Vault Guide to the Top 50 Consulting Firms - September 2005

Website and online article: www.vault.com

"And now for something totally new ... "

Just when you thought you had consulting all figured out, a new company comes along to shake things up. In 2002, Dr. Leonid Shapiro formed Candesic, a boutique strategy consulting firm based in London. Shapiro, an MD and former McKinsey consultant, partnered with two fellow ex-McKinseyers to create a new concept in management consulting. Candesic was formed to offer strategic expertise to a growing sector of the corporate marketplace--small companies with a substantial need for top-level counsel and a less-than-substantial budget to spend on it.

Expert staffing

Since Candesic's structure is nontraditional, it stands to reason that the firm doesn't approach hiring exactly the same way as the rest of the industry. It relies heavily on its network of talented experts to staff its projects, and it looks for both consultants with extensive management strategy experience and industry experts who may or may not have a background in consulting. On any one project, Candesic works with full-time and part-time consultants; full-time is defined as those who can devote all of their time to an engagement if it demands that time; part-... (more on the vault.com website for subscribers)