One part of the strategy is the investment in more tools, processes, and training for the service lines within Accenture’s technology consulting practice, such as IT strategy, merger integration, infrastructure transformation and security. Gary Curtis, the global managing director of Accenture Technology Consulting, said that the company has already taken this approach with certain service lines, but now it will cover all offering.
Curtis told Computer Business Review that such an approach in Accenture’s consulting business will help its onsite consultants better focus on strategy work and be able to break off certain analytical work that can be done quickly through the company’s global delivery system, which likely means in lower-cost offshore locations.
Curtis said each of the existing technology consulting services areas is selling well with high utilization. An Accenture release lists five specific areas that Accenture will invest in as part of the new campaign: data center capabilities; converged network services; infrastructure and application security; and workplace automation.
Curtis said another part of the strategy is alliance development. Accenture plans to expand its partnerships with firms who are releasing the latest enterprise version of their products. Often these companies can basic advisory services or manpower to help clients with complex upgrades, Curtis said. In these instances, Accenture can use a product company’s sales force to sell Accenture services, he added.
Accenture unveiled a somewhat similar investment last year–$450m over three years to develop and expand its services-oriented architecture offerings. Curtis said that while there are several components of the new announcement that overlap with the company’s SOA work, yesterday’s $250m announcement was entirely new funding.
Curtis wouldn’t say how many additional consultants Accenture plans to bring on as part of the investment. But he said that Accenture has a little more than 4,500 staff in its technology consulting business and to expect healthy double-digit growth over the next three years in the practice.
Curtis expects Accenture’s technology consulting to continue to compete against the usual suspect. The most end-to-end competitor is surely IBM, but Curtis said that IBM doesn’t’ really stack up to Accenture on the strategy side of the consulting business.
IBM is a lot heavier on the middle and more technical end of the business. Their strength is more in infrastructure transformation. They’re not that heavy on the front end–IT strategy and architecture. They’re there, but they’re just not that heavy.
Curtis said Accenture had a number of more focused competitors, such as the niche consulting shops with 300 or 400 employees and the management consultancies such as McKinsey and BCG that are building out their own IT strategy groups. Curtis said that having competitors such as these firms doesn’t really bother Accenture that much. They can consult on the front end but that’s about it.
