I doubt their executives use their inside team exclusively, unfortunately. I know for a fact that they use at least one—McKinsey. I suspect they use others too. I wish they were self-reliant. But you have to remember you are dealing with deeply insecure, incompetent people who did not get where they are because they were the best for the job. Those types of people do not just look to consultants for information, they also go for ego stroking. Above all management consultants are salespeople and they are very good at making management feel important.