Global Expansion Strategy: Launching a Commercial Strategy Offering

In a previous article, we reviewed strategy consultancies that had launched Market Access offerings within Life Sciences.

We now turn our attention to businesses that have launched a Commercial Strategy offering, analysing current trends, key considerations, and common challenges associated with such launches.

From Concept to Execution

We reviewed 31 consultancies that have introduced a commercial strategy offering.

Current hiring trends:

• 48% of hires were achieved through organic growth, with 7% of these via joint ventures.
• 35% of hires were achieved via acquisition, with 20% of these businesses being PE-funded.
• 13% of growth occurred through strategic partnerships.
• 7% came via corporate mergers.

Many consultancies launched offerings either through individual hires or team acquisitions, while 3% did so through internal organisational restructuring.

• 39% were individual hires
• 58% were team acquisitions
• 3% organically restructured internally

Firms analysed:

• 45% Strategy Consultancies
• 23% Data Solutions
• 16% Accounting/Banking
• 10% Market Research
• 6% Competitive Intelligence

An Increase in Data Solutions Companies

The need to explore new strategies and remain competitive has led to increased acquisitions and partnerships between traditional consultancies and technology businesses over the past 6–8 years.

Integrating technology and data capabilities allows for:

• Faster and more decisive product lifecycle decisions
• Reduced barriers between back-end data management and front-end analysis
• More efficient derivation of data-driven strategic insights

The use of data and technology has reshaped commercial strategy, enabling consultancies to:

• Accelerate product launches
• Evaluate strategic investment opportunities
• Identify and monitor competitor initiatives
• Ensure successful lifecycle management

Key Challenges for Consultancies

Challenges faced by consultancies launching commercial strategy offerings include:

1. Elevating contacts to senior leadership: Data/research businesses often struggle to get access to strategic decision-makers.
2. MSA and budget constraints: Without an acquisition, corporate BioPharmas may resist changes to master service agreements.
3. Attracting commercial leadership: Without external funding, attracting a leader with sufficient gravitas to build a unit can be difficult.
4. Delivery team depth: Insufficient team depth can lead to missed deadlines, over-reliance on external support, and projects running over budget, impacting margins.

Considerations for Consultancies

Strategic Partnerships:

• Underinvestment in agreements (e.g., cost sharing, target setting, resource allocation) can reduce success.
• Misalignment of goals, incentives, and responsibilities can emerge over time, affecting longevity.
• Focusing primarily on internal demands rather than scaling can undermine partnerships.

Acquiring a Team:

• Cultural integration is critical to ensure retention.
• Both teams must contribute to growth and generate profitable revenue to extend company value.

‍Hiring Individuals:

• Ensure the hire has a genuine book of business.
• Assess their ability to grow a commercial offering aggressively in a competitive market.
• Leverage their network to recruit potential consultants.

Launching a commercial strategy offering is a complex but increasingly essential step for consultancies seeking growth and competitive advantage. Whether achieved through organic hires, acquisitions, strategic partnerships, or mergers, success depends on careful planning, alignment of culture and incentives, and access to the right leadership and talent.

As technology and data increasingly shape decision-making, consultancies that integrate these capabilities into their commercial strategy offerings are better positioned to accelerate product launches, identify market opportunities, and deliver tangible value to clients. Ultimately, a thoughtful approach to structuring, staffing, and scaling a commercial strategy practice determines whether the offering becomes a sustainable driver of growth or a missed opportunity.