What Metaplan does

Metaplan is a privately-held German management consulting firm founded in 1972, headquartered in Quickborn, Germany, and operating across 8 countries (Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Sweden, USA, China, Singapore). The firm provides consulting services grounded in organizational sciences, specifically Niklas Luhmann's systems theory, with a proprietary "Discursive Approach" (Diskursiver Ansatz) that emphasizes creating productive organizational discourse over behavioral prescription. Its service portfolio spans three domains: People & Interactions (alignment, leadership, culture, moderation), Organizations & Decisions (agility, business models, collaboration, innovation, organizational design, strategy), and Eco-Systems & Market Development (business planning, customer centricity, scenario creation, ecosystem design).

Metaplan has productized its methodology into 12+ structured consulting products—including Organizational Design Process, Culture Process, Market Exploration, Delphi, Retention, Business Planning, Organizational Heatmap, Post Merger Integration, Onboarding Process, New Leadership Program, Organizational Design Sparring, and Digital Innovation Program—and operates the Metaplan Academy offering 30+ individual seminars and multi-module certification programs (e.g., the Metaplan Moderation Program priced at €5,158.65 including VAT for six seminar days). The Academy delivers in-person at the purpose-built Metaplan Forum campus in Quickborn and virtually, including a 36-session Executive Program for Organizational Leadership.

The firm employs 101-250 staff including ~70+ consultants, generates revenue through enterprise consulting engagements, Academy programs, and certification training (all professional services), and targets enterprise clients across multiple verticals: automotive, luxury goods, machinery/engineering, life sciences, public administration, family businesses, financial services, and defense. Metaplan is structured as a German limited partnership (Metaplan Gesellschaft für Planung und Organisation mbH & Co. KG) with managing directors including Dr. Kai Matthiesen (Managing Partner since 2001) and Jens Kapitzky (Head of Metaplan Academy since 2018). The firm has remained independent since founding with no external private equity or venture capital ownership.

Name

Metaplan

Legal name

Metaplan Gesellschaft für Planung und Organisation mbH & Co. KG

Website

https://metaplan.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Metaplan is a privately-held German management consulting firm founded in 1972 that delivers enterprise advisory services grounded in organizational sciences and Luhmann's systems theory. It serves large organizations across automotive, life sciences, public administration, financial services, and defense verticals via a 70+ consultant team operating in 8 countries, alongside the Metaplan Academy offering moderation and leadership training programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting

NAICS

Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services (541611), Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Human Capital & Workforce Transformation Consulting (BPAHACAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Business Process & Digital Transformation Consulting (BPAEAAAD)

Keywords

• Management consulting services
• Organizational design consulting
• Strategy consulting
• Leadership development programs
• Organizational transformation

Headquarters

HQ city

Quickborn

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Management Consulting Services: Core consulting engagements involving organizational analysis, strategy development, leadership consulting, culture change, and organizational design. Billed as professional services engagements.
2. Academy Seminars and Programs: Educational offerings including individual seminars (30+ available), multi-module programs, orientation sessions, and training programs. Offered in-person and virtual formats. Revenue from participation fees.
3. Metaplan Moderation Program: Three-seminar certification program for moderation skills. Participation fee of 3,825 EUR plus service fee of 510 EUR for 6 seminar days.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Metaplan is a management consulting firm that sells structured consulting engagements and Academy training programs grounded in organizational sciences and systems theory. Its portfolio includes named consulting products such as Organizational Design, Culture, Market Exploration, Delphi, Retention, Business Planning, Organizational Heatmap, Post Merger Integration, Onboarding, and Leadership programs, plus the Metaplan Academy offering moderation training and an Executive Program for Organizational Leadership for managers and consultants.

