Each year, Business Talent Group releases our High-End Independent Talent Report, looking across industries and business functions to analyze how business leaders deploy independent consultants, executives, experts, and project managers to complete critical work and meet their goals. Here are the top trends in how CEOs and presidents deployed these highly skilled talent in 2020.
Independent consultants are serving major companies at the very highest levels. In fact, the use of independent talent by CEOs and business unit presidents more than doubled since our last analysis, fueled by projects ranging from interim engagements to specialized strategic advice in areas like manufacturing controls and sales excellence.
PROJECT CATEGORIES: CEOs and Presidents
| 50% Strategy |
| 26% Interim Executive |
| 14% Operations |
| 9% Transformation |
| 1% Organization |
MOST IN-DEMAND PROJECTS
Interim Executive
Marketing and Sales Strategy
Product Strategy and Launch
Planning
Business Intelligence and Analytics
Business Processes
IT and Tech Transformation
Opportunity Assessment
MOST IN-DEMAND SKILLS
Project Management
Market Analysis
Advanced Analytics
Due Diligence
Marketing Communications
Product Development and Launch
Strategic Planning
SAMPLE PROJECTS REQUESTED BY CEOs AND PRESIDENTS
- Serve as interim CTO to oversee AWS migration, product development lifecycle, and big data solutions
- Suggest improvements to the sales and conversion funnel to avoid a significant miss on annual targets
- Deliver a 10-year roadmap outlining organic growth opportunities in the core business and potential brand expansions
- Prepare an operational integration plan for the post-merger phase of an impending acquisition
- Serve as interim Chief of Staff to CEO to assist with major initiatives, organizational design, project management, and goal tracking
