&forward Consulting Group

What &forward Consulting Group does

&Forward Consulting Group is a privately held Italian strategy and management consulting firm founded in Milan in 1996, operating as a registered commercial brand of Business Partners S.r.l., an Italian limited liability company. The firm organizes its offering into three integrated practices: &Business (business strategy, growth and profitability, positioning and omnichannel, operational effectiveness), &People (people strategy, organization design, competence development, and executive search), and &Innovation (digital transformation and AI, digital marketing and CRM, e-commerce and user experience, project management, and innovation and R&D). Its proprietary SEDEX (Strategy, Education, Execution) methodology is positioned as the unifying approach across practices, pairing consulting delivery with executive education co-delivered through partnerships with Stockholm School of Economics, Hult Ashridge, and Absom.

The firm serves enterprise clients exclusively across five stated verticals — Industrial (technology, energy, construction, manufacturing), Consumer Goods (food, beverages, automotive, publishing, telecommunications), Retail (food, non-food, automotive), Banking (commercial and investment), and Services (transportation, education) — with a publicly disclosed client roster that includes Ferrari, Pirelli, Brembo, Scania, ABB, Atlas Copco, Assa Abloy, Epiroc, Sandvik Coromant, Prysmian, General Electric, Ericsson, Baker Hughes, Schneider Electric, Enel, Erg, Acegas, CDP, UniCredit, Coop, and Ariston. It operates from headquarters in Milan and a secondary office at Area Science Park in Trieste, with 50% of revenue generated outside Italy. The firm also leverages an implementation partner network (Arethusa, Pragma Selezione, T&B Facing Innovation, Naked Studio) to flex delivery capacity.

Revenue is generated through project-based professional services engagements priced on a custom basis, with no publicly disclosed rates, headcount, or financial figures. Go-to-market is direct, senior-led enterprise engagement supported by content marketing (case studies, downloadable presentations) and LinkedIn presence. There is no disclosed external investment, no public listing, and no subsidiaries; ownership appears to remain with the founding partners, with the firm described as management-led and privately held since inception.

Name

&forward Consulting Group

Legal name

Business Partners S.r.l.

Website

https://andforward.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

&Forward Consulting Group is a privately held Italian strategy and management consulting firm founded in 1996, operating from Milan through three practices — &Business, &People, and &Innovation — that deliver senior-led consulting and executive education to large enterprise clients globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting Services

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services (541611), Human Resources Consulting Services (541612)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Strategy & Corporate Development Consulting (BPAHACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Organization Design & Operating Model Consulting (BPAHAGAB), Learning, Training & Corporate Education Consulting (BPAHAGAE), Customer, Marketing & Sales Consulting (BPAHACAG), Digital & Technology Transformation Consulting (BPAHACAH)

Keywords

• Strategic management consulting
• Executive education services
• Digital transformation consulting
• Executive search recruitment
• Organizational development consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Milan

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Strategic Consulting Services: Core consulting revenue through three integrated practices: &Business (business strategy, growth, positioning, operational effectiveness), &People (people strategy, organization design, competence development, executive search), and &Innovation (digital transformation, innovation strategy, process excellence). Delivered through senior consultants working directly with clients on customized solutions.
2. Business Education & Training: Executive training and business education programs, including leadership development, sales training, financial acumen, and digital transformation training. Delivered through partnerships with leading business schools (Stockholm School of Economics, Hult Ashridge) and using business simulations, case studies, and real-world applications.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

&Forward Consulting Group is a strategic management consulting firm that delivers senior-led, customized consulting engagements and executive education across three integrated practices: &Business (business strategy, growth, omnichannel positioning, operational effectiveness), &People (people strategy, organization design, competence development, executive search) and &Innovation (digital transformation and AI, digital marketing and CRM, e-commerce and UX, project management). Engagement is anchored in the proprietary SEDEX methodology that combines Strategy, Education and Execution, with executive education co-delivered through partner business schools including Stockholm School of Economics, Hult Ashridge and Absom.

