive Summary 2 Report Focus 3 Chapter 1 – Profile 5–9 …Demographic profile …Geographic coverage …Annual revenues & emissions …Survey participants - areas of responsibility …Climate change becomes a strategic issue for business …Internal support - enterprise-wide approach …External support Chapter 2 – Buyer Behaviour 10 – 14 …First impressions …2012 investment plans …Supplier categories – most likely to be hired …Why buyers´ buy Chapter 3 – Does Thought Leadership Matter? 15 – 20 ... External thought leadership partnerships …Thought leadership & consulting firms Chapter 4 – Tell to Win 21 – 25 …Toward an open and collaborative process …Why buyers´ buy …Motives matter Thought Leadership for a New Era 26 – 33 …Practicing the art of thought leadership …PwC CEO Survey …Engaging with your audience …The rise of social media technologies …Developing a “Leadership of Thought” platform …Webinars …A war on content …Thought leadership fuelling demand creation Looking Ahead 34 References 35 Appendices 36 – 53 1 – Performance Benchmark 37 2 – Report Cards: 11 Consulting Firms 38 - 49 3 – Interview Questions 50 - 53 Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 3
  • 5. List of Tables Table 1: Sector overview 6 Table 2: Area of responsibility 7 Table 3: Significant climate change programmes 7 Table 4: The role of business functions 8 Table 5: Supplier categories 9 Table 6: Consulting firms – first impressions 11 Table 7: Spending plans 2012 12 Table 8: Supplier categories – most likely to be hired 13 Table 9: Consulting firms most likely to be hired 13 Table 10: Reasons for hiring external consultants 14 Table 11: Key selection factors 14 Table 12: The fundamentals of thought leadership research 16 Table 13: Thought leadership delivery channels 17 Table 14: External partnerships – preferred organisations 18 Table 15: How to improve thought leadership research 18 Table 16: Thought leadership & consulting firms 19 List of Figures Figure 1: Thought leadership perception matrix 19 Figure 2: Consulting firms & thought leadership 32 Figure 3: Content development matrix 33 Figure 4: Consulting firms´ performance scorecard 38 Figure 5: Consulting firms´ performance benchmark 38 Legal Disclaimer Assertions made in this document reflect the opinions of survey respondents and / or the author. The author shall not be liable for any indirect or consequential loss, including loss of actual or anticipated revenue or impact to reputation or goodwill, whether arising from negligence or otherwise. This publication remains confidential and is for private use only. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 4
  • 6. Chapter One Profile Demographic profile Geographic coverage Annual revenues & emissions Survey participants - areas of responsibility Climate change becomes a strategic issue for business Internal support - enterprise-wide approach External support Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 5
  • 7. Profile This introductory chapter provides an overview of the companies and participants involved during the research and development of this publication. It also examines industry practitioners’ areas of responsibility, current climate change and sustainability programmes, and the level of support required - both internal and external - for successful implementation. Demographic profile Over 30 industry practitioners, representing 18 industry sectors participated in this study. The largest number of respondents (3) represented Aviation, Construction, Retail & Leisure, Utilities and Transport & Logistics. Table 1 below highlights all the sectors that participated in this publication. Table 1: Sector profile Sector No. of Respondents Aviation 3 Construction 3 Retail & Leisure 3 Transport & Logistics 3 Utilities 3 Food & Beverage 2 Metal & Mining 2 Telecommunications 2 Automotive 1 Banking 1 Chemicals 1 Health Care 1 High Tech 1 Insurance 1 Media 1 Oil & Gas 1 Pharmaceutical 1 Real Estate / Property 1 Geographic coverage Annual revenues & emissions 12 9 US $861 billion Europe UK 2010 combined annual revenues 3 7 164 MMt CO2 Asia US Combined emissions (2010)* * figure based on CDP 2010 disclosures / public information Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 6
  • 8. Survey participants - areas of responsibility The study was based on 31 interviews with leading multi-national companies representing 18 sectors across four geographic zones. Respondents interviewed were the most senior person responsible for climate change business programmes within their organisations and had roles such as Head/Director of Sustainability, Climate Change, Environment; or Corporate Responsibility. Table 2 below outlines their level of responsibility across eight categories. Table 2: Area of responsibility Energy & Resource Efficiency Environmental Management Ethical Supply Chain Reporting & Assurance Primary ! Carbon Inventory Management Secondary ! Implementation Plan Ethics & Integrity Management Design of CSR Strategy 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 Climate change becomes a strategic issue for business All respondents affirmed that climate change/sustainability was both an important business issue and a strategic issue within their business. This is reflected by the fact that 84 percent of respondents have board-level commitments for CC&S. Respondents were asked to outline their three most significant CC&S programmes. Unsurprisingly, given today´s economic conditions, Energy Efficiency was the most common activity receiving 21 nominations. Other programmes included the transition to Low-Carbon / Renewable Energy Systems, and Emission Reductions. Table 3 below highlights the most significant climate change programmes. Table 3: Significant climate change programmes Can you describe your 3 most significant Results CC&S programmes? Energy Efficiency 21 Low Carbon / RES Energy 11 Emission Reduction 9 Clean Tech (finance & investment) 4 Technology Upgrades 4 Business Collaboration 3 CHP / Cogeneration 3 Efficient use of Resources 3 Innovation / Opportunity 3 CC Investment Strategy 2 Employee Engagement 1 Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 7
