Homegrown consulting firms seen disrupting India’s $10 billion advisory market

India’s $10-billion management consulting market is seen undergoing a quiet transformation. For several decades, global majors at the top of the league and the consulting arm of global audit firms have dominated this market with their “strategy-heavy, playbook-driven models”.

Now, a new generation of homegrown firms is seen penetrating into this space by offering not just advice, but “hands-on execution and shared accountability for results”.

Such domestic consultancies are seen winning mandates once 100% reserved for global majors.

Their advantage lies in embedding themselves into day-to-day operations, customising solutions to India’s fragmented markets, and ensuring capability transfer to clients so that they can sustain change without long-term dependency, said analysts.

“The way I see it, management consulting is about helping organisations solve their most critical problems and achieve lasting improvement,” said Kiran Kothekar, Founding Partner,Vector Consulting Group, a homegrown management consulting firm.

“What’s changing is that clients now expect consultants to stay engaged beyond the boardroom—rolling up their sleeves to ensure the promised results are realised,” he added.

According to analysts growing number of Indian companies now prefer consulting firms that “share risks, link fees to results, and work with them until goals are met”.

One of the main advantages for Indian firms is their ability to handle intellectual property effectively. “Instead of keeping tools and frameworks to themselves, they often co-create and share them, helping clients build long-term capabilities,” they said.

This approach works well in India, where success depends on practical execution, they added.

Rise of AI

Besides, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping consulting—both disrupting and enhancing the traditional model.

AI has made it easier to access insights, benchmarks, and frameworks, reducing the information edge once held by the top firms.

The traditional recommendation-based consulting, where one pays for access to industry knowledge of firms, is up for disruption. “It is likely to get commoditised,” analysts said.

In response, consultancies worldwide are seen rolling out AI-based services, from automation plans to AI-driven process improvements. But success has been mixed, they added.

“AI can help break down complex problems faster, but it can’t replace the discipline of turning a plan into reality,” Mr Kothekar said.

“The real challenge is translating insights into outcomes, and that is still a human job,” he added.

However, global majors have established a formidable reputation as thought leaders, which will continue to give them a competitive edge but Indian firms have started to make themselves relevant in this space through their differentiated approach.