Product overview

&Forward Consulting Group operates as a strategic consulting firm with three integrated practice areas: &Business, &People, and &Innovation. The &Business Practice offers consulting and training in Sales & Profitable Growth, Financial and Business Acumen, and Processes Excellence & Execution. The &People Practice provides services in People Strategy & Performance, Executive Search & Recruitment, and People Development & Change. The &Innovation Practice delivers Digital Transformation & AI, Digital Marketing & CRM, E-commerce & User Experience, and Project Management services. The company was founded in Milan in 1996 and operates globally with 50% of business coming from abroad.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• &Business Practice Strategic consulting and training practice focused on enabling sustainable profitable growth through Business Strategy, Growth & Profitability, Positioning & Omni-channel, and Operational Effectiveness for enterprise clients in B2B and B2C sectors.
• &People Practice Consulting practice covering People Strategy & Leadership, Organization & Processes, Competence Development & Change, and Executive Search & Recruitment services, designed to secure competitiveness, growth and profitability through effective operating models.
• &Innovation Practice Innovation and digital transformation practice providing Digital Transformation & AI, Digital Marketing & CRM, E-commerce & User Experience, Project Management and Innovation/R&D consulting plus financing and grants support, designed to enable future-ready businesses.
• Sales & Profitable Growth Consulting and training solution within &Business designed to develop the skills, processes and energy needed to achieve Sustainable Profitable Growth Acceleration (PGA) for clients.
• Financial and Business Acumen Consulting and training solution within &Business that helps clients maximize and manage value creation drivers across their business.
• Processes Excellence & Execution Service within &Business focused on operational excellence, customer experience and execution through process design and optimization.
• People Strategy & Performance Service within &People focused on organizational design, performance management and human capital strategy development.
• Executive Search & Recruitment Standalone executive search and headhunting service covering B2C and B2B sectors across organizational functions and managerial levels, delivered under the &People practice.
• People Development & Change Service within &People combining business education, coaching and change management programs designed to maximize workforce potential.
• Digital Transformation & AI Digital transformation and AI consulting service within &Innovation to secure competitiveness and sustainable profitable growth for clients.
• Processes & Experiences Service within &Innovation covering process assessment, design and execution to maximize operational efficiency and drive business growth.
• Executive Education & Business Training Programs Executive training and business education programs covering leadership development, sales training, financial acumen and digital transformation training, delivered through partnerships with leading business schools (Stockholm School of Economics, Hult Ashridge, Absom) and using business simulations, case studies and real-world applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• Sustainable profitable growth for clients through hands-on consulting and business education methodology

Named customers21 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Stockholm School of EconomicscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Executive Education programs. Collaborates on business education and leadership development programs delivered to &Forward clients, enhancing credibility and content quality of training offerings.
• Hult AshridgecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Executive Education programs in the UK. Provides executive education and leadership training content as part of the business education practice.
• AbsomcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Executive Education programs in Boston, USA. Collaborates on business school executive education offerings for clients.
• ArethusaminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerStrategic consulting partner providing additional consulting capabilities to support client engagements.
• Pragma SelezioneminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerExecutive search and recruitment partner supporting the &People practice for executive search and talent acquisition services.
• T&B Facing InnovationminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerInnovation consulting partner supporting digital transformation and innovation projects for clients.
• Naked StudiominorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCreative and branding partner supporting brand strategy and digital marketing projects for clients.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• McKinsey & Company: Largest global strategy consulting firm with extensive industrial, consumer, and banking coverage. Competes with &Forward for the same enterprise strategy mandates but at a much broader scale and with significantly larger partner networks.
• Accenture: Global professional services giant with massive strategy and digital transformation practice. Competes with &Forward's &Innovation practice for enterprise digital mandates but at vastly broader scale and with proprietary technology assets.
• The Boston Consulting Group: One of the global "Big Three" strategy consultancies with deep practices across industrial, consumer, banking, and digital transformation. Overlaps with &Forward's full practice suite though at vastly larger scale and geographic reach.

Direct peers

• Bip Consulting: Italian-origin consulting firm with strong presence in industrial, energy, and banking sectors across Europe. Highly comparable to &Forward as a domestic Italian peer with similar enterprise client base and integrated consulting/technology offerings.
• Sia Partners: European-headquartered management consulting firm with strong industrial, energy, and banking coverage. Comparable to &Forward in offering integrated consulting and digital transformation for enterprise clients across multiple European geographies.
• Oliver Wyman: Global management consulting firm with strong financial services, industrial, and consumer practices. Closely comparable to &Forward's vertical-specialized, strategy-and-execution model for enterprise clients.
• Kearney: Global management consulting firm with deep industrial and consumer goods heritage. Comparable to &Forward in offering integrated strategy, operations, and transformation services to enterprise clients across multiple verticals.
• Roland Berger: European-origin boutique strategy consulting firm with strong industrial and automotive sector presence. Comparable to &Forward in serving enterprise clients across strategy, operations, and digital transformation, with similar boutique positioning against the global majors.
• Bain & Company: Elite global strategy consulting firm serving consumer goods, retail, banking, and industrial clients. Comparable to &Forward's strategy-led, results-driven approach and its vertical focus across B2B and B2C enterprise customers.

Emerging players

• Heidrick & Struggles: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm with an emerging consulting practice. Comparable to &Forward's &People practice (executive search plus leadership/organization consulting) and to the integrated advisory-plus-search model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/and-forward-your-business-partner

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 &forward Consulting Group