Accenture, IBM, Deloitte Leave Other IT Consultants in the Dust, Survey Shows

Accenture, IBM Global Business Services and Deloitte Consulting are seen as far and away the top IT consulting firms by the consulting industry itself, a new survey has found.

The three firms placed No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3, respectively, in both IT operations consulting and IT strategy consulting, according to the 2014 Best Consulting Firms survey conducted by career information services provider Vault.com. The firms that placed fourth and lower were fairly distant also-rans.

It’s worth noting that Accenture may strengthen its top position even further by acquiring Booz & Co., a spinoff of Booz Allen Hamilton that made an appearance in the rankings in both categories. The Wall Street Journal  reported (subscription required) last month that  Accenture is in talks to acquire Booz & Co., however, no agreement has been finalized. According to InvestorPlace.com, Booz & Co. generated revenue of $1.4 billion in 2012, up from $1.2 billion in 2011.

In the Vault.com survey’s overall operations consulting category, which also listed Accenture in the No. 1 spot, Booz & Co. made a respectable showing at No. 8.

I also found it interesting that in both categories, Indian IT services providers Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services made fairly decent showings. It was also striking that although a third Indian firm, Wipro Consulting Services, didn’t make the IT strategy consulting list at all, in the IT operations consulting category it beat the likes of KPMG, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.

Vault.com asked consultants to rank the best IT consulting companies by voting for up to three firms in each category, but as might be expected, they weren’t allowed to vote for their own firms. Here’s the ranking of the top five in the IT operations consulting category, along with the percentage of votes each received:

1. Accenture 55.64
2. IBM Global Business Services 47.70
3. Deloitte Consulting LLP 28.12
4. Capgemini 11.76
5. SAP Services (IT Consulting) 10.15

Here’s the ranking of the top five in the IT strategy consulting category:

1. Accenture 54.69
2. IBM Global Business Services 45.98
3. Deloitte Consulting LLP 27.68
4. McKinsey & Company 14.59
5. Capgemini 10.59