Breadth over niche: why a network has to cover every level
Monheim am Rhein, Germany, 8 January 2026 — consultingheads GmbH has passed the mark of 20,000 freelance consultants in its network. Companies across the German-speaking market now have access to one of the broader pools of project-based expertise available in the region — spanning strategy consulting, IT and SAP capability, and roles that reach all the way down to the shop floor.
That breadth is deliberate rather than incidental. Requests from mid-sized companies rarely stop at a single discipline: a transformation project needs the strategy consultant, but also the SAP specialist, the change manager, and often an interim plant manager who carries the change through production. A network covering only one of those layers does not solve the problem.
The network has not grown through open registration alone. Admission requires a multi-stage process assessing both technical qualification and how someone works within a project; on average, consultants bring more than eleven years of project experience. Since the company was founded in 2016, more than 3,000 mandates have been completed through the network.
"Twenty thousand profiles are not an end in themselves," says Olaf Melsbach, Managing Director of consultingheads. "The number is only worth something if we can pull out the three people who fit a specific mandate within 24 to 36 hours — and if those three then get the project done. That is what we measure ourselves against."
Technology plays a supporting role in that selection. consultingheads uses AI where it accelerates pre-selection and matching — the decision on who is put in front of a client is still made by a person who knows the market. "AI enabled, not AI driven," is how Melsbach describes the approach. "Automate the selection entirely and you get fast results and mediocre placements."
consultingheads expects further growth over the course of the year but does not treat that as a goal in itself. The measure remains the placement rate: 95 percent of the proposals put in front of a client lead to a placement.
About consultingheads
consultingheads. When results matter. The company connects organisations with high-impact freelance management consultants, IT and subject-matter experts, and interim managers — personally selected, typically available within 24 to 36 hours, and dependable throughout the project. With more than 20,000 carefully vetted experts in the German-speaking market: more than eleven years of average project experience, verified in a multi-stage selection process covering technical skills and personal fit alike. Where algorithms reach their limits, a person decides — closing the gap between traditional consulting and pure staffing. Since 2016, leading companies, consultancies and private equity firms have relied on this approach, and more than 3,000 completed projects demonstrate its effectiveness. consultingheads GmbH is headquartered in Leverkusen, Germany. Olaf Melsbach is Managing Director.
Press contact: Olaf Melsbach, Managing Director · consultingheads GmbH, Borsigstr. 1, 51381 Leverkusen, Germany · Tel. +49 2171 795478-0 · presse@consultingheads.com · consultingheads.com