Like whales or giant trees, companies support all manner of life. Some professional services firms are so small that their host barely notices their existence. Others, such as lawyers, management consultants, public relations companies, headhunters and accountants, collectively eat up budgets. For almost two decades, all have been riding the boom in company profits, the outsourcing trend and increasing regulation. Professional services companies have also followed their clients overseas and benefited from a rise in corporate complexity (they would say sophistication).

But when the host becomes sick, services that were once considered essential can quickly become discretionary. The end of the technology bubble caused problems for professional services companies in that sector but, in general, there has been no serious downturn since the recession of the early 1990s. This unbroken run has meant that many companies, like their clients, now suffer from two afflictions common at the end of a long bull market. The first is the belief that the good times are going to continue forever; the second, that they are falling for their own story: that what they provide is absolutely crucial to their clients’ success and that their business models are invulnerable.