Outsourcing services have established themselves as the largest source of revenue in the sector, accounting for 46% of revenue in 2015, according to data from the AEC.

Accounting and management consulting activities grew by 6.9% from mid-2015 and over the following 12 months, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INE). Data from the 2016 Annual Services Survey reflect the gradual growth in activity despite the decline experienced in 2013. In the European market, the consulting sector also achieved significant growth in turnover, reaching 6.6% in 2015.

The Spanish economy has begun a gradual recovery in recent years, with positive GDP growth of 3.2%, despite high levels of private and public debt. This situation is reflected in the consulting sector: in 2015, this activity accounted for 8.1 million euros in revenue in the Spanish market, 5.1% more than in 2014, consolidating the upward trend of recent years.

According to a long-term analysis by the European Federation of Consulting Associations (FEACO), Management Consulting has been able to cope with and overcome the recession that has affected Europe. Since 2007, the Management Consulting market has grown by an average of 3.7%, while European GDP has grown by 1.0% annually, thus experiencing growth much faster than the overall economic growth: 3.8% in 2013, 5.2% in 2014, and 6.6% in 2015.

Outsourcing, flexibility and agility in achieving business objectives

The Spanish Association of Consulting Firms defines outsourcing as “the business model through which a company entrusts part of its activity to a third party that provides specialized services” with the goal of “optimizing and improving cost management, as well as flexibility and agility to meet and achieve business objectives.”

According to the report “Outsourcing, a value-added strategy for business,” these services, which are increasingly being chosen by companies, increase innovation and knowledge, facilitate the introduction of technology, and generate a high level of quality and user satisfaction. But their benefits go much further: their “transformative capacity” guides the changes and reforms that the public and private sectors face to stay afloat in the current economic climate.

Financial outsourcing accounts for 27% of Management Consulting’s total revenue, thanks to the efficiency, productivity, and quality that characterize these services. Outsourcing the Finance Department is a growing strategy that more and more companies are adopting, both SMEs that, for economic reasons, cannot maintain an entire department, and large corporations that need experienced and specifically trained personnel to improve their finances.

This major step enables companies to adapt to market changes and needs, as well as to expand and grow into other geographic areas to compete in a constantly changing market.