PERCEPTION AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SOLUTIONS IN BUSINESS CONSULTING

The main objectives of this study were to identify the percptions of (1) solutions and the life-cycle of a solution, (2) value and value generation processes, and (3) processes and systems in place within consulting firms. In, general the research aims to identify commonalities and differences between in-use practices in business consulting, and extant academic literature on solutions By analysing the content of interviews with industry professionals, the research aimed to establish a framework on the perceptions and implementation processes of solutions, and identify industry-specific features and processes related to solutions. Overall, the research identified two trends differing from extant academic literature: Firstly, a unique process of problem definition-resolution was identified to exists parallel to the general solution life-cycle. Secondarily, Business consulting firms seem to provide a significant number of different solutions with varying characteristics and attributes, given widely varying requirements of different customers