Consultancy Uk

Capital Economics forecasts that Andy Burnham’s government may shift taxation away from businesses toward capital, wealth and income to fund as much as £30–40 billion in additional spending while avoiding public-sector cuts. Potential measures include higher capital-gains and inheritance taxes, pension changes, bank taxes and a defence or social-care levy. Ruth Gregory estimates that raising £25 billion could lift the UK tax burden to 39% of GDP, although some measures may be delayed to limit the impact on household incomes. The Treasury declined to comment on speculation, while conservative newspapers portrayed the proposals as a tax raid on pensioners and entrepreneurs.

Celnor Group has acquired UK environmental consultancy ECL, expanding its safety and compliance division across environmental compliance, occupational hygiene, emissions monitoring, testing and related technical services. Founded in 2001, ECL operates from multiple UK locations and serves industrial clients internationally. The acquisition adds to Celnor’s rapid acquisition strategy, backed by Inflexion Private Equity, and is expected to broaden ECL’s client base, service offering and national presence while supporting continued investment in staff, innovation and technical capabilities.

Tata Consultancy Services and Rolls-Royce have completed a four-year programme demonstrating the successful operation of a modern aero gas turbine using 100% hydrogen across simulated take-off, cruise and landing conditions. TCS contributed engineering, systems, software, testing, validation, data analytics and risk-management expertise after joining the initiative in 2024. The programme, initially launched by Rolls-Royce and easyJet, also involved NASA, the UK Health and Safety Executive and other partners. The findings are intended to support future propulsion technologies, including Rolls-Royce’s UltraFan, and advance the development of lower-carbon aviation.

Research by Magnus Consulting finds that only 27% of senior B2B leaders consider their sales and marketing functions fully unified, while just 9% are highly confident of reaching their growth targets. Confidence falls to zero in organizations with siloed teams. The report argues that businesses should replace static annual go-to-market planning with an AI-enabled operating system that continuously connects market signals, commercial decisions, outcomes and learning. Strong pipeline confidence is associated with much higher confidence in meeting growth targets, and 45% of leaders see greater opportunity in converting existing demand than generating more. Magnus says AI can help firms monitor signals, coordinate teams and accelerate compounding growth, provided organizations assign ownership for turning insights into actions.

Leonard Curtis has appointed Mark Hickford as a director in its London office to strengthen its restructuring and insolvency capabilities and expand its mid-market presence. Hickford joins from EY-Parthenon with more than 15 years of experience advising businesses, boards, lenders and other stakeholders on liquidity reviews, insolvency options, contingency planning, accelerated M&A and formal insolvency appointments. The qualified accountant and incoming Insolvency Practitioner has worked across sectors including retail, higher education, real estate and automotive. Leonard Curtis, which has 340 employees across 30 offices, said the appointment supports its continued growth.

Kotter’s eight-step change model can support complex modern transformation programmes when adapted to digital disruption, workforce changes and global competition. The approach involves creating urgency, building a cross-functional coalition, setting a clear vision, mobilising volunteers, removing structural and technological barriers, generating short-term wins, sustaining momentum and embedding new behaviours in organisational culture. Microsoft’s cloud transformation and Ford’s One Ford turnaround are presented as successful examples, while Nokia and Polaroid illustrate the risks of failing to anchor cultural change or establish urgency. Leadership alignment and culture are described as essential throughout all eight steps, rather than being concerns limited to the final stage.

AI initiatives in financial services frequently remain stuck in pilot stages because firms lack integrated data, robust governance and organisational readiness, rather than because the underlying technology fails. The article argues that consultants should prioritise data structures, audit trails, model accountability and user adoption before rapid prototype development. Alpha FMC’s Alpha Concord compliance engine is presented as an example of this governance-first approach, using rule-linked findings, versioned logic and layered automated and human review; testing reportedly achieved 99.8% accuracy, full document coverage and eight-times-human review speed. Rising disclosure volumes and regulatory scrutiny make scalable, auditable AI increasingly important for financial-services firms.

Unit4 has appointed Christoffer Crona to lead its global public-sector sales team and Ian Owen as global industry director. The hires support the company's expansion of its public-sector offering, including Unit4 ERPx, Data Hub and FIX, alongside a broader implementation-partner ecosystem. Crona and Owen emphasize the need for carefully planned digital transformation and modernization of public services, while Unit4 highlights partnerships with Embridge Consulting in the UK and Agilyx in North America.

