News & Media

This is the news coverage of NPmarket so far:

"Hamburger Abendblatt" from June 5th 2009:
Crisis Consultation increases, demand is not specified clearly
According to a recent consultancies poll executed by NPS Network Profiling Services (NPS) medium-sized businesses could save a lot of time and money by formulating their consulting demand more clearly.
The demand for crisis consultation for medium-sized businesses is increasing, a more precise formulating of the actual needs could save time and money for the concerned companies.
Hamburg According to a recent consultancies poll executed by NPS Network Profiling Services (NPS) medium-sized businesses could save a lot of time and money by mapping their consulting demand more clearly. About 80 percent of the participants share this view. Besides half of the participants confirm that the demand for crisis consultation for medium sized businesses is increasing. "Particularly in these times the search for consultants must not be a gamble" states Michael Weiß, Managing Director of NPS, commenting on the results of the poll.
The decision makers and directors of the 500 consultancies registered with NPS representing about 15,000 consultants participated in an online survey concerning the topic of formulating the consulting demand of medium-sized businesses. 92 percent of the participants stated the occurrence of discrepancies between the actual consulting necessities and the customers' requests. 51 percent stated this to happen "often", and 7 percent said that there were always significant differences between demand and request. "This is like hiring a waiter while really needing a cook" comments Weiß on the results, "who selects accurately fitting can avoid dissatisfaction, excessive costs and, in the worst case, existential damages resulting from false consultation" states the independent selection specialist. 80 percent of the interviewees, the overwhelming majority of the consultants, are also of the opinion that the precise formulation of consulting requests would save time and money for the clients.
About 50 of the consultants observed an increasing demand in crisis consultation during the last 6 months. NPS recommends, especially against the background of an increasing number of requests for crisis consultation, to carefully elaborate the tasks and expectations concerning a consultation. The basic conditions, persons already involved, the time line planning and other known parameters should be put to paper diligently and evaluated again as a second step. This process has its value for the clients, because it often reveals a consulting demand being completely different than the one from the first approach. For the complete stage of the assessment of demand NPS recommends to exclude personal networks of the people involved in order to gain a neutral description of the tasks. Weiß is convinced that "there is a properly fitting head for every assignment".
NPS supports medium-sized businesses in the search for management and strategy consultants, identifies the demand, rephrases it understandable for both sides and satisfies this demand by recommending the exactly fitting consultants. NPS is accomplishing this with a special methodic combination of individual and personal demand analysis as well as an automated matching of skills and experience.
The company founded in 2007 disposes of more than 500 consulting companies representing some 15.000 consultants. NPS provides further service features for these companies, such as profile compilation, authentication of references and the placement of free capacities within the network of service providers. abendblatt.de/ots


"OpenPR" from February 12th 2008: New online portal promises transparency for the consulting market.

Excerpt: "...NPmarket.com is the new market place for consulting services. Service providers can store their detailed competence profiles and clients are being supported with an online wizard in compiling requests. The system matches both automatically and informs only adequate and fitting providers. The use of the portal is speedy, transparent and provision-free for all participants.

The reason for the build-up of the portal was the high degree of discontentment of clients from small and middle companies in using external consulting services. The founders of the portal, consultants Michael Weiß and Dr. Michael Kienle, have been researching for the causes: "The failure of projects can in many cases be seen as early as in the initiate phase", says Weiß. "Obscure assignment of tasks, requirements not communicated properly or simply the wrong technical or economical qualification of the consultants are the roots for all conceptual or technical mistakes occurring later on"....."

"Creditreform-Magazin", 11/07 (unauthorized translation from the German language):

Online platform: Fast transparent view of the consulting market.

Companies looking for consulting services can from now on spare themselves the odyssey through chambers of commerce and trade associations. The online search process on the service platform "NPmarket" matches consultants and their clients speedy and exactly fitting. The novel market place not only offers an independent and transparent process for the pre-selection but as well supports with an online assistant the professional modeling of the request.

During the - for both sides confidential - process the adequate service providers apply with a binding offer including the matching of selection criteria and the secured availability of needed resources. By decision of the client contact is made to the applying consultant. For each placement the client has to pay a moderate fee of € 25, this is surely more favorable than tedious telephone or internet research actions.
More information via www.np-market.com.