  • 9. Internal support - enterprise-wide approach Climate change and sustainability programmes have become more strategic to business, represented by the increasing number of core business functions seen as playing a critical role in their successful implementation. From the survey responses Facilities Management & Energy was ranked ¨important ¨or ¨most important¨ by the most respondents (26 nominations) – although when weighted scoring was applied it averages out as third behind Corporate Responsibility and Health, Safety & Environment. Table 4 shows the importance of business functions in the implementation of CC&S programmes. Scoring has been weighted based on five levels. • Totally unimportant -2 • Unimportant -1 • Neutral 1 • Important +2 • Very important +3 Table 4: The role of business functions How important are the following business functions Total for the implementation of your CC&S programme? (1= totally unimportant to 5 = very important) Corporate Responsibility 67 Health, Safety & Environment 64 Facilities Management & Energy 61 Finance 56 Human Resources 46 IT / Telecoms 42 Legal & Regulatory Affairs 25 Logistics / Distribution 24 Manufacturing 18 Marketing 15 Procurement / Supply Chain 13 Sales 10 Strategy 8 External support One of the core objectives of the study was to ascertain the level of external support required by multi-national companies to implement their CC&S programmes. From the responses, nearly 3 out of every 4 respondents have engaged external support during the design or implementation of their CC&S programmes. When asked which types of suppliers they felt were important for the success of their CC&S programmes, respondents scored Environmental Consultants, Energy Consultants, Not for Profits and Verification Companies positively. By contrast, Management Consultants, Big Four Accounting Firms were considered to be on average ¨neutral¨, whereas IT Consultants and Telecoms Companies were considered to be ¨unimportant¨. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 8
  • 10. Table 5 below shows the perceived importance of external suppliers for the successful implementation of CC&S programmes. Scoring has been weighted based on six levels. • Totally unimportant -2 • Unimportant -1 • Neutral 1 • Important +2 • Very important +3 • No response -1 Table 5: Supplier categories How important are the following categories of 1. totally unimportant 5. very important suppliers for the success of your CC&S Weighted Score 2. unimportant No response 4. important programme? (1 - totally unimportant to 5 = very 3. neutral important) Management Consultants 12 7 5 3 1 3 -20 Big Four Accounting Firms 11 8 2 6 2 2 -12 Environmental Consultants 5 6 5 11 2 2 15 Energy Consultants 3 3 9 10 3 3 26 Not for Profits 6 2 12 7 2 2 16 IT Consultants 14 9 3 3 0 2 -30 Telecoms Service Providers 18 5 1 0 2 5 -39 Verification Companies 6 7 7 5 4 2 8 What is interesting here is that even the highest scoring consulting firms don’t score that favourably. Is this because a) the market is so fragmented? or b) that consultants aren’t actually valued that much? Based on the results in Table 9 (page 13) it appears to be a combination of both. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies CR Vision Private Use Only 9
  • 11. Chapter Two Buyer Behaviour First impressions 2012 investment plans Supplier categories – most likely to be hired Why buyers´ buy Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 10
  • 12. Buyer Behaviour This chapter summarises the opinions of 31 industry practitioners – identifying their perceptions and preferences of external consulting firms for the engagement of climate change and sustainability services (CC&S). Furthermore, this chapter provides insights into buying behaviour and spending plans for 2012. First impressions Unprompted, respondents were asked to identify which consulting firms first came to mind when thinking of CC&S business programmes. Respondents were able to list up to three companies. The clear leader was PwC, which received 11 nominations, followed by McKinsey (7), with ERM & WSP scoring 6 & 5 respectively. Table 6 shows the consultant firms identified, together with the frequency of nominations. Table 6: Consulting firms – first impressions When you think about climate change & Results sustainability which consulting firms come to mind first? PwC 11 McKinsey 7 ERM 6 WSP 5 Accenture 4 Deloitte 3 AD Little 2 Booz & Co. 2 Forum for the Future 2 SustainAbility 2 ALTRAN 1 ARUP 1 BSR 1 Bureau Veritas 1 Carbon Trust 1 Climate Group 1 Context 1 eava 1 Ecorys 1 Ernst & Young 1 First Climate 1 KPMG 1 Siemens 1 The Carbon Neutral Company 1 UL Environment 1 URS 1 Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 11
  • 13. The study shows a small contradiction in that Table 5 (page 9) shows that Management Consultants and Big Four Accounting Firms to be ¨unimportant¨ or ¨very unimportant¨ in terms of success for the delivery of CC&S programmes. However, what is interesting is that the first consultants people thought of were PwC and McKinsey. This suggests a few things from the audience: ! Survey participants tended to name the first consultancies they thought of, ! They are not really sure which consulting firms can offer practical guidance on these issues, and / or ! Illustrates that both PwC and McKinsey are benefiting from increased visibility in the marketplace based on their marketing activities. 2012 Investment Plans When asked to comment about 2012 spending plans, 83 percent of respondents stated that budgets would increase/remain the same as in 2011. Respondents were then asked to outline the business areas in which they were most likely to invest in during 2012. Approximately 40 percent stated that they would be investing further across four areas: Developing Strategy; Innovation/Opportunity; Supply Chain; and Green IT. Table 7 highlights the focus areas where sustainability executives plan to invest during 2012. Table 7: Spending plans 2012 How would you describe your spending plans 2. yes – next 12 3. will consider for the following types of CC&S services in No Response 1. will spend 4. no further 2012? (1 – will spend to 4 – no further months spend spend) Develop Strategy 11 7 4 7 2 Conduct Risk Assessment 5 8 6 9 3 Governance / Remuneration 3 3 5 17 3 Climate & Energy Strategy 5 10 6 5 5 Carbon Management Strategy 6 7 3 10 5 Stakeholder Engagement 5 12 4 5 5 To provide an Assurance Statement 9 6 6 5 5 Supply Chain and Operations 10 8 4 5 4 Water Footprint 7 4 8 7 5 Green IT 10 8 5 5 3 Compliance / Regulation (REACH, ETS) 9 11 2 6 3 Innovation / Opportunity 11 5 4 7 4 Supplier categories – most likely to be hired Given the current economic conditions it was no surprise to see Energy Consultants ranked the highest with 22 respondents stating that they are ¨likely¨ or ¨certain¨ to hire them in the next 18 months. Verification Companies were ranked second with 10 respondents stating that they are ¨likely¨ or ¨certain¨ to hire them in the next 18 months. Table 8 highlights their preferences regarding supplier categories. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 12
