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The Bench Economy

Inside the bench economy: how IT consultancies run, why so many consultants sit between projects, what it costs the industry, and how consultancies and agencies put that talent back to work.

Product updates

BenchBee opens to IT recruitment agencies

Since June 2026, IT recruitment agencies can join BenchBee through a separate Agency portal.

For consultancies

The best talent marketplaces for IT consultancies

The best talent marketplace for an IT consultancy depends on the consultant you need: an independent freelancer, a senior strategy expert, or a consultant employed by another firm.

For consultancies

What bench time really costs an IT consultancy

A benched consultant costs their full loaded employment cost for every working day they are not billed, and the firm loses the invoice it would have sent.

For agencies

How to fill an IT contract role faster

To fill an IT contract role faster, cut the waiting, not the checking: start from available, vouched-for consultants, fix the brief and interview slots on day one, and run compliance in parallel.

For agencies

Where to find IT consultants who are available now

Many of the IT consultants who are available this week are on the benches of IT consultancies: permanent employees between two client projects. Their employer knows they are free, but that rarely gets beyond the firm.

Using BenchBee

How to list your benched consultants on BenchBee

To list a benched consultant on BenchBee, sign up with your verified IT consultancy, then post the consultant: drop their CV and let the form fill itself, or type the profile in, check it, and put it live.

For consultancies

How to reduce consultant bench time costs

You reduce bench time costs in only two ways: fewer days go unbilled, or the unbilled days earn something.

Using BenchBee

How to share a role without naming your client

On BenchBee, you post the role with its skills, rate range, location and dates, and your end client is never named, not even after a match is accepted. Your agency's name stays hidden too.

The bench economy

Why IT consultancies share talent with each other

IT consultancies share talent because one firm's bench is often another firm's missing profile, in the same month. Lending a benched consultant turns days the firm pays for anyway into billed days.

The bench economy

Why IT consultants sit idle between projects

IT consultants sit idle between projects because client work arrives in waves while permanent headcount grows in a straight line.

Using BenchBee

BenchBee vs Clutch: Which Platform Solves Your Problem?

If you run an IT consultancy in the UK, there’s a good chance you’re already using Clutch.

News

BenchBee Named in TechRound100 2025

Three months in, and BenchBee has been ranked number 74 in the TechRound100, a list that recognises some of the most innovative and impactful tech start-ups across Europe.

News

Europe’s Hidden Bench Cost: BenchBee to Open its Network Across the Continent in November 2025

In the UK, the average IT consultancy carries around 17% of its workforce on the bench, consultants not currently billed to clients.

Using BenchBee

£350/month. No Commission. No Hidden Fees. Here’s Why.

BenchBee operates on a simple principle: £350 per month gets you unlimited access to the entire network.

The bench economy

From contraction to expansion: new models for consulting growth

The UK consulting market shrank by 3.4% in 2024, to about £15bn, according to Source Global Research, while clients kept spending on technology and kept struggling to hire for it.

The bench economy

Why 81% of UK Businesses Can’t Find the IT Talent They Need

The skills are out there. The problem is where we’re looking.

For consultancies

Growing an IT consultancy beyond London and the usual talent pools

An IT consultancy can grow outside London by putting people where its clients and its next hires already are: a regional office, a small hub in one city, or consultants who deliver remotely and travel when the client needs them in the room.

For consultancies

IT consultant utilisation: what a good rate is and how to raise it

IT consultant utilisation is the share of a consultant's available working time that is billed to clients.

Using BenchBee

Why BenchBee? Resource management for IT consultancies

BenchBee is a private network where verified IT consultancies in the UK, Europe and the GCC share consultants between projects.

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