WSP has won Wiltshire Council’s six-year highways consultancy contract, beginning in December 2026, to support the planning, design and delivery of highways and transport infrastructure across the county. A locally based team in Trowbridge will provide day-to-day leadership and technical expertise, with the agreement initially lasting six years and potentially extending to ten years subject to performance and council approval. The partnership is intended to improve safety, sustainability, connectivity and economic growth while supporting local employment, training and supply-chain opportunities.

Moving AI from strategy documents into enterprise operations is difficult because technology, pricing and regulation change rapidly; delivery spans multiple business functions; and organisational maturity varies. Common obstacles include vague ambitions, inconsistent risk appetite, unclear guardrails and ownership, annual planning cycles that become outdated, and insufficient investment in skills, governance and change management. Effective strategies define where AI can create value, establish clear accountability and decision rights, prioritise a portfolio of quick wins and long-term capabilities, use cross-functional centres of excellence, and review assumptions frequently. Organisations should combine secure, governed platforms with sandboxed experimentation so teams can innovate without increasing unmanaged risk.

Elixirr partner Adam Hofmann argues that concerns about an AI investment bubble are focused on the wrong issue. Rather than excessive valuations alone, he identifies the greater risk as demand being financed through a closed loop linking chipmakers, cloud providers and AI laboratories. A correction could therefore reprice profitable technology companies without triggering a collapse comparable to the dot-com crash or Great Depression. Hofmann maintains that near-term spending may overstate the technology’s immediate impact, but AI-driven changes to how businesses operate and work is performed are likely to unfold over the next decade or longer.

First Actuarial has promoted Marcos Abreu, Andrew Allsopp, Carl Fletcher and Scott Harrison to partner after they progressed through the associate partnership structure introduced in 2024. The appointments reflect the pensions consultancy’s continued growth, including expansion in Birmingham, management of its Tonbridge and London operations, and development of specialist actuarial, data audit and employee share scheme services. Managing partner David Joy said the promotions recognise the four executives’ client-focused contributions and support the firm’s growth.

Small and mid-sized businesses remain confident despite economic and geopolitical uncertainty, increasingly favouring sustainable, measured expansion over high-risk growth. Nexia’s survey of 179 mainly mid-sized companies found that 61% expect revenue growth of 5–20% over the next year, 54% describe their strategy as ambitious, and 83% expect to meet their targets. European growth leaders are especially open to entering new markets, with 48% planning or considering expansion. Nexia identifies strategic clarity, strong sales and marketing, operational efficiency, leadership alignment, technology, external expertise and stronger financial relationships as key features of sustainable growth. UK businesses remain positive while monitoring modest economic forecasts, the October budget and potential tax rises.

Grant Thornton and the University of Leeds have launched Talent Track, a four-year accounting and finance degree combining academic study with paid placements, mentoring and direct employer engagement. The programme includes a 15-month placement at Grant Thornton in the third year, with graduates potentially progressing to permanent roles and an ACA training agreement. Designed to improve accessibility and social mobility in professional services, the first cohort is expected to begin in September 2026, with applications handled jointly by the university and Grant Thornton.

BIP’s UK member firm and Imperial College London have collaborated on two energy-transition projects involving MSc students. One assessed artificial salt caverns for industrial-scale hydrogen storage, benchmarking 17 technologies and finding that salt caverns can offer cost and efficiency advantages above a critical volume, depending on factors such as geography and end use. The other produced an AI-powered tool for estimating decarbonisation costs across real estate and manufacturing, supporting applications ranging from M&A estimates to five-year capital planning. BIP intends to develop the hydrogen-storage analysis into a repeatable advisory offering and use the modelling tool to accelerate client decisions, while the partnership gives students practical experience with commercial sustainability challenges.

Microsoft announced major Logic Apps developments at Integrate 2026, including Logic Apps Automation, Knowledge as a Service, direct Azure AI Foundry agent integration, a C#-based Standard SDK, and Azure Connector Namespace. The offerings are designed to simplify enterprise automation, data preparation, AI-agent orchestration and integration while retaining governance, security and scalability. Valorem Reply characterizes the changes as a convergence of integration, automation and AI, enabling organizations to connect AI capabilities to operational workflows rather than keeping them as isolated experiments.