  • 14. Table 8: Supplier categories – most likely to be hired How likely are you to hire one of the 1. very unlikely following consultant firms in the next 18 no response 2. unlikely 3. neutral 5. certain 4. likely months to deliver a CC&S engagement? (1= very unlikely, 5 = certain) Management Consultants 14 8 1 2 2 4 Big Four Accounting Firms 12 7 1 3 3 5 Environmental Consultants 8 3 11 3 2 4 Energy Consultants 2 5 3 14 4 3 Not for Profits 8 5 7 3 2 6 IT Consultants 13 4 6 1 0 7 Telecoms Service Providers 16 5 2 0 1 7 Verification Companies 7 1 9 6 4 4 Using a predefined list of 13 consulting firms, respondents were asked to identify the specific consulting firm they were most likely to engage with over the next 18 months. Based on ¨likely¨ and ¨certain¨ scores PwC and McKinsey scored most favourably with 6 & 4 nominations respectively. By contrast, based on ¨very unlikely¨ and ¨unlikely¨ scores, ICF and AD Little scored least favourably with 25 and 24 nominations respectively. Table 9: Consulting firms most likely to be hired How likely are you to hire one of the 1. very unlikely following firms in the next 18 months to no response 2. unlikely 3. neutral 5. certain deliver a climate change engagement? (1= 4. likely very unlikely, 5 = certain) Accenture 19 4 0 3 0 5 AD Little 21 3 1 1 0 5 BCG 19 2 3 0 0 7 Booz & Co. 21 4 0 0 0 6 Deloitte 15 6 1 2 1 6 Ernst & Young 17 4 1 2 2 5 ERM 10 9 3 2 1 6 ICF 21 4 0 1 0 5 KPMG 17 6 2 2 0 4 McKinsey 13 6 3 2 2 5 PwC 11 7 3 4 2 4 SustainAbility 17 2 2 2 1 7 URS 19 2 1 1 1 7 Why buyers´ buy Responses provide valuable insights into why companies hire external consulting firms to support their CC&S programmes. The two most prominent responses were: Lack of Expertise/Resources; and Independent Advice (or Sounding Board). See Table 10 for additional responses. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 13
  • 15. Table 10: Reasons for hiring external consultants What are the top 3 reasons why your company Results would seek consulting help for your climate change initiatives? Lack of Expertise / Resources 17 Independent Advice / Sounding Board / Specialist 13 Knowledge Strategic Development / Global Action Plan 7 Risk Analysis 6 New Ideas / Innovation 4 Third-Party Certification 4 Build Internal Capacity 3 Staff Changes 2 Legislation Changes / Compliance 2 Bespoke Research 1 As a follow up, respondents were asked to explain their three key decision criteria or selection factors for hiring a consulting firm to support their CC&S programmes. Although Price was the most widespread response (11 nominations) it only featured once as the top answer. Respondents considered Sector / Business Knowledge (9 nominations) to be the key decision factor when selecting a consulting firm. Several respondents commented that as climate change and sustainability becomes more pervasive within their organisation – Sector / Business Knowledge would become increasingly more valuable – with some suggesting it would be more important than specific subject expertise. Although the ability to leverage both provides a unique point of differentiation between consulting firms. Table 11 highlights the key decision factors for supplier selection. Scoring has been weighted on three levels. • First 3 • Second 2 • Third 1 Table 11: Key selection factors What would be your top 3 decision criteria 1st 2nd 3rd Score when hiring a consulting firm for climate change and sustainability initiatives? Understanding of our business / sector 7 2 0 25 knowledge Price 1 7 3 20 Subject Expertise 6 1 0 20 Track Record 1 2 3 10 Composition of Team 0 1 2 4 Reputation 0 0 3 3 Implementation Driven 0 2 0 4 Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 14
  • 16. Chapter Three Does Thought Leadership Matter? External thought leadership partnerships Thought leadership & consulting firms Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 15
  • 17. Does Thought Leadership Matter? In this section, the publication tries to understand to what degree thought leadership influences spending decisions, outlines what sustainability executives consider to be the key fundamentals of Authoritative Thought Leadership and determines their channel preferences. This chapter also features a perception-based benchmark that assesses thought leadership by consulting firms across the two dimensions of familiarity and perceived quality. Respondents were asked to what extent can thought leadership research from consulting firms influence perception and ultimately spending decisions. The results are ambiguous in the sense that approximately 40 percent of respondents say it has no influence, whereas 45 percent state that the quality of thought leadership can influence behaviour change / spending decisions. During the interviews with practitioners they were asked what they considered to be the key fundamentals for high impact, authoritative research. Relevance was ranked as the key component in thought leadership research with 30 respondents rating it as either ¨important¨ or ¨very important¨. Practicality was rated second with 28 nominations. By contract, Novelty was considered to be the least important with 22 respondents rating it as either ¨neutral¨, ¨unimportant¨ or ¨totally unimportant¨. Table 12 highlights what practitioners considered as the key 1 components of authoritative thought leadership research. Table 12: The fundamentals of thought leadership research In your definition of what constitutes as 5. very important 2. unimportant ¨Authoritative Thought Leadership¨ - how important 4. important unimportant 3. neutral 1. totally are the following components? (1 - totally unimportant to 5 = very important) Relevance 0 0 1 12 18 Practicality 1 2 0 11 17 Clarity 1 0 4 10 16 Validity 2 0 6 5 18 Focus 0 0 8 13 10 Rigor 0 0 8 10 13 Novelty 6 6 10 8 1 Thought leadership has existed in various forms for over 50 years, notably in the published form (publications, newsletters & surveys). However, during this time we have seen a rapid transformation in how people produce/consume content. The study wanted to ascertain buyers´ channel preferences in the face of an ever-changing media landscape. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 16
  • 18. One 2 One meeting with a lead-partner was, not surprisingly, ranked the highest with 27 respondents rating it as either ¨important¨ or ¨very important¨. Within the more traditional realms of thought leadership publishing, Case Studies were ranked the highest with 21 nominations. One key finding was that Webinars scored more favourably than White Paper / Publication – with 16 nominations versus 12 nominations. However, the surprise finding was that the Survey, the cornerstone of consulting firms´ thought leadership research portfolio, was rated as ¨important¨ by only 8 respondents, or more bluntly was rated as ¨neutral¨, ¨unimportant¨ or ¨totally unimportant¨ by 3 out of every 4 respondents. Table 13 highlights buyers´ channel preferences. Table 13: Thought leadership delivery channels What is your preferred channel for consuming 5. very important 2. unimportant Thought Leadership research? (1 - totally unimportant 4. important 3. neutral unimportant to 5 = very important) 1. totally One 2 One meeting 0 0 4 15 12 Case Studies 0 4 6 14 7 Hosted Event 0 3 11 13 4 Webinar 1 8 6 11 5 White Paper / Publication 1 7 10 9 4 Video 6 7 9 8 1 Survey 3 6 14 8 0 Social Media 4 10 10 5 2 External thought leadership partnerships More and more companies are turning to business partnerships or collaborations to support long-term business objectives. The very nature of thought leadership has resulted in consulting firms going alone – however, responses from the study provide new evidence that this model should evolve and that there are benefits for consulting firms to engage more collaboratively in the design, development and delivery of thought leadership. Survey respondents were asked their opinions on the value of partnering with different organisations. Eighty-four percent stated that external partnerships would add creditability. Table 14 shows their preferred choice of external organisation. Scoring has been weighted on five levels. • First 5 • Second 4 • Third 3 • Fourth 2 • Fifth 1 Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 17
