The three common pricing models
- Day rate / time and materials — you pay for consultant days as they are used. Flexible and transparent, best where the scope is still emerging.
- Fixed-scope programme fee — a single price for a clearly defined piece of work with agreed deliverables and timelines. Best where the scope is well understood upfront.
- Retainer — a monthly fee for a continuing relationship (advisory, coaching, capability building). Best for longer transformations and sustained sponsorship support.
What actually drives the cost
- Scale and reach — how many people, sites, functions and geographies the change touches.
- Duration — a focused diagnostic is a fraction of the cost of a multi-year enterprise transformation.
- Complexity and risk — stakeholder difficulty, regulatory or labour sensitivity, and the number of interdependent moving parts.
- Seniority of the team — Board and C-suite advisory carries a different rate to delivery support on the line.
- How much you do in-house — building your own capability lowers ongoing cost; a fully outsourced programme costs more.
Judging value, not just price
The more useful question than "what does it cost?" is "what does it cost us if the change fails?" Only about a third of change programmes fully meet their goals, and the difference is largely in the people side. It is the fiduciary responsibility of the executive who signs the contract to negotiate one that makes sense for both parties — inadequate contracting is itself one of the most common reasons engagements come unstuck. A fair, well-scoped fee that buys genuine adoption is cheaper than a low fee that delivers a system nobody uses.
Next step: want a figure for your specific situation? Talk to CCG and we will scope the work and quote it properly.
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