EQ Retirement Solutions has appointed former Accenture pensions leader Will Pritchett as CEO, effective September 2026. He succeeds Duncan Watson, who will join the EQRS board and serve as special adviser through the end of the year. Pritchett brings more than 25 years of experience in financial services, consulting and technology transformation. The appointment comes as Siris prepares to retain ownership of EQRS, EQ Customer Resolutions and Lenvi, with a transaction expected to close in January 2027 subject to approvals. Following completion, EQRS and EQCR are expected to operate more closely as a dedicated Siris platform, with Pritchett leading the combined group and Sue Bartlett continuing to lead EQCR.

AI, automation and consolidation are making technical advisory capabilities more similar across firms, increasing pressure on traditional billable-hour pricing and talent models. Advisory firms will need to demonstrate value through judgement, strategic guidance and strong client relationships rather than hours worked alone. The article argues that continuity, clear communication, personal understanding and consistent service should be treated as strategic drivers of retention, referrals and growth. Firms must scale these qualities through data, accountability, training and culture while ensuring that time saved by AI is redirected into higher-value client work.

Manchester-based Clancy Consulting has filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators and plans to use a pre-pack administration to separate its profitable civil and structural engineering business from its struggling building services division. The core operation is expected to transfer to newly formed company CCE, safeguarding more than 70 jobs, while the building services business will be exited amid a market downturn and skills shortages. The restructuring will also lead to unavoidable redundancies, although Clancy is seeking to transfer affected staff to another consultancy. Chief executive Chris Acton said the process was necessary to address historic liabilities and create a focused standalone engineering business.

Ravical has introduced new trusted-AI capabilities for accountancy firms and other regulated professional-services businesses. Its platform allows administrators to control client and user access, restrict sensitive files, manage permissions and support secure data lifecycles in response to growing compliance demands, including enforcement of the European Commission’s AI Act. The company is also adding tools to identify revenue opportunities, estimate fees and standardise workflows. Founded in 2025, Ravical operates from London and Ghent, serves more than 100 practices in Belgium, the Netherlands and the UK, and has around 30 full-time-equivalent staff.

Turner & Townsend has appointed five directors to expand its UK major programme delivery capabilities. Steve Hudson will lead infrastructure, Chris Enoch will oversee national programme management services, Ray Riley will support defence and capital programmes, Craig Taylor will lead conventional and low-carbon energy, and Mark England will strengthen the defence portfolio. The hires bring extensive experience across infrastructure, defence, nuclear, energy, transport and other complex programmes as UK investment and delivery pressures increase.

CIL Strategy Consultants has acquired European pricing specialist Pearson Ham, which will rebrand as CIL Pearson Ham. The deal adds about 30 employees to CIL’s pricing and commercial excellence team and combines CIL’s sector and growth strategy expertise with Pearson Ham’s specialist pricing capabilities. Pearson Ham serves retail, consumer goods, B2B services and subscription businesses and has received recognition from the Financial Times and Consultancy.uk.

Britain’s infrastructure pipeline comprises 734 planned projects and £718 billion of public and private investment over the next decade, including £365 billion in energy and £104 billion in water-sector spending between 2025 and 2030. The central challenge is not a shortage of ambition but limited capacity to deliver, particularly a lack of experienced project managers, engineers, commercial specialists and programme leaders. Edward Shaw argues that recruitment alone will not resolve the skills gap; international secondments, knowledge transfer and movement between major programmes are also needed. Consultancies should be judged by whether their advice works in practice, strengthens client capability, transfers knowledge and produces measurable outcomes. Artificial intelligence can reduce administrative work and give experts more time for judgement, but it cannot fix weak programme design or poor accountability. The most valuable consulting capability will integrate strategy, engineering, commercial management, technology and on-site delivery.

IBS Group is launching Naviq Technology as an independent AI-first technology and consulting company focused on the global travel industry. The venture will receive about $500 million in investment over five years, begin with roughly 2,000 professionals across 16 offices, and aim to grow to more than 5,000 AI specialists, data scientists and travel technology experts. Naviq plans to help airlines, airports, cruise lines, vacation providers and hospitality groups adopt AI at scale, modernise operations, improve customer experiences and create new revenue streams, drawing on IBS Software’s travel technology expertise.