  • 19. Table 14: External partnerships - preferred organisations In priority order, please rank which 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Total organisations add the greatest value or creditability to a consulting firms thought leadership research? 1. Stakeholder Organisations (such as 8 6 11 1 5 104 WBCSD, WEF) 2. Businesses 10 4 6 6 5 101 3. Academics / Business Schools 6 10 2 6 7 95 4. NGOs (such as WWF or Greenpeace) 3 7 5 12 4 86 5. Sector Focused Association 4 4 7 7 9 80 Respondents were asked what consulting firms could do in order to improve their thought leadership research. The responses from the interviews provide practical suggestions that consulting firms could embrace in order to improve their approach to thought leadership research (see Table 15). Table 15: How to improve thought leadership research What 3 things can consulting firms do to improve their approach to Responses Thought Leadership research? Make it relevant, practical and delivery focused Balance / Reality 16 Check - understand timeframes and our constraints Work collaboratively with business to produce meaningful studies 6 Show better understanding of sector knowledge 5 More genuine / sincere 5 Greater transparency on assumptions and frameworks 5 Better Examples / Real Case Studies 5 Conclusions should not be linked to services offered 3 Look to have research published externally (business and 2 sustainability publications Be honest / admit failures or lack of knowledge 2 Stop Bragging 1 Thought leadership & consulting firms Respondents were asked to rate their familiarity / perceived quality of the thought leadership research from a predefined list of 13 consulting firms. Table 16 highlights mean scores based on the two dimensions of familiarity and perceived quality. Scoring has been based on six levels. • Totally Unfamiliar -2 • Unfamiliar -1 • Neutral 1 • Familiar +2 • Very Familiar +3 • No Response -1 Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 18
  • 20. Table 16: Thought leadership & consulting firms How familiar are you with the CC&S Thought Leadership research offerings from the Familiarity Perceived quality following 13 consulting firms? (1 = totally (mean score) (mean score) unfamiliar to 5 = very familiar). Please also rate its perceived quality (1= low quality to 5 = high quality) Accenture 8 8 AD Little -16 -14 BCG -5 -9 Booz & Co. -19 -20 Deloitte 14 5 Ernst & Young 5 4 ERM 14 8 ICF -38 -38 KPMG 11 4 McKinsey 30 29 PwC 38 31 SustainAbility 20 21 URS -32 -35 The below matrix (figure 1) highlights mean scores based on the two dimensions of familiarity and perceived quality. Figure 1: Thought leadership perception matrix Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 19
  • 21. Figure 1 suggests that although certain organisations have high brand recognition both in general and, specifically, in terms of thought leadership – it doesn’t necessarily correlate with their perceived abilities/strengths in the CC&S area – if it did, then they would have scored more highly when respondents were asked to state who they were most likely to work with in the future. Combining this data with the results from Table 5 (Supplier categories) and Table 9 (Consulting firms most likely to be hired), the inference that can be made is that many consulting firms may be winning in terms of ¨presentation¨ in the sense of gaining recognition by getting well-presented thought leadership out there, but the general consensus from respondents was that for the majority of consulting firms their content lacks real penetration. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 20
  • 22. Chapter Four Tell to Win Toward an open and collaborative process Why buyers´ buy Motives matter Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 21
  • 23. Tell to Win This concluding chapter highlights the transformation that is happening across many industries, reflecting on the opportunities this presents consulting firms with respect to delivery engagement, thought leadership research, marketing activities, external partnerships/collaborations and business development. Authoritative thought leadership research is the lifeblood of consulting firms. When conducted with a genuine interest in the subject and client´s need, the ideas and concepts can be very powerful, and can grab the hearts and minds of the target audience (think SWOT Analysis, BCG´s Growth-Share Matrix and, more recently, McKinsey´s Greenhouse Gas Abatement Cost Curve). Responses from the interviews provide practical suggestions on how consulting firms can redesign their approach to thought leadership research – where 1 out of every 2 respondents stated making it more ¨relevant¨ and ¨practical¨. One respondent from the Oil & Gas sector commented ¨ it must be practical / pragmatic – a real hands on approach¨. Other comments included: ¨Show better technical ¨Focus on the hypothesis knowledge of the industry they before getting stuck into the are talking to.¨ data. Have something to say.¨ Logistics Utility ¨Make it relevant, practical ¨Provide something new that and delivery focused.¨ isn't already out there.¨ Aviation Metals & Mining ¨Try to get promoted through ¨Detailed thought leadership - leading sustainability journals/ which talks about solutions magazines.¨ and trade-offs not blue-sky thinking.¨ Publishing Pharmaceutical Toward an open and collaborative process A recurring theme from sustainability executives was the lack of practicality and depth on thought leadership combined with a desire to see what is in the "black box" which many felt was at odds with what the consulting firms were willing to show. Furthermore, several respondents commented that as environmental and social issues become more pervasive across their organisation, sector knowledge and experience would become increasingly more valuable, with some respondents suggesting that it would be more important than subject expertise. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 22
