From market sensing to new concept development in consultancies: The role of information processing and organizational capabilities

To keep in tune with market demand, consultancies are constantly involved in ‘new concept development’. Therefore, these knowledge entrepreneurs seek to ‘sense incipient preferences’ among their clients. However, little is known about how the results of such ‘sensing processes’ are translated into new concepts. Drawing on market orientation literature and longitudinal case study data, this paper seeks to open up this black box. We argue that new concept development is not just an internal process, but requires a continuous contact with the market. Translating client information into new concepts is related to the ability to ‘orchestrate’ the constant interaction of elements both external and internal to the consultancy.