Top Consulting Firms in GCC: LinkedIn Engagement Rankings Revealed

In the competitive landscape of consulting, reputation and thought leadership are paramount. As the premier B2B platform, LinkedIn offers unparalleled opportunities for consulting firms to showcase their expertise, attract talent, and engage with potential clients. However, our recent analysis of the top 50 consulting firms in the UAE reveals a surprising disconnect between the potential of LinkedIn and its actual utilization.

Employee Engagement on LinkedIn for GCC-based Consultants

Employee advocacy is a powerful tool for amplifying a firm’s message and expertise. This table showcases the percentage of GCC-based employees from each consulting firm who have posted on LinkedIn in the past 30 days. It includes only firms with a substantial workforce in the GCC region, providing insight into which consultancies are successfully encouraging their local teams to engage on the platform, thereby increasing their regional influence and visibility.

Partner Activity on LinkedIn for Consulting firms in the Middle East

This table ranks consulting firms based on the percentage of their GCC-based partners who have posted on LinkedIn in the last 30 days. It includes only firms with more than five partners in the GCC region, ensuring a focus on consultancies with a significant local leadership presence. The ranking highlights which firms are most effectively leveraging their senior talent to build brand visibility and showcase regional expertise, crucial for establishing thought leadership in the GCC market.

Growth Rates of Consulting Firms in the GCC

This table ranks the top consulting firms operating in the Middle East (GCC countries) based on their growth over the past 12 months. It focuses on firms with a significant presence in the area, offering insights into which consultancies are expanding their footprint most rapidly across GCC countries. This data provides a valuable perspective on market dynamics and successful expansion strategies in the region.

Key Findings

1. Growth Dynamics: Our data shows varying growth rates among consulting firms over 3, 6, and 12-month periods, indicating shifting market dynamics in the UAE consulting sector.
2. Employee Engagement: There's a significant disparity in the percentage of employees posting on LinkedIn across different firms, with some leading the pack and others lagging behind.
3. Partner Activity: The level of LinkedIn activity among partners varies widely, with some firms seeing high engagement and others struggling to get their senior leaders to post regularly.

The LinkedIn Paradox in Consulting

Interestingly, many of these prestigious firms advise clients on digital strategies, including LinkedIn. Yet, our data suggests that most are not fully leveraging the platform's potential for their own benefit. This creates a paradox where those giving advice aren't necessarily following it themselves.

Best Practices for Consulting Firms on LinkedIn

For Partners and Employees:

1. Personal Branding: Build a strong profile that aligns with your firm's values and expertise and offers content relevant visitors can engage with
2. Consistent Posting: Aim to share insights, industry news, or company updates at least once a week.
3. Engage Authentically: Respond to comments and participate in relevant discussions to build relationships and stay top of mind
4. Showcase Expertise: Share case studies, whitepapers, or blog posts that demonstrate your firm's capabilities.

Check your KPI such as your SSI and Profile views.

For Marketing and Communication Teams:

1. Employee Advocacy Programs: Implement structured programs to encourage and guide employee LinkedIn activity.
2. Content Strategy: Develop a diverse content calendar that includes thought leadership pieces, industry insights, and company news.
3. Training and Support: Provide regular training sessions on LinkedIn best practices and offer support for content creation.
4. Leverage Employee Profiles & Networks: Optimize employees and partners profiles to make sure brand and messaging is consistent. Focus on amplifying content through employee shares rather than relying solely on company page posts.
5. Data-Driven Approach: Regularly analyze LinkedIn metrics to refine your strategy and identify high-performing content types.

With the constant changes in the Linkedin algorithm, your focus should be less on followers growth and more on activating employees and partners to increase the reach and optimize the distribution of your content. Tracking traffic back to your website from Linkedin profiles or specific thought leadership content should be your priority.

Make sure your website has Linkedin insights tag installed so you measure, learn and improve.

Next Steps for Consulting Firms

1. Conduct an internal audit of your firm's LinkedIn presence, including employee and partner activity. Here is a short Linkedin Maturity Quiz survey we use to help corporate clients assess their employees and categorize them by maturity or potential levels. Try it for yourself for free.
2. Benchmark your performance against the top-performing firms in our analysis.
3. Develop a comprehensive LinkedIn strategy that includes both company-level and individual employee initiatives.
4. Invest in tracking tools and training to educate and activate employee advocacy, and support content distribution.
5. Regularly review and adjust your strategy based on performance metrics and industry trends.

By embracing these practices, consulting firms can enhance their digital presence, strengthen their brand, and ultimately drive influence, consideration and business growth through more effective use of LinkedIn.

Remember, in today's digital age, your firm's LinkedIn presence is often the first impression potential clients will have. Make it count by fully leveraging the platform's potential for thought leadership and engagement.

For more information, visit:

• our Linkedin for executives, marketing or sales pages on our website
• our free guides section