  • 24. For many consulting firms where CC&S is a new service line there could be significant opportunities to collaborate with mainstream business lines to provide an integrated approach to thought leadership and delivery engagements. This meeting point between functional and subject expertise will be critical in helping clients go beyond incremental improvements. According to Art Kleiner (of Booz & Co.) this is where the ¨magic happens¨.2 Responses from the survey provide valuable insight into the role of external partnerships for thought leadership design and delivery – where 84 percent of respondents believed that external partnerships would add creditability. One respondent from the automotive sector suggested that before publishing thought leadership, consulting firms should go to the trouble of ¨organising a trustable peer review process¨. Other comments included: ¨Draw on Academic research.¨ Retail & Leisure ¨Engage with businesses to develop case studies.¨ Food & Beverage ¨Engage with stakeholders.¨ Retail & Leisure Consulting firms such as Accenture, Booz, McKinsey and PwC have already established partnerships with ¨stakeholder organisations¨ such as the World Economic Forum or the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), and NGOs such as WWF or The Climate Group for their thought leadership programmes. Sixteen respondents also suggested that consulting firms work in collaboration with ¨business¨ or ¨academics¨ in order to produce ¨meaningful studies¨. According to the White Space report ¨2010 was not a vintage year for thought leadership and that thought leadership is generally less well-researched than it used to be.¨ 3 The White Space report asserts that in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, consulting firms may have scaled back investments in thought leadership. The report argues that this may be ¨false economy¨ as uncertain times leave clients ¨hungry for new perspectives and ideas¨. Taking a collaborative approach to thought leadership could provide numerous benefits to consulting firms. Firstly, it provides additional resources and viewpoints – adding resilience and rigor. Secondly, it can support the dissemination of seminal ideas by opening up a new indirect target audience. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 23
  • 25. Why buyers´ buy With 3 out of every 4 respondents engaging consultants, the demand for expertise is vital in resolving climate change and sustainability issues. Seventeen respondents acknowledged a lack of ¨internal expertise¨ or ¨resources¨ as the main reasons for engaging external support. Some of the comments from respondents included: ¨For a project roll-out.¨ ¨Changes in Legislation¨ Food & Beverage Retail & Leisure ¨To provide knowledge and ¨Build internal skills / experience where we lack it¨ capacity¨ Real Estate / Property Construction ¨External/independent ¨Innovation / opportunity assurances we are taking focused goal¨ correct path¨ Insurance Transport & Logistics During the interviews, respondents specified the key qualities they look for in consulting firms prior to selection. When weighted scoring was applied Industry Knowledge was considered the top decision criteria when selecting a consulting firm - rated more important than Price. One respondent from the Retail & Leisure sector also commented ¨Responsiveness to customers¨. Other comments included: ¨They must possess a deep ¨Composition of the dedicated understanding of our team, profiles of its members business¨ and confidence in their ability¨ Oil & Gas Healthcare ¨Technical knowledge of our ¨True passion for industry (hard to find)¨ sustainability¨ Logistics Utility ¨Good cultural fit with our ¨As sustainability matures organisation – like the people¨ sector knowledge will become increasingly more important Aviation for us¨ ¨Combination of sustainability Pharmaceutical and sector experience/insight¨ Insurance Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 24
  • 26. Motives Matter In uncertain times consulting firms must continuously innovate to create new methods and services that enable clients to resolve complex issues. From a client standpoint selecting a consulting firm entails significant risks. Thought Leadership research that is centred on earning trust and creditability is essential for giving buyers confidence. Once trust has been established prospective clients will then turn to that company. A consulting firm´s commitment to thought leadership can reveal whether or not they are really passionate about what they do or are just simply in it for the money. Several respondents from the survey had questions about the underlying motives of a number of consulting firms – citing, for the majority, their lack of history in the CC&S space. A general consensus from the respondents was that given a lack of sector knowledge possessed by the majority of consulting firms a significant proportion of time was used teaching and training ¨MBAs with spreadsheets¨ ¨Many big firms are only in this space for the marketing opportunity ... not many have a long-track record or for that matter a genuine interest or understanding in and of the issues. Typically smaller companies were founded by passionate leaders - and this comes across in our engagements with them.¨ Pharmaceutical When communicating to prospective clients either through thought leadership or other marketing activities, the end-user should be able to tell by themselves whether or not the consulting firm has the required expertise or the experience to serve them. In practice, prospective clients do not pay attention to what companies assert about themselves – many of the respondents believed that consulting firms are ¨always trying to be right¨ and ¨never admit failure¨ or ¨lack of knowledge¨. ¨Conclusions and recommendations should not be directed at their solutions/products¨ Real Estate / Property Thought leadership must be focused around the current needs and challenges of prospective clients. Conclusions that are aligned to service offerings reveal a consulting firm´s true underlying motives. Prospective clients want to learn how consulting firms will help them to achieve their goals or resolve a complex issue. Clients, just like people, make perception judgements based on motives more than on self-proclaimed expertise or extensive listings of service offerings. Many respondents cited ¨Global Capabilities¨ or ¨Global Rollout¨ as key reasons for engaging with major, international consulting firms. As these firms cast their eyes on emerging markets a strong portfolio of thought leadership, combined with a strong industry perception can increase exposure in these new economies where name recognition goes a long way. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 25
  • 27. Suggestive Approaches Thought Leadership for a New Era Practicing the art of thought leadership PwC CEO Survey Engaging with your audience The rise of social media technologies Developing a “Leadership of Thought” platform A war on content Thought leadership fuelling demand creation Optimising thought leadership process to support lead nurturing Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 26