Interpath has appointed James Zuurbier as a managing director in its transaction services practice. Based in the UK, he will work with Zohair Motiwala and colleagues in France to expand the firm's cross-border financial services M&A capabilities. Zuurbier brings more than 17 years of transaction advisory and financial due diligence experience from RSM, EY, Barclays and KPMG, and will advise clients in areas including insurance, wealth management, specialist lending and banking.

Royal Voluntary Service and environmental charities are urging UK employers to expand green volunteering opportunities as heatwaves, wildfires and drought intensify. Proposed measures include quarterly “green lunch breaks” and flexible projects involving habitat restoration, wildlife monitoring, litter collection and other conservation work. GoVo for Business lists more than 750 relevant opportunities, while ITV’s nature series Force of Nature is intended to encourage public action on climate resilience.

Sullivan & Stanley has appointed Dan Ridler as its first chief customer officer in a newly created role. The former Accenture managing director, who also held the same rank at BCS Consulting, will oversee customer strategy from market engagement through delivery handover, with responsibility for revenue and client profit and loss. The appointment is intended to strengthen client experience, improve transformation outcomes and support the consultancy's next stage of growth.

HaysMac managing partner Natasha Frangos discusses how allyship, mentoring, representation, transparent pay practices and leadership accountability can promote workplace inclusion. She highlights HaysMac initiatives including FemNet, ConnectHer and mentoring, alongside reported improvements in its gender pay gap from 5.9% in 2021 to -1.2% in 2025. Frangos argues that the accountancy sector must turn commitments into measurable pathways to senior leadership, noting that women make up only 27% of partners and 12% of managing partners in the UK’s Top 100 accountancy firms. She also urges women to pursue opportunities authentically and emphasizes the importance of visible role models and sponsorship.

MHA plans further expansion in Wales after establishing its first Welsh office three years ago and growing to 110 employees across Cardiff and Swansea. The firm expanded through mergers with Gerald Thomas, Watts Gregory and HJE Healthcare Accountants, and now serves sectors including healthcare, manufacturing, construction, real estate and professional services. Welsh revenue rose 8% to £9.4 million, while MHA reported record group revenue of £251 million. The firm is pursuing organic growth and remains open to additional acquisitions, alongside investment in its offices, services and staff development.

Steph Baker has been promoted to partner at Grant Thornton, based in Manchester, as the firm continues expanding its North West practice. Baker joined the firm in 2017 and brings more than 20 years of experience in restructuring and insolvency advisory across sectors including manufacturing, automotive, and business support services. The promotion forms part of Grant Thornton’s UK partnership expansion, which added 84 partners between January and June 2026 and targets 160 new partners by the end of 2027.

Deloitte, KPMG, EY and PwC have each faced allegations that their consulting reports were substantially generated by AI and contained hallucinated citations, fabricated quotes, false claims or unsupported references. Deloitte refunded part of an Australian government contract, while KPMG and PwC removed or reviewed reports and EY faced scrutiny over a cybersecurity study. The scandals threaten the credibility of consulting firms’ thought leadership and raise concerns about inadequate human quality control. Because AI systems may scrape and reuse these reports, inaccuracies can be repeatedly circulated as authoritative information, potentially embedding false claims into future AI-generated analysis.

Bryan Ricchetti will become CEO of Cornerstone Research after a year-long transition, succeeding Rahul Guha, who will remain with the firm as a senior advisor. Ricchetti brings more than two decades of economic consulting experience, including leadership of the antitrust and economics practices, board service, and responsibility for expanding the Chicago office. The firm’s board cited his technical expertise, strategic vision, and understanding of its clients and culture. During Guha’s tenure, Cornerstone expanded internationally, developed its network of expert witnesses, and strengthened its big-data capabilities.

Enterprise AI tools are optimized for individual productivity and personalized workflows, but this can fragment shared context, judgment and decision-making across organizations. Although adoption and efficiency may improve, private AI interactions eliminate the visible reasoning trails that once supported collective learning and organizational coherence. Companies must build human infrastructure for common language and shared judgment, while AI vendors need to develop team-native systems that support contextual collective intelligence rather than just individual users.

