ACCENTURE, CONSULTING AND THE AD AGENCIES

CONVERGING AND DIVERGING — Part 1

The convergence between the worlds of Consulting and Creatives in marketing services is a trusim by now.

On the one hand, management consulting firms are rapidly bolstering their design and digital skills, pushing deeper in the advertising & marketing space; on the other hand, creative agencies are trying to add business acumen and consulting rigour to their creative portfolios.

Is this convergence really client-led ? E.G better coordination between their marketing activities and their business performance.

The CMO now empowered to align marketing spend with business strategy ? Thereby propelling the agency up the supplier pecking order ?

Probably yes it is, but in truth the jury is out. What we do know is that CMOs have increasingly moved into the boardroom as marketing becomes a business-critical component of most large businesses or brands.

And when we look at the major competitive issues facing the digital agencies (owned by Ad agency holding groups), it is clear that clients and consulting are an inter-linked group.

We will return to these industry factors.

However, what interests me here is not so much the convergence, but the…