  • 28. Thought Leadership for a New Era The world is transforming, where several industries are facing major disruption from emerging technologies and changing consumer preferences. Over the last decade we have witnessed the dismantling of the music industry. The publishing industry wrestles with the challenge of going from print to digital while still maintaining revenues – and looks set to face a similar onslaught from Amazon & Co. Likewise the automotive industry is facing a similar transformation as it moves grudgingly from petrol to electronic engines. This section provides practical suggestions on how consulting firms can reposition themselves by embracing a new model of leadership. It is almost fifty years ago since McKinsey launched its management journal, the McKinsey Quarterly – and by consequence created the birth of the thought leadership movement. The McKinsey Quarterly was a coffee-table style publication that enabled them to target executive readership. Other firms followed suit by creating their own publications and by the 90s consulting firms were beginning to resemble publishers. For many businesses, marketing has transformed from talking about yourself (advertising) to listening to your customers and creating content around their needs (publishing) - many of the new marketing techniques are actually publishing initiatives (blogs, e-newsletters). Joe Pulizzi, 4 author of Get Content Get Customers, states that ¨we are all publishers today¨. Consulting firms (as publishers) are perhaps one step ahead of this curve. However, the world of publishing is also transforming and demands consulting firms to embrace a new model of leadership. Practicing The Art of Thought Leadership Transformation is creating a level playing field for all – the tools and technologies are available for a one-man consultant to produce and disseminate thought leadership. From a client perspective this creates advantages, as it should raise the bar for authoritative thought leadership; and secondly increase the number and presence of specialist providers. For large consulting firms they need to invest considerably more in the development and leadership of thought. Moving forward the art of thought leadership revolves around four key pillars: 1. Content – developing a strong point of view 2. Audience – the power of the secondary target market 3. Segmentation – aligning content to specific audiences 4. Connecting - engaging with your audience Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 27
  • 29. Content Historically, developing a proprietary argument or point of view was key to developing authoritative thought leadership. Although this is still true in today´s world, this study advocates that there are alternative ways in how consulting firms can develop their point of view, depending on the topic at hand and market forces. For certain issues it may be suitable for consulting firms to adopt a position of ¨Thought Leader¨ - where through extensive primary research they can earn themselves a leadership position. However, in a crowded market achieving this status will become increasingly more difficult. Perhaps, the alternative and requires a paradigm shift for many consulting firms is to become ¨leaders of thought¨ - given the complexity and scale of climate change subjects, there could be numerous opportunities to adopt a more open and transparent approach to content development one which means involving prospective clients into the process. An OpenSource approach is being used in many industries where intellectual property is a key asset. Proctor & Gamble, IBM and GoldCorp are creating value to gain competitive advantage by 5 opening themselves up to the concept of mass collaboration. Audience Typically thought leadership was a direct communication tool – sent directly to the primary target audience. Given the fragmentation in media channels – each creating silos of interest - there is an ever-growing secondary market which can help influence a consulting firm´s primary audience. There is an added advantage in that what people say about you has creditability than what you assert about yourself. Therefore, marketing programmes need to be expanded to include a secondary market. Segmentation Changing communication platforms together with a reprioritisation of the target audience requires greater flexibility or agility in content delivery. The challenge or opportunity moving forward is to realign or segment content to meet changing consumption trends and expanding target audiences. A broader audience suggests that marketing departments should segment and target specific parts of their content so that it engages different audiences. Consulting firms must assume that no one reader wants to read their research in its entirety – by arranging segments of content based on the readers´ interests and preferences, consulting firms can broaden both their reach and impact. Connecting How clients and prospective clients consume information should dictate how consulting firms engage with them. Clients today are far better informed than at any time in history, thanks to the Internet, with analysts like Gartner reporting that 90% of all purchase decisions are now made based largely on internet 6 research. A review of the 13 consulting firms shows that the majority of thought leadership delivery channels to be publications (survey, newsletter, briefing, case-study), webinars or video. Some have adopted new social media technologies (Twitter, Blogs) – but like many companies they have not fully adapted their communication methods to utilize these emerging channels. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 28
  • 30. PwC´s Global CEO Survey How PwC segments its survey content Last year, for the first time, PwC began to offer the survey in multiple formats, including customised reports by industry and geography, as well as multimedia versions of specific 7 sections. • Full Main Report • 19 Sub-reports by industry and region • Key issue data sets • Video interviews of six global CEOs • Video interview of PwC’s CEO • Transcripts of full CEO interviews • Various other customised reports Resource Revolution: Climate Change Thought Leadership hits McKinsey´s homepage In December 2011, McKinsey devoted its opening homepage to its new report Resource Revolution. The new McKinsey report "Resource Revolution: Meeting the world’s energy, materials, food, and water needs" shows that the resource challenge can be met through a combination of expanding the supply of resources and a step change in resource productivity. The research was developed by the Sustainability & Resource Productivity practice and the McKinsey Global Institute, the business and economics research arm of the firm. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 29
