In another case, a large company that has recently acquired a new division may hire management analysts to help reorganize their corporate structure and eliminate duplicate or non-essential jobs. Firms providing management analysis range in size from a single practitioner to large international organizations employing thousands of consultants. Some analysts and consultants specialize in a specific industry while others specialize by type of business function, such as human resources or information systems. In government, management analysts tend to specialize by type of agency. The work of management analysts and consultants varies with each client or employer, and from project to project.
Some projects require a team of consultants, each specializing in one area.
In other projects, consultants work independently with the organization's managers. In all cases, analysts and consultants collect, review, and analyze information, in order to make recommendations to management. Both public and private organizations use consultants for a variety of reasons. Some lack the internal resources needed to handle a project, while others need a consultant's expertise to determine what resources will be required and what problems may be encountered, if they pursue a particular opportunity. To retain a consultant, a company first solicits proposals from a number of consulting firms specializing in the area in which it needs assistance.