Human resource consulting

Human resource consulting is an $18.4 billion industry ^[1] that has emerged from management consulting and addresses human resource management tasks and decisions. The following are core fields around which most HR consultancies are based:

• Human Capital, including remuneration (also called total rewards), employee rewards and incentive programs, and talent acquisition and management
• Health & Benefits; i.e., orchestrating optimal employee health plans with the carriers themselves
• Mergers & Acquisitions, examining fit across culture, job-type, transaction costs, etc.
• Communication, including surveying employee attitudes, satisfaction, engagement, and other employee behaviors
• Retirement
• Outsourcing

Services may also include legal counseling, global initiatives, investments consulting, and the implementation of HR technologies to facilitate human capital management. The HR consulting industry also employs more actuaries than any other in order to assist in their services.

Companies in the field

HR consultancies vary in their ranges of services and sizes, with many consultants and academicians breaking off to form their own practices. In 2007, there were 950 HR consultancies globally, constituting a USD $18.4 billion market. The top five revenue generating firms were Mercer, Ernst & Young, Deloitte, Watson Wyatt (now part of Towers Watson), Aon (now merged with Hewitt), and PwC consulting (a wholly owned subsidiary of IBM).^[2] Other major players include Towers Watson, Hewitt Associates, Hay Group,^[1] Ma Foi Randstad (part of the Dutch Randstad Holding), and Buck Consultants.^[3]

Qualifications and certifications

Many human resource consultants have specialized qualifications or certifications, such as:

• Accountancy: ACCA, CA, CPA, CCA
• Actuarial: EA, ASA, FSA, MAAA, FIA, FFA
• Educational: MS in Management/HR/Industrial Organizational psychology, MBA, Ph.D. in Management, DBA, J.D.
• Finance: CFA
• General consulting: CMC
• Health and benefits: CEBS, CBP,
• Compensation: CCP (Certified Compensation Professional)
• Human resources: Various certifications SHRM (US) CHRP (Canada) (e.g. PHR, SPHR, GPHR); MCIPD, PGDHR DHR

References