In our latest retail executive insight series video, our advisor Diane Randolph observed that large retail CIOs are engaging boutique firms more often, where a few years ago large consulting firms would be the preference. The big guys are still engaged, but no longer is it standard.
We’ve noticed this, too, especially for mid-sized retailers who prefer to work with boutiques who are typically more focused, and very knowledgeable about challenges particular to them.
In contrast to the large consulting firms, specialists like us prefer to work on well-defined projects that provide high value results to clients. Our extensive experience in specialized use cases help our clients set achievable goals for the greatest positive outcomes. Our intense focus motivates us to provide elegant, sustainable solutions, without interminable billing and scope creep. We are purposeful and tenacious. Often our projects go beyond the client’s vision of success.
In the table below we lay out the various steps in a typical Retail IT project to illustrate how the mindset of the consultant is likely to differ between the two approaches to systems implementation.
Large and boutique consulting firms bring impressive skills and experience to the challenges of modernizing retail software for mid-sized retailers. But their approaches are markedly different. In the end, we are convinced that boutiques can gain more beneficial outcomes, more quickly, while expending far less resources.
