Strategy consulting and strategic planning in Qatar
Strategy consulting in Qatar, as we do it, produces a written plan your managers can act on. It says where the company stands, which customers and services to grow, what to stop and which few numbers will show progress, and it is checked against Qatar’s rules and the national strategy to 2030 before the owners sign it off.
Qatar’s national targets for 2030
- Yearly growth targeted for the economy outside oil and gas
- 4%
- Yearly growth targeted for labour productivity
- 2%
- Target share of Qataris in the private sector
- 20%
- Sectors the state plans to grow, from logistics to health
- 8 clusters
From the Third National Development Strategy (NDS3), 2024 to 2030, published by the National Planning Council. These are national targets. We found no rule that applies them to a private company.
What a strategic plan covers
Where you stand
Sales, margins and headcount as they are now, taken from your books rather than from memory.
Customers and markets
A large customer on long credit terms can earn less than a small one who pays on time. The plan names the ones worth growing.
Services
Whether to open a new line, and whether an old one has stopped paying its way.
Targets
A handful of numbers, each with one person answerable for it.
The year ahead
Month by month for the first twelve months: who does what.
Review
Every quarter the results go up against the targets, and the plan changes if the market has.
Reading the national strategy for your sector
NDS3 runs from 2024 to 2030. It names eight clusters where the state wants growth outside oil and gas.
We found nothing in it that binds a private company. It is still worth an hour of your time, because it shows where the state is putting its attention and where new competitors may appear.
NDS3 in brief
- Published by
- National Planning Council
- Period
- 2024 to 2030
- Outcomes
- Seven, from economic growth to government excellence
- Clusters
- Eight now, with more to follow
- For companies
- Context for the plan; we found no legal duty
| The eight clusters | Listed for later |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing, logistics, tourism, IT and digital services | Green technology |
| Financial services, education, food and agriculture, and health | Media and creative work |
Qatar rules that can change a strategy
A plan that looks right on paper can still fail on one of these. We check them before the plan is final.
| If the plan involves | What to build in |
|---|---|
| Energy-sector tenders where ICV applies | A valid In-Country Value (ICV) certificate on the day the commercial bid goes in, unless your CR is less than two years old. ICV counts only in the commercial evaluation and has no minimum score. |
| Raising your ICV score | A bonus of up to 15% for listed behaviours, among them automation, Qatarization, exports and research and development. |
| Foreign partners or investors | The Ministry of Commerce and Industry publishes a list of activities open to non-Qatari capital. Check the activity against it first. |
| A new company or activity | MOCI asks for activity names to be verified before the CR is set up, and some activities need another authority’s approval as well. |
Fitting the plan to the company year
The year end is a good time to review the strategy. The figures are new, the partners meet anyway, and next year’s budget is being set. In an LLC, the managers prepare the balance sheet and profit and loss account within two months of the year end, and the general assembly appoints an auditor every year.
Qatar Development Bank announced a Scaling Up advisory bundle in September 2024. Ask QDB whether it is still offered and who qualifies. The bundle opens with a look at the gaps in a company’s administrative, technical and financial processes, then builds a strategic plan on top; export readiness gets a review of its own.
How our strategic planning consultants in Qatar work
Our strategic planning consultants work in five steps, in this order.
- Interviews
The owners first, then each senior manager on their own, without colleagues present. Problems between departments rarely come out in a group meeting.
- The numbers
We read the accounts for the last few years along with monthly sales. Looking at several years at once stops a strong Ramadan, or one slow summer, from setting the direction.
- Market check
Customers, competitors and prices, with fresh market research where the evidence is thin.
- Choices
A working session with the owners. Each option is on the table with what it would cost, and they choose.
- The written plan
This is a short document. It lists the targets, who answers for each, and the actions for year one, and it comes back for review every quarter.
Related services
Common questions about strategy consulting in Qatar
What does a business strategy consultant do in Qatar?
Ask a business strategy consultant in Qatar what the job is and you will hear about spreadsheets. Several years of accounts, the customer list, competitors’ prices: from that come two or three options, each priced, for the owners to choose between. The choice goes into a short plan with targets and named owners. It is never the consultant’s choice.
How is a strategic plan different from a business plan?
Mostly in who reads it. A business plan is normally sent out, to a bank or an investor deciding whether to fund something new. The strategic plan stays inside. Its readers are the partners of a firm that already has customers and accounts, and it settles what gets the effort for the next few years and what stops.
Does my company have to follow Qatar National Vision 2030?
Not that we can find. We looked for a rule tying private companies to the vision or to NDS3, its 2024 to 2030 strategy, and found none. The strategy is still worth reading for the eight sectors it wants to grow. Some sector rules do apply directly. In energy-sector tenders where ICV applies, for instance, bidders are scored on In-Country Value.
Source: National Planning Council, Third National Development Strategy 2024 to 2030
How many years should a strategic plan run for?
We usually suggest three years, with the first year set out month by month and the other two in outline. A young company whose market is still moving may want a shorter view. For comparison, NDS3 covers seven years (2024 to 2030).
Source: National Planning Council, Third National Development Strategy 2024 to 2030
How much does strategy consulting cost?
Interviews take most of the hours, so the number of managers we speak to moves the fee more than the size of your turnover does. A family firm with one activity may need only a handful of conversations. A group holding several CRs needs many more, and sometimes new market research on top. We fix the price in writing after a first meeting.
Did not find your question? Ask an adviser. We reply with what applies to your case.
Sources
Official sources for the facts on this page, last checked 24 Oct 2026.
- National Planning Council, Third National Development Strategy 2024 to 2030
- Qatar Development Bank, News: new advisory services for companies (23 Sep 2024)
- Tawteen ICV Digital Portal, Major announcements: mandatory ICV from 1 July 2023
- Tawteen ICV Digital Portal, Frequently asked questions
- Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Local investor services
- General Tax Authority, Investors guide
- Single Window, Business activities search
- Commercial Companies Law No. 11 of 2015, as amended (Al Meezan)
Is there a decision the partners keep putting off?
Send a few lines: what the company sells, how many years it has traded, and the question that keeps coming up at partners’ meetings. From that we can say where a plan would start.