RDG

What RDG does

RDG Unternehmensberatung AG is a Cologne-headquartered management consulting firm founded around 1975 and operating as a member company of the ETL-Gruppe, one of Germany's largest accounting, tax, legal, and consulting groups. The firm serves two primary customer segments: the German Mittelstand (small and medium-sized enterprises across industry, trade, and services/handcraft) and German credit institutions (primarily Sparkassen and Genossenschaftsbanken). For corporate clients, RDG provides advisory across strategy and growth, organization and sales, investment and financing, restructuring and turnaround, distressed M&A, generational succession, digitalization, and change management. For credit institutions, RDG delivers in-person seminars, live-online trainings, and blended-learning programs covering credit analysis, annual statement evaluation, and restructuring — primarily through partnerships with Sparkassen- and Genossenschaftsakademien nationwide.

The firm's product portfolio combines a consulting engagement layer with a proprietary suite of Excel-based diagnostic tools — RDG Quick-Check Kalkulation (cost calculation), Quick-Check Planung (integrated planning), Quick-Check Jahresabschluss (annual financial statement evaluation), and the RDG Schnelltest crisis early-warning system. The Schnelltest is explicitly aligned with IDW crisis stages and Germany's StaRUG (Stabilisierungs- und Restrukturierungsrahmen Gesetz) framework, using a 1–5 school-grading scoring model. All Quick-Check tools are formula-driven with no macros or VBA, reflecting a deliberate data-security-first design philosophy. Distribution is anchored on nine regional offices across Germany (Köln, Münster, Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Erfurt, Stuttgart, München, Bayreuth), organized under four wholly-owned regional subsidiaries (RDG Köln GmbH, RDG Berlin-Hamburg GmbH, RDG Frankfurt-Erfurt GmbH, RDG Stuttgart-München GmbH).

RDG's commercial model is fee-based professional services revenue generated through custom-quoted consulting engagements plus seminar/training fees distributed through academy partnerships. Marketing leverages thought-leadership content (the RDG-Praxiswissen newsletter, LinkedIn/XING/YouTube presence, Fachtalk Sanierung expert discussion events) and free Excel-based diagnostic tools as lead magnets. The technology stack remains entirely conventional — Cisco WebEx for live-online training delivery, MailChimp for newsletter distribution, Google Analytics for web analytics, and standard third-party video conferencing platforms (Microsoft Teams, Zoom, GoTo, Adobe Connect) as alternatives. There is no SaaS platform, no API, and no AI/ML components.

Name

RDG

Legal name

RDG Unternehmensberatung AG

Website

https://rdg.ag

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

RDG is a Cologne-headquartered German management consulting firm serving the Mittelstand and credit institutions through nine regional offices, offering strategy, restructuring, succession, and distressed M&A advisory, plus nationwide seminars for Sparkassen and Genossenschaftsbanken staff.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cologne

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: Fee-based management and business consulting engagements delivered through regional offices across Germany. Engagements span strategy, restructuring, M&A, digitalization, and change management for mid-sized companies and credit institutions.
2. Seminars and Training: Revenue generated from in-person seminars, live-online trainings, and blended learning programs. Trainings are delivered both directly and through Sparkassen- and Genossenschaftsakademien partnerships. Topics include annual accounts analysis, credit assessment, restructuring, and sector-specific business skills.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

RDG provides independent management consulting services for German small and medium-sized enterprises (Mittelstand), covering strategy, restructuring, succession, M&A, digitalization, and change management. The firm also delivers professional training programs (in-person seminars, live-online, and blended learning) for credit institutions, primarily German savings banks (Sparkassen) and cooperative banks. RDG additionally distributes free Excel-based diagnostic tools (Quick-Check series and a crisis early-warning system) to support consulting lead generation.

