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Management consulting was an estimated $71.2 billion industry in the United States in 2016, according to analytics firm Statista, and the industry is only growing larger.
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But how many of the more than 600,000 consultants in the country are actually helping the companies paying them big bucks to improve efficiency and profitability?
Forbes teamed with Statista to determine the top consulting firms in the country. They settled on an unranked list of 234, highlighting those that stood out. A Forbes representative told Business Insider the list of highlighted firms is not ranked because the team behind the list thought it would be unfair to equally measure firms that were so different across their specializations and industries.
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The top firms, however, received the highest number of "very frequently recommended" ratings from the polls that Forbes and Statista conducted of more than 8,000 senior consultants and more than 1,000 senior clients. The polls measured each firm's work across 32 sectors, ranging from finance to oil and gas, and with work pertaining to legal issues and mergers and acquisitions.
Participants could not recommend their own firms. Last year's results were also factored in, but were weighted to be less important than this year's responses.
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The "Big Three" major management consulting firms — McKinsey, BCG, and Bain — all made the highlight list, and the consulting branches of three of the "Big Four" major accounting firms — Deloitte, PwC, and KPMG — also made the list of most recommended.
Deloitte received more recommendations than any other entry, and was among the highest rated in 21 of 32 total categories. It received well above average assessment on its work in sectors as varied as automobiles and energy, and is also noted for its legal work.
McKinsey received the second highest number of exceptional ratings, and was among the top in 17 of 32 categories. Among the Big Three consulting firms, it stands out for its work in the mining industry, and was also noted for its work in strategy.
Accenture received the third highest number of excellent recommendations, ranking among the top in 16 of 32 categories, including its work in sales and supply chain management.
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Bain & Company
Bain is notable for receiving recommendations in all 32 categories. It's distinguished for receiving exceptional input regarding its work on assisting companies with mergers and acquisitions.
Booz Allen Hamilton distinguished itself as the only company to receive a large number of excellent recommendations in the aerospace and defense category.
PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
PwC received the most high marks for its work on improving its clients' sustainability, and also received many excellent recommendations for its work in the healthcare sector.
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Boston Consulting Group (BCG)
BCG ranked solidly among all 32 categories, and received many exceptional reviews for its work in health care, chemicals, and retail.