  • 31. The rise of social media technologies What is important to remember about social media it that it’s not about the technologies themselves, but rather the change in behaviour. This is not a mere trend; it is a new form of communication. This new way of communicating goes against the grain of what consulting firms have been typically doing – top down, broadcast-type communications with no interaction or dialogue with their audiences. What social media has done is to turn this model upside down, by creating a bottom-up, democratised communication platform. Incorporating social media effectively into traditional communication strategy presents numerous challenges to consulting firms, notably a change in posture from “push” to “pull”. Consulting firms entering this space need to realise that social media is not another advertising or media channel – even though it can facilitate business development and improve reputation. An effective starting position for consulting firms is to listen to what is being said about key issues. Social media has been a quick success – and has caught many companies by surprise. In less than a decade we have seen a massive shift in the way content is being generated, distributed and consumed across global communities. Once a consulting firm (or any company) begins its approach it is imperative that it is done in a transparent, authentic and consistent way. There can be no dipping in and out – you have to make a full commitment and try to become part of the conversation and the community. Content needs to be kept fresh and relevant – although it does not necessarily have to be new or even proprietary. Content in this instance could be providing one half of a potential conversation. Based on discussions with social media leaders the critical success factor for any social media marketing activity is for it to be genuine. If it seems or feels inauthentic, it will fail. A company’s communications team has a key role to play in the internal development of social media engagement, by incorporating key components of social media within the organisational communication strategy. However, if the two fundamental principles of social media engagement are authenticity and transparency, then social media cannot be the exclusive domain of the communications department in the longer term. To fully realise the potential of social media, consulting firms need to make it a part of their DNA by embedding social media across different business units – with all employees acting as ambassadors. In many cases, client-facing personnel are better placed to engage at the micro-level and convey a company’s message to their specific communities, rather than working through a centralised communicator. Marketing and subject experts can benefit immensely, and can go a long way towards humanising a company through their participation. All of this can generate significant upside in the form of brand equity, research data, and much more. Developing a “Leadership of Thought” platform Business executives want depth of information, but they donʼt want to dig through a lot of raw material to find what is relevant to them. Content must be designed as a collection of organised subtopics that lets the user quickly dial in on what is most important to them. Microsites provide this lightweight structure by offering a Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 30
  • 32. few simple, interrelated navigation choices without getting bogged down with the baggage of the main websiteʼs navigation structure. By breaking topics into subtopics, consulting firms can deliver deeper content while making it easier for users to consume. Microsites enable consulting firms to aggregate its collective expertise on an issue in one place to provide a platform for clients / prospects interested in that topic. PwC´s 13th Global CEO Survey provides an excellent example from the consulting industry. Another example from the consulting industry is McKinsey´s What Matters McKinsey´s What Matters microsite brings together researchers, academics, journalists, policy makers and executives to address ten big questions. Both PwC and McKinsey are leading the way in consulting firms’ use of microsites. The one area where PwC could improve is by incorporating interactive dialogue tools that foster exchange amongst the community. McKinsey´s What Matters features a Debate Zone that enables users to engage with McKinsey professionals and or with their peers. Webinars A key finding from the study was the growing importance and value of webinars – perhaps a consequence from a reduction in conference attendance by industry professionals. Done well, webinars can help consulting firms engage with their audience around a particular business issue. The webinar presentation must be developed no differently from any high-level piece of thought leadership – centred around the current needs and challenges facing clients. Prospective clients will want to learn how the consulting firm will help them to solve a current problem. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 31
  • 33. A war on content Poor thought leadership can erode reputation therefore deciding not what to do is perhaps as strategic as what should be done. Consulting firms should develop a process for thought leadership development based on a combination of internal and external factors to develop their sweet-spot. Thought leadership has become a competitive battleground for consulting firms. Figure 2 below highlights the competitive landscape for services and thought leadership activities of 11 consulting firms.* Figure 2: Consulting firms´ services & thought leadership Ernst & Young SustainAbility Booz & Co. Accenture McKinsey AD Little Deloitte KPMG PWC BCG ERM Services / Thought Leadership Assurance Adaptation / Resilience Biodiversity Branding Carbon Cities Energy & Resource Efficiency Finance Green IT / Facilities / Buildings Lifecycle Assessment Opportunity / Innovation People / Talent Renewables / Clean Tech Risk / Governance & Compliance Sector Focus Smart Stakeholder Engagement Strategy Supply Chain / Procurement Trading Transport Transactions Waste Management Water Key Low Presence / or No Activity Some Presence / Some Activity High Presence / Activity *The analysis is not conclusive and merely serves as an illustration to help facilitate the thought leadership content process. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 32
