In developed markets, consulting projects often last for years and aim at strategic transformation of business models. In contrast, across the region there is frequently impatience and a need to demonstrate ROI immediately, which changes the approach to change itself and the nature of advisory services that clients demand. The difference in expectations toward consultants in developed and transitional economies can be illustrated by a simple metaphor: it is the difference between hiring an architect to redesign a smart, energy-neutral, fully digitalized house and hiring an engineer to dig stable foundations, connect electricity, secure utilities, and ensure the house is ready to move into before next winter.

In practice, this difference is not only metaphorical. In Western Europe and the United States, large transformation projects - digitalization of operations, corporate reorganization, or changes in business models - are planned through two-, three-, or even five-year cycles, with budgets measured in millions of euros. In the region, the same initiatives are often approved on a quarterly basis, with a clear obligation to demonstrate measurable effects within a few months. The difference in planning horizons directly affects the type of services clients seek from consultants.

The traditional definition of transitional economies describes them as economies “on the path” from a centrally planned socialist model toward a system based on free markets and capitalism. Developed market economies, by contrast, operate in an environment where the rules are widely known and relatively predictable. In transitional systems, old rules no longer apply, while new ones have not yet become universally accepted.

In other words, certainty is a characteristic of mature systems, while in transitional economies it remains an objective - sometimes a distant one that seems constantly out of reach. In stable environments, changes are usually systemic or involve fine-tuning existing structures. In any case, the goals expected from improvements are either far ahead in the future or represent calibration of already positive outcomes. Within such a context, the need for advisory services evolves accordingly.

Put simply, companies in mature systems have the luxury of time. They can invest today to see results in three or five years, because they believe that the fundamental conditions of business will not change dramatically. In transitional economies, that luxury often does not exist. Regulatory, tax, or political changes can overnight alter the profitability of a project. As a result, management naturally favors shorter, safer, and faster returns.

At the early stages of the development of consulting services in transitional economies, the primary demand was often the introduction of basic processes - from establishing mechanisms for human resource management, to readable financial reporting systems, to quality control standards such as ISO certification. Before that, the initial transformation of state-owned or socially owned enterprises into market actors had to take place, often as preparation for privatization.

Consulting engagements were also frequently linked to projects funded by international organizations. In all of these cases, the timeframe for defining and monitoring KPIs was extremely restrictive. Results were expected quickly, because changes were happening everywhere at once and at a rapid pace.

In developed markets, consulting projects often last for years. Strategic transformations are planned strategically - over the long term - and the return on investment is measured over years or even decades. In transitional economies, particularly in the Balkans, clients often expect consultants to deliver fast, almost immediate results. This difference shapes the nature of consulting work itself. Consulting is no longer primarily a tool for guiding strategic transformation, but often becomes a mechanism for solving operational problems, with ROI expected as early as the next quarter. Consulting projects adapt to this rhythm.

The consequence of such an approach is that projects requiring longer timeframes - such as changes in organizational culture, leadership development, brand building, or innovation capacity - are less frequently initiated, because they are harder to measure in the short term. What is easily measurable receives priority, while what creates the greatest long-term value is often sidelined.

At the same time, the still-developing habit of using consulting services often leads to situations in which advice is sought too late. In those moments, there is an expectation that the consultant will deliver a “magic wand”- an instant solution to a pressing problem - without the willingness to engage in a longer transformation process.

Once one bottleneck is resolved, another emerges somewhere else, and the organization remains stuck in a cycle of solving symptoms instead of building frameworks that produce the desired outcomes. A missed opportunity for improvement turns into a sequence of reactive activities - ad-hoc interventions and firefighting - instead of strategic transformation, ultimately preventing deeper and long-term improvement of processes.

Another characteristic of transitional environments is a deeply rooted skepticism toward multi-year projects, due to the habit of operating in rapidly changing circumstances. From regulation to the political environment, stability and predictability are more often exceptions than rules.

The direct consequence of this environment is a focus on operational rather than strategic change. Consultants are more often hired to optimize costs or increase sales than to lay the foundations for long-term development. Such demand naturally shapes the supply of advisory services. Instead of large-scale changes in business models and processes, consultants offer small, quick improvements capable of producing results within a few months.

And those results must be measurable. Every recommendation must be supported by clear KPIs and tangible evidence - reduced costs or increased revenues - that demonstrate immediate value.

A few examples from practice illustrate this search for instant, measurable improvements. In the retail sector, consultants are more likely to be hired to optimize product placement in stores, because the impact can be seen within a week through increased sales, rather than to design a long-term strategy for building customer loyalty.

Similarly, if a client is faced with two proposals - one for optimizing the entire supply chain through warehouse automation, predictive inventory planning, and improved logistics, and another for organizing short, focused sales training aimed at increasing sales of a specific product category - it is far more likely that the consultants will be delivering training next week rather than working on supply chain transformation.

In manufacturing, companies searching for consultants will often focus on those who can offer waste reduction, supplier changes for consumable materials, or productivity improvements within the next three months, rather than on long-term innovation initiatives, workforce development, or organizational culture transformation. It is easier to search for new packaging than to develop strategies for long-term partnerships within supply chains.

Even the IT sector - perhaps the most globally oriented - follows a similar pattern in the region. Companies are more likely to seek rapid development and implementation of a tool that solves a specific problem than to invest in redesigning an entire user platform or undertaking multi-year improvements of customer experience.

Over time, however, the cost of this approach becomes visible. Companies that constantly pursue short-term savings often innovate more slowly, struggle to build customer loyalty, and remain trapped in price-based competition. Those that manage to allocate part of their resources to strategic projects - even in unstable environments - tend to break out of that cycle faster and create sustainable advantages.

Across sectors, consulting work in transitional economies often turns into a form of “emergency intervention.” Clients seek advice that must deliver results immediately. This changes the nature of consulting itself: the consultant becomes more of an operational tactician than a strategic architect.

Yet the challenge - and the opportunity - lies in turning small, quick wins into stepping stones for larger transformation. Through incremental successes, consultants can gradually build trust and establish habits that open the door to long-term projects.

Perhaps, therefore, the real question is not whether fast results are inherently bad, but how they can be used as the first step toward systemic change. If every “small victory” becomes the entry point to broader transformation, operational improvements can evolve into strategy. If not, they remain just another short-term intervention.

And at some point, this very ability to operate under uncertainty may even become an advantage for transitional economies. In a world increasingly shaped by technological, ecological, and geopolitical disruptions, one question inevitably arises: are all economies becoming transitional?

But that is a topic for another time.