Product overview

RDG offers a portfolio of consulting services and professional training products for SMEs and financial institutions (primarily German Sparkassen and cooperative banks). The consulting arm (Beratung für den Mittelstand) addresses strategy, restructuring, succession, digitalization, and change management. The training arm (Weiterbildung) comprises three delivery formats: in-person seminars (Präsenzseminare), live-online trainings (Live-Online-Trainings) via video conferencing platforms, and blended learning. RDG's proprietary analysis tools — the RDG Schnelltest, RDG Quick-Check Planung, RDG Quick-Check Jahresabschluss, and RDG Quick-Check Kalkulation — are all Excel-based diagnostic tools designed for self-use by entrepreneurs and advisors, with no SaaS platform or API. The products are delivered through multiple regional subsidiaries (RDG Köln, RDG Berlin-Hamburg, RDG Frankfurt-Erfurt, RDG Stuttgart-München) and are offered under the umbrella of the ETL Group.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Beratung für den Mittelstand (Management Consulting for SMEs) Independent management consulting services for German small and medium-sized enterprises (Mittelstand) covering strategy and growth, organization and sales, investment and financing, restructuring and turnaround, distressed M&A, generational management and succession, digitalization and innovation, and change management.
• Präsenzseminare für Kreditinstitute (In-Person Seminars for Credit Institutions) In-person seminars delivered at Sparkassen- and cooperative bank academies and RDG's own locations across Germany, covering business evaluation, credit analysis, commercial customer management, and financial planning topics for banking staff.
• Live-Online-Trainings für Kreditinstitute Online instructor-led training sessions conducted via video conferencing platforms (primarily Cisco WebEx), replicating the content and interactivity of in-person seminars in a virtual format for banking staff at their workplace.
• Blended-Learning (Kreditinstitute) Hybrid training model combining in-person seminar components with live-online training sessions, offered in cooperation with the Nord-Ostdeutsche Sparkassenakademie.
• Seminare für Unternehmer (Seminars for Entrepreneurs) Specialized consulting and training services for business owners (Mittelstand entrepreneurs) covering business planning, succession, financial management, and operational excellence, delivered in in-person and live-online formats.
• RDG Schnelltest (Crisis Early Warning System) Excel-based scoring model for crisis early detection aligned with IDW crisis stages and StaRUG requirements. Uses school grades 1–5 to indicate risk levels across five crisis stages, prompting additional existential threat responses when scores exceed 3.5.
• RDG Quick-Check Planung Excel-based integrated income statement, financial, and asset planning tool that auto-suggests business economics constants (e.g., cost-of-goods ratios, payment behavior) from a base year input, producing a coherent forecast of future economic development.
• RDG Quick-Check Jahresabschluss Excel-based annual financial statement analysis tool evaluating both income statement and balance sheet KPIs, including equity ratio, financial structure, working capital, liquidity, capital service capacity, and break-even analysis with year-over-year comparison.
• RDG Quick-Check Kalkulation Excel-based cost calculation tool for trade, services, and production businesses, enabling decomposition of income statements with configurable calculation parameters (markups, hourly rates) to test scenarios under market-set prices.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully sold the operating business of HAN GmbH & Co. KG during insolvency, preserving all jobs, with the buyer being HAN Desktop GmbH (Exacompta group).
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration11 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ETL-GruppecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDG is a member company ('Ein Unternehmen der ETL-Gruppe') of the ETL Group, one of Germany's largest accounting, tax, legal, and consulting groups. ETL provides brand affiliation, cross-selling opportunities, and infrastructure support (including web design via ETL Service GmbH).
• Sparkassen- und GenossenschaftsakademiencoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRDG is a nationwide, long-standing partner of German savings bank and cooperative bank academies for delivering in-person seminars and live-online trainings. Hundreds of commercial lending staff have been trained through these programs.
• Bundesverband Deutscher Unternehmensberatungen (BDU)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDG has been a member of the BDU for approximately 10 years. The association represents values of transparency, specialist exchange, and a strong network. RDG participates regularly in specialist conferences nationwide.
• Sparkassenverband ThüringenminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Sparkassenverband Thüringen co-organized the 1st and 2nd Fachtalk Sanierung (Restructuring Expert Talk) with RDG, hosting expert discussions for Thuringian savings bank restructuring specialists.
• Nord-Ostdeutsche SparkassenakademieminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Nord-Ostdeutsche Sparkassenakademie is piloting hybrid seminar delivery (in-person + online simultaneously) with RDG, expanding access for commercial lending staff across the region.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• RölfsPartner: German restructuring, M&A, and management consulting firm serving mid-market companies. Directly comparable to RDG in distressed M&A, restructuring, and succession advisory practices.
• h&z Unternehmensberatung: Munich-based management consultancy focused on strategy, operations, and procurement for German industrial Mittelstand. Highly comparable in customer base (mid-market manufacturers) and restructuring/strategy offering.
• Falkensteg: Specialized German M&A advisory for mid-market companies, with strong distressed and special situations practice. Comparable to RDG's Sanierung & Distressed M&A offering.
• Ebner Stolz: German mid-market advisory firm offering consulting, audit, and tax services to Mittelstand. Comparable to RDG's Mittelstand focus and bundled professional services model, with similar financial-advisory and restructuring capabilities.
• Horváth AG: German-origin management consulting firm with strong performance management, controlling, and finance transformation practices. Comparable to RDG's Mittelstand advisory and finance/restructuring methodology.
• Staufen AG: German management consultancy specializing in operational excellence and Mittelstand transformation. Closely comparable to RDG in target customer (German industrial SMEs) and consulting practice (lean, restructuring, operational improvement).

Broad incumbents

• Porsche Consulting: Subsidiary of Porsche AG providing management consulting, with strong Mittelstand and operational excellence practice. Comparable target market and restructuring/operations expertise, with much larger scale and brand.
• Roland Berger: Large European-origin strategy consultancy with German Mittelstand exposure. Comparable in consulting methodology but operates at significantly larger scale and broader geographic scope.
• BDO Management Consultants: Global advisory network with a strong German Mittelstand practice. Comparable in offering breadth and target market, though BDO's scale and international reach dwarf RDG's domestic-only footprint.

Others

• ETL-Gruppe (parent network): Parent organization providing accounting, tax, legal, and consulting services across Germany. Functions as both affiliate and adjacent ecosystem peer — comparable professional services model and customer overlap, with RDG operating as a specialized consulting arm.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube-nocookie.com/embed/channel/UCwhxHw_Ao2DwCL8fHvYVhcg/featured
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rdg-management-beratungen-gmbh

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries4 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 RDG