Cartoon by Anders Hermes

In light of all the technology changes that are sweeping through the enterprise today, the role of IT consultancies and services providers is changing. Edward Haigh of Computer Weekly  reflected on the trends that are shaping this vertical the most in a recent piece.

“Buying habits are shifting in two important ways, with profound implications for the IT services and management consulting industries,” Haigh writes.

That has the potential to spell trouble for IT services companies whose businesses have, for a long time, been predicated on the idea that they could sell large numbers of high-margin junior staff days on big integration projects.

The emphasis is no longer placed on these large, bulky organization-wide systems. Instead enterprises are demanding technology to support a much more dynamic structure while also delivering the biggest bang for their buck, and this is where the cloud comes in.

The as-a-service market is offering a more agile way of doing IT, while other trends such as BYOD also have a very similar and direct influence on the way things are done. This is why the likes of Capgemini and IBM are in such a pickle: they’ve successfully made a name for themselves in the IT department, but not far beyond.

Data from Sourceforconsulting.com suggests at Accenture is one major firm that has successfully opened a spot for itself in clients’ business strategies. But the gap is still growing, and newer players are entering the scene.

The Big Four are becoming bolder about banking on their their reputation in finance rather to enter the corporate tech fray, and they’re getting increasingly aggressive about it. KPMG recently acquired CIO advisory consulting firm Xantus, while Deloitte is also increasing its presence in this market over time.

Image: Anders Hermes, Brainovation