Succeeding In 2025: Why Professional Services Companies Must Embrace A Skills-Based Approach?
Julie Sergent
Content manager
October 13, 2025
5 min
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To remain competitive in a rapidly changing market, the skills-based approach has become a strategic imperative.
Under increasing pressure, consulting firms, audit companies and IT service providers (ESNs) are shifting towards this model: skills mapping, continuous training, and talent retention are now essential levers for agility and operational excellence.
As demand contracts and margins erode, competitiveness is no longer just about price or volume, but about the ability to mobilise the right skills at the right time. According to Napta's 2025 study, “aligning talent with strategic projects is now a top priority”.
The main challenges are clear:
In addition, two structuring levers are becoming essential: industrialising staffing processes globally and strengthening the employer brand to remain attractive.
The increasing specialisation of assignments makes it crucial to forecast future skills requirements. Predictive analytics tools help identify strengths, address gaps and plan recruitment needs.
Three areas are under particular pressure today:
To move from reactive to proactive workforce management, some firms rely on solutions such as Napta’s Skills Decoder™, which maps and predicts future skills needs.
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Training is no longer a cost but a driver of long-term performance. “We face a major training challenge, as new building blocks will profoundly transform our profession,” says Sébastien Huet, Partner at EY.
Training is not only about acquiring new technical expertise; it also strengthens employability, engagement and retention.
The benefits are clear: faster responsiveness to growth markets, higher quality deliverables, and enhanced employer attractiveness.
« It is essential to prepare consultants for greater adaptability in the face of rapidly evolving technologies. »
— Isabelle Chevallier, COO Group de Palo IT
Beyond technical expertise, organisational agility is emerging as the most valuable skill. It refers to the ability to adapt, learn and collaborate across multiple projects.
In an uncertain economic context, companies are placing emphasis on versatility and internal mobility.
The cornerstones of agility include:
« In an economic slowdown, agility is crucial, with a focus on versatility and the ability to work across different types of assignments. »
— Sébastien Huet, Partner associé chez EY
According to Napta’s 2025 industry report, 59% of companies consider retention beyond three years as their top HR priority. In a sector reliant on a small number of critical experts, keeping the best talent is vital.
Key levers include:
For Mathilde Le Coz, CHRO at Forvis Mazars in France: “Managerial skills are decisive: companies with the best managers are also the most resilient.”
The traditional pyramid model, based on a large pool of juniors, is reaching its limits. Service companies are moving towards a diamond-shaped model, where value is driven by mid-level and expert profiles.
This shift requires:
It also drives a rethinking of working methods, pricing, and client relationships. The challenge is to reconcile productivity, attractiveness and long-term engagement.
By 2025, the most successful service companies will be those that have placed skills at the core of their strategy. Combining predictive anticipation, ambitious training policies, organisational agility and talent retention will make them both more competitive and more attractive.
In an unstable environment, success relies on a simple equation: anticipate, train and retain the right people at the right time.
The skills-based approach is no longer an emerging trend: it is the new industry standard.
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