Consultancy structures change

The shape of design consultancies will change as they extend services to boost their competitive edge over those concentrating only on designing, according to an industry analyst.

Mandy Merron, a partner with accountant Willott Kingston Smith which produces the quarterly survey Monitor, says: “Some designers are making a conscious decision to move away from just designing and are providing communications services.”

This is a reaction by the mature design consultancies to the many employees made redundant in the past two years who now work for themselves, Merron explains. “There is increasing competition from the large number of good designers working from home, but who can’t deliver the back up,” she says.

The future is bright for consultancies as clients free up their design budgets, Merron claims.