From Advisory Recommendations to Verified Benefits A Governance Model for Finance and Management Consulting Engagements

Abstract

Management consulting recommendations require a traceable connection between analysis, approval, implementation capacity, and recognised benefit. This paper develops a governance model organised around evidence, authority, feasibility, and benefit gates, followed by a practical client handover test. A purposive literature synthesis informs conceptual integration, while deterministic examples compare hypothetical projects under budget, training, and staffing constraints. With a $250,000 initial budget, 60 training hours, and 1.0 full-time equivalent of implementation capacity, projects A and C form the highest-value feasible package, with a three-year net present value of approximately $172,765 at a ten percent discount rate. The package exceeds the value of project B alone although B has the largest individual project value. A 20 percent reduction in gross benefits reduces the package value to approximately $63,343. A separate attribution example demonstrates how observed improvement can yield a negative first-year contribution after adjustment and full costs. The proposed method distinguishes delivery, adoption, capacity released, cash effects, and sustained capability. Its contribution is an inspectable engagement decision procedure with reproducible conditional results. Longitudinal comparison evidence is needed to establish whether the governance process improves consulting effectiveness.