Summary: The 2026 Lünendonk rankings suggest Germany’s consulting market is not simply slowing—it is becoming increasingly divided. While average growth has moderated, the widening gap between the strongest and weakest firms points to a market rewarding specialist capabilities, commercial discipline and leadership. AI and restructuring have emerged as the dominant drivers of client demand, yet many firms are still struggling to monetise AI despite widespread adoption. At the same time, Partner succession has become one of the industry’s biggest strategic challenges, highlighting that leadership, rather than technology alone, is likely to determine which firms outperform over the next decade.
Germany’s Consulting Market Isn’t Slowing. It’s Separating.
Average growth has slowed. The market has not.
That is the real story behind this year’s Lünendonk rankings of the German consulting market.
German-headquartered consulting firms grew by an average of 4.1% in 2025, while the largest international firms grew by 3.0%. At first glance, that appears to be a market losing momentum after several years of exceptional growth. Yet averages are becoming increasingly misleading. Beneath them sits a market becoming more competitive, more specialised and more selective. Some firms contracted sharply, while others grew by more than 25%. The industry is no longer moving together. It is rewarding firms with the right capabilities, sectors and leadership while exposing those still relying on yesterday’s consulting model.
The question is no longer whether consulting is growing.
It is why some firms continue to outperform while others struggle in exactly the same economic environment.
Lünendonk German Consulting Ranking 2026
The averages hide a widening gap
The slowdown in growth tells only part of the story. More revealing is the increasing dispersion between firms. Consulting is becoming a market of winners and losers rather than one where rising demand lifts everyone equally. That reflects a broader shift in client buying behaviour. Organisations are becoming more selective about where they spend advisory budgets, concentrating investment on projects with clear commercial impact while delaying or cancelling broader transformation initiatives. The result is a market where specialist capabilities and differentiated positioning matter more than ever before.
Clients have changed what they buy
One of the clearest messages from this year’s research is where demand is concentrating. Artificial intelligence and restructuring have emerged as the two primary growth engines across the German consulting market. Although they appear to represent different types of work, they are driven by the same objective: measurable business outcomes. Boards are investing in AI to improve productivity and redesign operating models, while restructuring programmes focus on profitability, cost reduction and organisational simplification. In both cases, clients increasingly expect consulting to deliver quantifiable financial impact rather than strategic recommendations alone.
We see exactly the same trend in the executive search market. Demand for senior leaders across Performance Improvement and Value Creation practices has accelerated significantly over the past year as firms prioritise EBITDA improvement, operational efficiency and cost transformation. Sector demand is following a similar pattern, with Defence, Critical Infrastructure and Energy continuing to attract investment as geopolitical priorities reshape European economies.
Restructuring is back
The resurgence of restructuring deserves attention in its own right. After several years dominated by digital transformation and ESG programmes, economic uncertainty has moved operational performance back to the top of board agendas. Businesses are once again asking fundamental questions about cost structures, portfolio optimisation, operating models and capital allocation.
That environment naturally favours firms with deep restructuring credentials. Specialists such as Alvarez & Marsal and AlixPartners appear particularly well positioned as organisations seek advisors capable of delivering measurable financial outcomes rather than simply diagnosing problems. It also explains why consulting firms with strong Performance Improvement capabilities have generally proven more resilient than those relying on broader transformation portfolios.
AI has created a commercial challenge
Artificial intelligence remains the defining technology trend, yet one statistic from the report deserves more attention than it has received. Despite widespread AI adoption, revenue per consultant declined across much of the market, with only the largest firms bucking the trend.
That suggests the industry’s commercial model has not kept pace with its delivery model. Consultants are becoming more productive, but many firms are not yet translating those productivity gains into stronger economics. Nearly half of consulting firms also report that AI has not changed their pricing. Increasingly, clients expect AI-enabled delivery as part of the service rather than as a premium capability. The next competitive advantage is therefore unlikely to come from adopting AI alone. It will come from finding better ways to package, price and commercialise AI-enabled work.
Consulting’s biggest constraint isn’t technology
For me, the most important finding in this year’s report has nothing to do with AI.
According to Lünendonk, 58% of consulting firms identify Partner succession as their biggest organisational challenge.
That finding deserves more attention than another discussion about technology. As AI automates more delivery work, competitive advantage shifts towards capabilities that remain difficult to replicate: trusted client relationships, commercial judgement, problem framing and the ability to originate transformational work. AI can improve analysis and execution. It cannot replace the credibility required to advise CEOs and boards during moments of strategic uncertainty.
Rather than reducing the importance of senior leadership, AI may actually increase it. Firms are no longer simply searching for experienced consultants. They are looking for Partners capable of combining commercial judgement, sector expertise and AI-enabled delivery into a compelling proposition for clients.
Ownership is reshaping the market
Technology is not the only force changing consulting. Ownership structures are evolving as well. Eight of Germany’s Top 20 consulting firms are now backed by private equity, continuing a trend that has accelerated over recent years.
Private equity investment brings greater access to capital, acquisition capacity and operational discipline. It is helping create larger, more specialised consulting platforms capable of competing internationally while accelerating consolidation across the mid-market. Consulting is increasingly becoming an investable asset class, and that shift is likely to continue as firms seek scale in high-growth specialist markets.
We may need new ways to measure success
Revenue rankings remain valuable, but they increasingly describe where firms have been rather than where they are going. Future league tables may reveal more by measuring revenue per Partner, organic growth, repeat client revenue, AI-enabled revenue and the ability to attract and retain senior leadership. These metrics would provide a clearer picture of long-term competitive strength than turnover alone.
The firms that outperform over the next decade will not simply deploy better AI or complete more acquisitions. They will commercialise AI more effectively, attract exceptional Partner talent and translate both into measurable client outcomes. That feels like the real lesson from this year’s rankings—and it is a far more difficult competitive advantage to build.
In Closing
Perhaps the most important lesson from this year’s rankings is that consulting is no longer competing on scale alone. The firms that outperform over the next decade will combine three capabilities: the ability to commercialise AI, the ability to attract exceptional leadership and the discipline to deliver cr measurable business outcomes. Technology may be accelerating change, but leadership remains the industry’s ultimate source of competitive advantage.
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Ben Appleton is the founder of Strat-Bridge, a specialist executive search partner to the strategy consulting industry. He works with global consulting firms and senior leaders across the UK, Germany, Switzerland, and beyond — helping them build capability at the Partner and Director level.
