Next Step

What Next Step does

Next Step is a privately held, founder-led management consultancy founded in 1998 by CEO Jennifer Vessels, headquartered in Redwood City, California with a regional subsidiary in Oslo, Norway. The firm employs approximately 40 global consultants and delivers advisory services to large multinational organizations across the United States, the Nordics, the UK, the Benelux, and Africa; named clients include Adobe, Cisco, Microsoft, Google, Autodesk, Palo Alto Networks, Novartis, SwissRe, Mitel, Nevion, Tandberg, Avinor, Goodwill Industries, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.

The company sells three core service offerings — Scale Your Business (scalability, sales process optimization, and go-to-market execution), Transform Your Business (AI and technology-driven transformation), and the Executive Growth Alliance (a peer-executive community with summit events). The firm does not develop proprietary software, models, or platforms; its intellectual property consists of transformation frameworks (including a P.E.A.C.E. methodology), a thought-leadership content engine, and the reputational capital derived from marquee enterprise engagements.

Next Step monetizes through time-and-materials consulting engagements delivered by its global consultant bench, supplemented by Executive Growth Alliance memberships and events. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is negotiated per engagement. The go-to-market is consultative and sales-led, with marketing driven primarily by executive-authored blog content, newsletter distribution, CEO speaking engagements, and contributed articles in industry publications such as Norwegian American. The firm has no disclosed institutional investors, no parent company, no acquisitions, and no publicly reported revenue.

Name

Next Step

Legal name

Next Step

Website

https://nextstepgrowth.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Next Step is a privately held, founder-led management consultancy of around 40 global consultants headquartered in Silicon Valley with a Nordic subsidiary, advising multinational enterprises on business scalability, AI and technology-driven transformation, and executive future-readiness through frameworks and the Executive Growth Alliance peer network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Strategy & Corporate Development Consulting (BPAHACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Operations & Process Improvement Consulting (BPAHACAB), Innovation, Product & R&D Consulting (BPAHACAM), Cost Reduction & Working Capital Optimization (BPAHAHAL)

Keywords

• Business transformation consulting
• Growth strategy advisory
• Scalability consulting
• Executive leadership development
• Digital transformation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Redwood City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Consulting and Advisory Services: Next Step generates revenue through professional consulting engagements focused on business transformation, scalability, and growth acceleration. Services include strategic advisory, organizational transformation, sales process optimization, and digitalization consulting delivered by their team of global consultants.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Next Step is a global management consultancy delivering business transformation, scalability, and growth acceleration services to enterprise clients. The firm offers three core service lines: Scale Your Business (scalability and long-term growth advisory), Transform Your Business (AI and technology-driven transformation consulting), and Executive Growth Alliance (a peer collaboration network for global executives). Services are advisory and consulting-based rather than software or platform products, delivered by a team of approximately 40 global consultants across the US and Nordic regions.

Product overview

Next Step is a global consultancy firm offering business transformation and growth services. The company provides three core service offerings: Scale Your Business (focused on scalability and long-term growth), Transform Your Business (focused on AI and technology-driven transformation), and Executive Growth Alliance (a peer collaboration network for executives). These services are advisory and consulting-based rather than software or platform products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Executive Growth Alliance: A peer collaboration network founded by Next Step to accelerate future-readiness and growth of global organizations through executive forums and peer case activities.

Products and services

• Scale Your Business Consulting service focused on successful scalability and long-term growth through proven market approaches, sales processes, teams, partners, and business models. Aimed at enterprise clients seeking to maximize revenue.
• Transform Your Business Business transformation service helping leaders and teams adapt to changing market needs by exploring and leveraging AI and technology. Aimed at enterprise leaders seeking to enhance profitability.
• Executive Growth Alliance Peer collaboration network for global executives to accelerate future-readiness and business growth, featuring forums, summits, and peer case activities within Transportation/Mobility, Environment, Industry, Consumer and Health industries.

Quantifiable outcome

• >300% improvement in productivity within 5 years
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Executive Growth AlliancecoreOthers · 28 August 2019Executive Growth Alliance was founded in Silicon Valley to accelerate the future-readiness and growth of Global 500 organizations within Transportation/Mobility, Environment, Industry, Consumer and Health industries. Empowered by Next Step, the alliance provides peer collaboration forums and summits for executives to address transformation challenges. Expansion announced beyond Silicon Valley and Norway with planned chapters for London, Benelux, Cape Town and other US locations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Accenture: Global professional services firm with a large management consulting arm covering strategy, transformation, and digital change — competing with Next Step on enterprise transformation mandates at much larger scale.
• Kearney: Global management consulting firm with strong operations and strategic transformation practices serving large enterprise clients on growth and scalability, comparable to Next Step's core offerings.
• Boston Consulting Group (BCG): Global management consultancy with deep transformation, growth, and AI/digital practice areas serving multinational enterprise clients in a manner comparable to Next Step's Silicon Valley-rooted growth advisory work.
• Deloitte Consulting: Big Four consulting practice offering strategy, operations, and human capital advisory to multinational clients — overlapping with Next Step's transformation, leadership, and scalability engagements.
• EY-Parthenon: Strategy and transactions consulting arm of EY advising enterprise clients on growth, transformation, and corporate strategy — directly competing for the same enterprise transformation mandates as Next Step.
• Booz Allen Hamilton: Large management and technology consulting firm serving government and commercial enterprises on transformation, innovation, and growth — overlapping with Next Step's enterprise transformation client base.
• Bain & Company: Global strategy and transformation consulting firm with strong enterprise growth and operational improvement practices that overlap directly with Next Step's 'Scale Your Business' and transformation offerings.
• McKinsey & Company: Global tier-1 management consulting firm advising Fortune 500 executives on strategy, transformation, and growth — directly overlapping Next Step's enterprise transformation and scalability mandates, but with vastly deeper bench and global reach.

Emerging players

• Heidrick & Struggles: Executive leadership and organizational consulting firm helping enterprise clients on leadership development and future-readiness — overlapping with Next Step's executive advisory and Executive Growth Alliance focus areas.

Direct peers

• PA Consulting: Boutique global consultancy combining strategic advisory with transformation and innovation services for enterprise clients — a closer size and operating-model analog to Next Step than the mega-firms.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nextstep_inc
• Facebookfacebook.com/107791552578468

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Next Step