11) Caiman Consulting
There are several reasons that morale is high at Caiman Consulting these days—recent growth, consultant camaraderie and strict discipline from the leaders about the company's culture among them.
Then again, maybe it's that all-expenses-paid, four-day company outing to Maui, Hawaii coming up in October. Caiman has been hosting this annual trip to a different tropical location every year since the company started eight years ago.
"Our flat organization, lean structure, and virtual working environment allow us to share the rewards of collective efforts unlike most firms," says CEO and Managing Partner, Raazi Imam. "We are able to pay for the event, keep our rates competitive for our clients, and pay our consultants above competitors by being unselfish, being smart."
Certainly sounds like a recipe for success. And Caiman's consultants may need that R&R as the firm embarks on an aggressive growth strategy that aims to grow from its 32 consultants today to 65 by the end of 2013.
"We don't want to lose the feel and attitude of the firm," Imam says. "We have to grow new business with consulting engagements that align to our core service areas. And, we need to attract top consulting talent to Caiman."
Well, the firm's second Best Firm to Work For award should help on that front. (Caiman was ranked No. 14 in 2009.)
"Being named a Best Small Firm to Work For reinforces that our focus on our people continues to be the right thing to do, and it provides a sense of pride for our employees," Imam says. "We hope it conveys the commitment Caiman has in our people, which directly translates to recruiting top talent and retaining our staff to deliver against the complex problems we help guide our clients through every day on every engagement."
Meanwhile, Imam says Caiman's approach to consulting has always been different than other firms. "Our local-market focus, highly-experienced consultant pool, and smaller consulting teams create exceptional value for clients," according to Imam.
"We focus on collaboration, accountability, and results. Our clients give praise to our willingness to listen, adapt, and take action. We ensure that we understand your business first, your project needs next, and finally the impactful results you seek to achieve."
Q&A: What initiatives have you set out to achieve in the last 12 months?
Raazi Imam, CEO and Managing Partner, says: "We launched a three-year growth strategy centered on these key principles: Secure and strengthen our current client base, strengthen our focus on a few key service areas, and increase the number of new clients. This year, we are ahead of plan in terms of new clients we have added, and our revenue mix between our core clients and our new clients is tracking towards the balance we want to achieve by 2015. One key to achieving growth outside our core clients ahead of plan is through the hiring of two new directors—one of whom is singularly focused on those things we feel are necessary to compete and grow: practice development, marketing and branding, new client development, and revenue and profit growth."
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