Only 20% of UK directors and CEOs surveyed by Korn Ferry feel confident that their organisations can manage current geopolitical risks, a lower share than in the US and EMEA. Despite this, 60% are confident in their ability to develop future leaders. The article argues that firms should formalise leadership succession, monitor geopolitical risks, use scenario planning and consider adding military or government expertise to boards, particularly as war, trade disruption, energy costs and economic vulnerability threaten growth.

A strategic PMO should do more than track schedules, budgets and milestones: it should determine whether initiatives support corporate objectives, remain aligned as priorities change and justify their continued investment. The article recommends transparent, evidence-based portfolio prioritization based on strategic contribution, value, risk, deliverability and dependencies, including the willingness to terminate underperforming projects. By providing executives with assurance, trade-offs and recommendations rather than status reports alone, a PMO can become a trusted decision-making function. Organizations can begin by making strategic alignment a condition for portfolio entry, adopting executive-used prioritization frameworks and measuring the PMO by the value of the decisions it enables.

Many businesses are investing heavily in AI without yet achieving meaningful returns, creating a widening gap between leaders that are compounding value and laggards that are accumulating disconnected initiatives. Lindsay Ratcliffe argues that success depends less on buying technology or creating a standalone AI strategy than on identifying core organizational problems, prioritizing foundational work and quick wins, and linking AI initiatives to measurable business outcomes. She also emphasizes employee trust, transparent communication, leadership capable of balancing people and technology, and sustained upskilling. Businesses that fail to make these systemic changes could fall significantly behind within two years.

Unit4 has appointed Stuart Nash as chief operating officer, with responsibility for its customer success organisation, the Success4U programme, and IT operations. Nash joins from Finastra after three decades in operational, technology, and transformation leadership. He will focus on improving customer onboarding and adoption, strengthening IT as a digital enablement function, and optimizing Unit4’s business processes as the company pursues its 2030 growth strategy. Outgoing chief customer officer Jean de Villiers will leave after establishing the customer-success strategy and Success4U programme.

Nearly half of UK employees aged 18–34 do not expect a pay rise in 2026, while 55% do not anticipate an end-of-year bonus. Zest research finds that 64% of younger workers would consider leaving if salaries do not increase, and many regard their benefits packages as inadequate. Rising energy bills are intensifying demand for employer support, with 66% of employees seeking greater financial assistance and 74% of younger workers wanting increased investment in benefits. Zest warns that failing to improve reward strategies could undermine morale, talent retention and future business growth.

A CF-led analysis commissioned by Prostate Cancer Research finds that targeted prostate cancer screening for high-risk men aged 45–69 could be delivered within existing NHS constraints. Focusing on men with a family history of the disease and Black men, the proposed programme would cost about £25 million annually, increase demand for PSA tests, MRI scans and biopsies by approximately 23%, and require only a small expansion of the NHS workforce. The study also identifies reflex blood testing, AI-assisted MRI interpretation, polygenic risk scoring and digital pathology as technologies that could improve efficiency. Its conclusions support earlier detection, reduced health inequalities and policy action to introduce targeted screening in the UK.

Leonard Curtis has appointed Colin Mills as its first director of data, reflecting increased investment in data, technology and AI following the firm's majority acquisition by investors from Pollen Street Capital. Mills will lead the data strategy, infrastructure, analytics, automation and internal capability-building. The firm has also appointed Chetan Chudasama as enterprise applications manager and Arvin Charchi as information security manager to support technology adoption and strengthen data security.

Glasgow 2026 is presented as a lower-cost, faster model for delivering major sporting events. Trivandi supported the Games as an embedded delivery partner, recruited 250 people—more than half locally—and trained 700 organising staff and 3,000 volunteers through its Trivandi Academy. Co-founder James Bulley argues that the collaborative approach, use of existing infrastructure, and focus on local skills maintained high-quality sports presentation while creating a lasting workforce legacy. The model could enable more cities to host major events by reducing preparation time and costs, while supporting goals such as tourism, trade, employment, and housing.

Pallas Capital has appointed Darren Rix as head of credit risk to support the firm's growth in the UK. Rix brings 37 years of banking experience, including 28 years in corporate real estate and credit risk, and previously led real estate credit risk at Hampshire Trust Bank. He will oversee applications, credit papers and lending decisions for bridging and development finance. The appointment is intended to expand capacity while maintaining rigorous credit standards and efficient service amid elevated construction costs and ongoing economic and political uncertainty.