Nyttan med styrverktyg inom små konsultföretag : Differentiering och legitimitet på marknaden

Background and Problem: The consulting branch can be recognized by having a high turnover of operators. One reason for this is that the market can be lucrative with its low entry barriers. But why do many operators disappear as soon as they enter the market? Is it because of a lack of strategy and management tools? Could it be due to the difficulty for small businesses to create solid brand legitimacy, and is there a possibility to strengthen it by using management tools? The company used in this study is a small consulting company that desires to strengthen their brand legitimacy with the aid of differentiation strategy in the market.Purpose: With the help of a self-made evaluation model, the purpose of this study is to evaluate different long-term management tools geared towards small consulting and service companies. By evaluating the pros and cons of the three selected management tools and then apply those at a small consulting company, an expectation is that the study could lead to recommendations regarding the management tools benefits and possibilities for adaption.Method: In the methodology section the methodological choices of the study are explained. There is also a presentation of the research approach that has been used. Furthermore, the selection of data and the criticism of the sources used in the study are discussed.Results and conclusion: After that the management tools had been evaluated using the evaluation tool, it was found that there was no optimal management tool but that they all contained valuable features. However, the analysis showed that the management tool that was most advantageous based on the company’s prospects was the balanced scorecard because of its multiple useful features and its ability to control according to the company’s strategy and goal.