There are clear benefits in consultants associating. Quite apart from the economies of scale in sharing administrative overheads, there is far more likelihood that the right blend of skills to address clients' issues will be available from a group of consultants than from a sole practitioner.
There are two major tasks in consultancy, both of which take time: acquiring engagements, and executing them. Figure 1.2 shows how consultants can leverage the two resources required to carry these out - their network of client contacts and their specialist skills.
Figure 1.2: Evolution of activities in a consultancy practice
Associations of consultants can vary from a loose network through to a formally constituted practice. The latter will have a well-developed infrastructure with consultants trained in using shared procedures working with clients. In recent years large consultancy practices have flourished, developing on a global level and taking on massive projects, either by themselves or as part of a consortium, the latter often involving partners from quite different kinds of business.