  • 34. The (imperfect) analysis in Figure 2 enables consulting firms to develop their thought leadership sweet-spot by identifying the green white space. From this a simple matrix can be developed to assist consulting firms plan their thought leadership strategy (see figure 3 below). Figure 3: Content development matrix The matrix enables consulting firms to take a portfolio approach to developing thought leadership where, depending on internal expertise, they will want to publish a range of research within each of these quadrants. This matrix also assists in determining the appropriate delivery channel. For example, in the top right hand corner ¨Lead¨ - it would be viable for consulting firms to develop their own high-level platform such as a Microsite or Event. Consulting firms must understand that not all prospects are ready for thought leadership or have sufficient trust in their company / information. Instead, consulting firms must create multiple pieces of content relevant to the prospective client´s stage in the buying cycle. Thought Leadership fuelling demand creation The buying process is highly emotional, and requires consulting firms to make both an intellectual and personal connection. There are two emotions that will impact the prospective client – fear or greed. More often than not it is fear which presents itself in two forms: organisational; and personal. Consulting firms must do their best to minimise this fear by eliminating risk, best achieved by illustrating (not asserting) their capabilities, experience and services. A genuine, long-standing commitment to practical thought leadership helps consulting firms build trust and long-term engagement with prospective clients. Thought leadership that is well researched and delivered enables consulting firms to make both an intellectual connection and personal connection with prospective clients – helping to reduce any organisational / personal risk. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 33
  • 35. Looking Ahead We are moving away from a world dominated by traditional printed media to one in which blogs, twitter etc predominates. This doesn’t just mean that individuals and organisations have to utilise these channels to communicate; they also have to adapt the content and tone to reflect this new reality. What is often overlooked is that the language and style of writing favoured by these new interactive channels is very different to that to be found in traditional publications. There is a much greater expectation that content has to be tailored to the needs of the individual – or, at least, the individual is free to select what interests him rather than be spoon-fed. This has enormous implications both in terms of design of/investment in “smarter” communication tools – the PwC CEO Survey serves as a great example of content segmentation to align to the specific needs and interests of a broadening target audience. More fundamentally, it requires a change in the corporate culture which, hitherto, has focused on controlling outgoing information in order to a) project clear and common messages (e.g. there is a McKinsey view of the world); and b) avoid the possibility that one part of the business says one thing while some other part says the complete opposite! What this requires is a willingness to “trust” employees to represent the organization’s views/positions consistently. This requires a much more holistic approach to managing knowledge within consulting firms to ensure that those who engage with the outside world have some basic understanding of the new research concepts their employees are articulating. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 34
  • 36. References Publication / Number Title Company Date 1 Learning from Success: Survey Alterra Group 2009 reveals the keys to more effectively developing and marketing intellectual capital How Booz & Company Develops and The Bloom Group 2011 2 Markets Consulting Concepts 3 White Space Report Source for Consulting 2011 Joe Pulizzi Online Marketing 2009 4 Summit Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Anthony D. Williams & 2007 5 Changes Everything. Don Tapscott 6 JOINED UP CUSTOMER Peter Smith - How to 2011 SERVICE? DON'T MAKE ME trot marketing LAUGH! How PwC Repackages Content Source: Claire 2010 7 McDermott – Content Marketing Institute 2010 8 How the B2B Buying Process has Inbound Sales changed Network Related Research Title Company Date Green Quadrant Sustainability Business Consulting Verdantix 2011 2011 (UK) 5 Growth Areas for Sustainability Spending 2012 Verdantix 2011 UK enviro consulting market assessment & Environment 2011 competitor analysis Analyst White Space Report Source for 2011 Consulting Global Environmental Consulting Strategies and Environment 2011 Competitor Analysis 2011 Analyst Corporate Social Media Useful Social Media 2010 / Jonathan Ballantine Vendor Needs & Strategies IDC 2009 Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 35
  • 37. Appendices 1. Performance Benchmark 2. Report Cards: 11 Consulting Firms 3. Interview Questions Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 36
  • 38. Appendix 1 Performance Benchmark Following interviews conducted with sustainability executives a set of indicators were developed to assess consulting firms across two dimensions – performance & marketing. Performance Scorecard Market Share based on ratings made by survey participants. Track Record based on relevance of core experience, proven expertise of leadership team and history in the delivery of climate change business consulting engagements. Geographic Presence It was important to identify the breath of reach consulting firms have in order to support global roll-outs or emerging market strategies. Marketing Scorecard Website utility rates the ease of navigation in finding relevant services, leadership and insights from sustainability sections. In addition it assess the ease in finding sustainability services from the main homepage. Content rating is based on the frequency of thought leadership produced and the perceived quality and familiarity as rated by survey participants. Collaborations the number of partnerships or external collaborations the consulting firm is engaged in for either thought leadership research or client service engagements. Channels rating based on innovation in content delivery – in terms of fostering engagement Scoring has been based on three levels 3 = Leading 2 = Average 1 = Limited The scorecard on the following page is based on opinions of survey respondents, and represents perceived findings in 2011. Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 37
  • 39. Figure 4: Consulting Firms´ Performance Scorecard Consulting Firms SustainAbility Booz & Co. Accenture McKinsey AD Little Deloitte KPMG ERM BCG PwC E&Y Indicators Performance Scorecard 7 4 4 4 7 5 7 6 7 8 7 Market Share 2 1 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 2 2 Track Record 2 2 1 1 2 1 3 2 2 3 3 Geographic Presence 3 1 2 2 3 3 2 3 3 3 2 Marketing Scorecard 12 9 8 10 7 9 9 7 11 12 9 Website Utility 3 3 2 3 2 3 3 1 3 3 3 Content 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 2 External Collaborations 3 2 2 3 1 2 2 2 2 3 2 Thought Leadership 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 2 Channels Figure 5: Consulting Firms´ Performance Benchmark Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 38
  • 40. Appendix 2 Report Cards: 11 Consulting Firms ! PwC – Global Sustainability Services ! Deloitte - Sustainability & Climate Change ! Ernst & Young - Climate Change & Sustainability ! Accenture Sustainability Services ! AD Little – Sustainability / and Carbon Advisory ! BCG – Sustainability ! Booz & Co – Low Carbon & Sustainability ! KPMG – Climate Change & Sustainability ! McKinsey - Sustainability & Resource Productivity ! SustainAbility ! ERM - Sustainability and Climate Change Positioning for Growth: Buyer Needs & Market Strategies 39