The dangers of outsourcing government planning to global consulting firms

In light of the Union government's engagement of Boston Consulting Group to finalise 'Vision 2047' for India, this article sounds a cautionary note.

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IN the last week of October 2023, the print media reported that the government of India has hired the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to help prepare 'Vision 2047' for India.

It is a document that will set India's medium-term goals and priorities for becoming a developed economy in the next quarter of a century. Among other things, it will look at improving governance systems and access to public goods.

BCG is a well-known global consulting firm that, according to its website, claims to partner with leaders in business and society to tackle their most important challenges. BCG is a part of the 'Big Three' which includes McKinsey and Bain & Company.

While advising corporates on strategy, management and execution of projects, sometimes in capacities such as information technology (IT) or financial planning is a standard process, advising governments and organisations from civil societies seems to be a stretch.

The history of such advisory services to governments by global consulting firms is riddled with failures, bad advice, influence peddling and collapse of government special skills and knowledge built over the years.

This article aims to prove that the experience and history of consulting firms and their interventions in countries that have sought their help have been met with unmitigated disasters. It also sets out reasons why involving such firms is detrimental to the country and prejudicial to national interests.

The foremost question is this: Do strategy firms truly produce the best outcomes? Many scholars in business, academia, and journalism have long argued that the real value of consulting is difficult to ascertain and, hence, consulting firms are mainly concerned with creating the impression of value.