Los consultores se enfrentan a sus propios clientes por la IA

Consulting firms are confronting their own clients over the cost of large-scale tech projects as companies turn to artificial intelligence (AI) to cut expenses on external advisors. Businesses worldwide have signaled they are requesting lower fees or shifting tasks to their own internal teams, aided by new AI tools and software requiring less integration.

Traditional consulting firms, such as the Big Four and Accenture, face strong pressure as they historically deployed large teams to help clients integrate new platforms with legacy systems. Jochen Kamp, responsible for Bayer's technological restructuring, stated that fewer resources and different competencies will be needed. The consulting model as we know it will undoubtedly change, requiring fewer consultants, he added.

Source Global, a market research group, estimates clients will spend $420 billion on technology consulting this year, an 8% increase from 2024. Advising on new technologies, including AI, accounts for $140 billion, while implementation work—the foundation of professional services for decades—represents a much larger $236 billion.

Investors bet these revenues are vulnerable. Capgemini shares fell 31% so far this year, and Accenture dropped 27%, with a sharp decline in June after the company announced some clients delayed massive IT transformation projects. At Bayer, halfway through a six-year SAP-based system renewal, Kamp said 30 AI agents were supporting coding and testing, aiming for a significantly reduced number of consultants in the implementation program. SAP claims its upcoming system changes will help reduce external consultant costs by up to 50%.

SAP's Dominik Asam says AI could massively displace parts of the consulting sector, making consultants work faster, charge fewer hours, or even let clients do without advisors altogether. Clients perceive they have more negotiating power. Greg Meyers, digital technology director at pharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb, noted that technical support costs, usually provided by managed services from consultants, are plummeting.

In their cybersecurity area, they used to pay many third parties to monitor information on their behalf, but now AI handles much of that monitoring, leading to the disappearance of those contracts, he added. As a result, BMS has pressured external advisors to lower costs or change billing methods, such as fixed-price contracts or performance-based rates.

A recurring issue is that consulting partners usually have incentives to sell more to a client year after year at higher prices. BMS has pressured its external advisors to reduce costs or switch to innovative approaches, like fixed-price or performance-based contracts. Aiman Ezzat, Capgemini's CEO, dismisses rumors about the disappearance of their profession as exaggerated and commented on SAP's claim of potentially saving up to 50% on implementation costs.

Ezzat argues that the pressure on consulting fees is real, and companies have always adapted. Stronger productivity, industrialization, and outsourcing to foreign markets are examples of how they have adapted. However, he also highlighted Capgemini's strong performance in specialized divisions focused on technical engineering advice for sectors like aerospace and automotive, which can't be entirely delegated to AI. The consulting sector's survival does not solely depend on the IT budget, Ezzat emphasized.

Source Global's latest survey of technology consulting clients reveals significant dissatisfaction, with only one in three reporting a fully successful IT transformation project supervised by external advisors. Generalist consulting firms like the Big Four received worse satisfaction results than specialized IT consultants like Accenture.

Nicholas Jotischky, Source Global's market trends leader, says there's a growing desire to cut out intermediaries, questioning why firms can't deal directly with technology companies or secondary providers they collaborate with Big Four. While Big Four clients still have strong support (55% plan to continue using them in the next 12 months), this is considerably lower than the 80% seen a year ago.

Competition is increasing, and some companies have been tempted by the success of cutting out external advisors.