Product overview

Metaplan is a management consulting firm based on organizational sciences that offers a portfolio of consulting products and Academy programs. The consulting products include: Organizational Design Process, Culture Process, Market Exploration, Delphi, Retention, Business Planning, Organizational Heatmap, Post Merger Integration, Onboarding Process, New Leadership Program, Organizational Design Sparring, and Digital Innovation Program. The Academy division offers the Metaplan Moderation Program (covering moderation techniques, workshop design, and discourse strategy) and the Executive Program for Organizational Leadership (36 live online sessions for executives). The firm's approach is based on systemic organizational theory, particularly Niklas Luhmann's systems theory, with a focus on discourse-based consulting.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Organizational Design Process Structured consulting engagement that helps organizations understand their inherent logics and identify where organizational design can begin. Aimed at executive teams undertaking structural transformation.
• Culture Process Consulting methodology focused on making cultural phenomena discussable and influencing organizational culture through structural changes. Targeted at leaders addressing culture change.
• Market Exploration Methodology for understanding customers and markets to inform strategic decisions and market positioning. Aimed at executive teams seeking market insight.
• Delphi Consulting method for dealing with the fact that different things are considered relevant across the organization, facilitating alignment on priorities. Used by leadership teams facing competing priorities.
• Retention Consulting approach for designing organizations to retain employees and reduce turnover. Targets HR and executive leaders addressing workforce retention.
• Business Planning Structured methodology for business planning and strategic development, used by leadership teams to design and align business strategy.
• Organizational Heatmap Consulting tool to assess and visualize organizational readiness for digital transformation, helping avoid digital transformation failures. Used by transformation leaders.
• Post Merger Integration Methodology to ensure common direction, clear structures, and aligned strategies in newly merged organizations. Aimed at integration leaders post-M&A.
• Onboarding Process Helps decision-makers in new roles quickly take effective action and become productive in their positions. Targeted at executives and managers in transition.
• New Leadership Program Equips managers to respond to complex challenges and provides design levers for effective leadership in changing environments. Aimed at managers and leadership teams.
• Organizational Design Sparring Advisory support for leaders to effectively shape their organizations through strategic dialogue. Targeted at senior leaders needing structured sparring on organizational design.
• Digital Innovation Program Methodology to enable digital innovations to succeed within organizations. Used by leaders driving digital innovation initiatives.
• Metaplan Moderation Program
• Executive Program for Organizational Leadership

Named customers3 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature5 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Innosight: Strategy and innovation consultancy (founded on Clayton Christensen's work) offering transformation and growth strategy services that overlap with Metaplan's Innovation and Business Models practices.
• Egon Zehnder: Global leadership advisory firm combining executive search, leadership assessment, and organizational consulting; overlaps with Metaplan on leadership, culture, and CEO/executive-team engagements.
• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm combining executive search, leadership development, and organizational design; competes with Metaplan on culture, leadership pipeline, and post-merger integration mandates.

Broad incumbents

• Boston Consulting Group: Global strategy and transformation consultancy whose People & Organization Practice and Corporate Development offerings directly overlap with Metaplan's Organization, Strategy, and Change services.
• Bain & Company: Global management consultancy with established Organization and Change Management practices serving similar enterprise clients (automotive, industrial, financial services) on culture, alignment, and operating-model redesign.
• McKinsey & Company: Largest global management consultancy with an Organization Practice delivering large-scale transformation programs to the same enterprise clients (automotive, industrial, financial services) that Metaplan serves.
• Roland Berger: Largest German-headquartered global strategy consultancy with overlapping practices in organization, strategy, and transformation - operates at materially larger scale and broader service breadth than Metaplan.

Direct peers

• hkp/// group: Frankfurt-based management consulting firm focused on HR strategy, organizational design, leadership, and compensation - directly competing with Metaplan in the German-speaking market for human capital and transformation mandates with similar academic rigour.
• Kienbaum: German HR and management consultancy covering leadership, organizational development, and transformation - the closest German peer in scale, methodology mix, and target buyer profile to Metaplan.
• RHR International: Specialist consulting firm focused on leadership effectiveness, executive development, and organizational behavior - closely aligned with Metaplan's People & Interactions, Leadership, and Culture offerings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xxing.com/pages/metaplan
• LinkedInde.linkedin.com/company/metaplan-consulting

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Metaplan