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Introduces the concept of client‐centred marketing to consultants in order to help them market their professional services. This approach comprises several components, including a strategic evaluation of the consulting practice, setting goals and objectives, establishing activity priorities, allocating resources, scheduling activities, task implementation and monitoring results.

In the face of the failure of command economic systems and the introduction of free‐market principles in Central and Eastern Europe, there will be an increasing need to provide timely and relevant information to business people who may be interested in marketing their products or services to these countries. One practical way to present this information in software form is through the use of knowledge bases and expert systems. Knowledge bases contain information which can be obtained through specific queries or via keyword searches. Expert systems act as decision‐support tools, providing consultation and advice in much the same manner that a human expert would use. Describes an expert system designed to aid the international manager in decision making, particularly with respect to target market evaluation and selection. It includes specific information on several Eastern European nations, as well as many more traditionally capitalistic countries. Descriptions of the technical structure and theoretical foundations of this expert system are presented, as well as its uses and implications for future development.

Questions the nature of marketing methods in political campaigns based on a grounded theoretical approach conducted using in‐depth interviews. Suggests that if marketing success is measured solely by the level of turnout then the use of marketing in political campaigns would appear to be failing. Other reasons, however, may also explain this lack of success. The use of marketing may be less effective because the “market” is more restrictive, or marketing methods whilst actually being appropriate may be being used inappropriately. Concludes that, although the political “market” is different and restrictive, this does not negate the role of marketing in political campaigning.

Focuses on the marketing strategies used by Polish marketing firms and their role as change agents after the fall of communism and the transition to a market economy. A survey of 93 marketing consulting firms in four large Polish cities was conducted in 1996‐1997. The results suggest that this sector is thriving, and the two most important success factors are on‐time delivery and high service delivery.

This chapter provides an ethnographic account of the interaction between a professional marketing consulting firm and its client. The interaction is analysed as a ‘narrative archipelago’ or complex of discursive practices by which professionalism is constructed. In this case three narratives predominate: the narrative of instrumental reason, of neo-liberalism and consumer protection. The analysis demonstrates the microprocesses by which wider concepts of professionalism are recreated in daily interactions between professionals and clients.

Analyses the state of the management consultancy industry in Britain, from both a supply and a demand perspective. Aims to help potential clients evaluate and select consultants; to keep academics in business‐related subjects abreast of developments in the field; and to identify growth areas into which consultants might elect to move. Outlines available consulting specialisms, identifies key players in each, and profiles a typical management consultant.

The purpose of the paper is to investigate the marketing and communication activities carried out by small management consulting firms and how they relate to customers.

After the framing of the literature on the subject, the study is based on the results of a survey carried out through an online questionnaire. The sample under investigation is represented by 914 small consulting firms located in central Italy.

Results show that half of the sample carried out marketing and communication activities, mainly through the website and social media, while others participating in events as speakers at conferences. It also emerges that management consulting firms carry out activities aimed at maintaining relationship with customers even if they do not invest time in market research in order to find potential and new clients.

The study suggests that management consulting firms should adopt a systematic and strategic approach to communication and should develop a complete and integrated digital communication strategy, as well as to rethink the consulting business model.

There are no previous studies that provide insight into the everyday practice of marketing and communication of small management consulting services in today's dynamic and changing economic environment.

The academic/practitioner divide in marketing is very evident in marketers’ real world problems of accountability. Empirical research reported in this paper reveals senior non‐marketers perceive marketers to be “unaccountable, untouchable, slippery and expensive” and this is further reflected in the domain literature. Exploration of the issues raises questions about whether marketing educators have failed to deliver the theory and frameworks that could address this problem. Since the 1960s, many tools have been developed and used by marketing educators, academic researchers and consultants that should have helped practitioners to become more accountable; yet something appears to have gone wrong. This paper synthesizes the most recent literature in these areas, contends that accountability is imperative to avoid the marginalization of marketers and proposes an agenda for further research to close the academic/practitioner divide.

This study aims to investigate marketing managers’ views on the existence and nature of the academic–practitioner gap in the branding domain.

Using a purposive sampling method, the researchers conduct semi-structured qualitative interviews with 20 experienced marketing managers from a wide range of industries and organisations, whose roles are focussed on the planning, implementation and management of broad marketing and branding strategies.

Branding practitioners have little or no contact with academics and their theories-in-use with regard to brand management suggest they do not consider academic research relevant to their work.

The process of describing and explaining the gap provides valuable insights into bridging the gap; it provides actionable branding strategies that include raising awareness, building relationships, improving the benefits offer and communicating more effectively.

This research has practical implications for branding academics. The interviewed practitioners confirm the gap, viewing it as academics’ (not practitioners’) problem and responsibility. They characterise it as a branding problem that academics can overcome using branding strategies, to establish themselves as credible sources of branding expertise for practitioners. Key areas for increasing collaboration stem from practitioners’ desire for independent, credible, ethical and timely third-party advice on branding issues; relevant, timely and shorter professional branding education across their organisations; and closer connections with universities to identify new branding talent and ideas.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to empirically examine and recommend solutions to the academic-practitioner gap in the branding domain by studying marketing professionals with branding responsibilities, using in-depth interviews.

This paper aims to analyze the adoption process of human resource information systems (HRIS) from a supply-side perspective emphasizing the practices of HRIS vendors and consultants. It aims to counterbalance the existing literature on HRIS, which has overwhelmingly studied HRIS adoption from the customer organization's viewpoint, hence systematically downplaying the active role of vendors and consultants in adoption processes.

The research has been conducted on the HRIS market of the Benelux (Belgium–The Netherlands–Luxemburg) from a constructionist and exploratory perspective. The structure and dynamics underlying the market are gradually unveiled through open interviews with HRIS vendors and consulting firms (n = 22).

The paper reveals how the social shaping of HR innovations takes place and identifies nine types of pressures exerted by HRIS vendors and consultants on customer organizations: assessing, advising, advertising, case-building, demonstrating, configuring, accompanying, sustaining and supporting. Taken together, these pressures demonstrate the systematic presence and active role of external actors throughout the adoption process of HRIS within firms.

It is suggested that further supply-side studies of innovation diffusion processes of HRIS should be conducted to complement the existing, demand-side literature. In this view, emphasis should be set on technology providers and their ongoing interactions with customer firms.

The analytical precedence given to supply-side actors allows to conceptualize HRIS adoption as the dynamic result of negotiations between three groups of actors (HRIS vendors, HRIS consultants and customer firms), hence resulting in a more comprehensive and holistic view of HRIS adoption processes.