GLG vs. Catalant: Which Expert Network Is Right for You?

Overview

GLG (Gerson Lehrman Group) is the world's largest expert network, built primarily around one-on-one expert calls — typically 30–60 minute phone consultations with industry specialists. Founded in 1998, it has a network of over one million experts and is the default choice for institutional investors and corporate strategy teams running primary research.

Catalant is a project-based consulting marketplace that connects enterprises with independent consultants — primarily former McKinsey, Bain, BCG, and Big Four professionals — for multi-week or multi-month engagements. Rather than a phone call, you hire a Catalant consultant the way you'd hire a contractor: scope → proposal → execution.

The core distinction: GLG is for knowledge transfer (you're extracting insight from an expert). Catalant is for work execution (an expert is doing the project with you).

Pricing & Engagement Models

Data as of April 2026. GLG pricing varies significantly by contract size. Catalant hourly rates reflect market range across consulting specialties.

Expert Quality & Specialties

GLG experts span an enormous range — former executives, technical specialists, academics, physicians, government officials. The breadth is GLG's main advantage. If you need a former FDA regulator or a recently retired semiconductor plant manager, GLG can typically source one within hours. Quality is variable: the network is vast, and expert depth ranges from genuinely elite to middling.

Catalant's expert pool is narrower but more curated for project execution. The platform recruits former Big Three consultants, CFOs, CMOs, and functional leads who are built for delivering outputs — slide decks, financial models, strategic assessments. Catalant is less useful for highly technical domains (engineering, science, medicine) where GLG has an obvious advantage.

When GLG's breadth wins

• Industry due diligence across an unfamiliar vertical
• Primary research to validate investment theses
• Regulatory, scientific, or technical domain expertise
• Speed: expert matched and call scheduled within 24–48 hours

When Catalant's depth wins

• You need deliverables, not just insight — strategy docs, market assessments, financial models
• You want someone embedded with your team for 4–12 weeks
• Corporate development, commercial diligence, go-to-market strategy
• Projects where track record and past case studies matter

Geographic Reach

GLG is strongest in the US, UK, and Western Europe, with growing coverage in Asia. Its financial services and institutional investor client base skews heavily American and European. Catalant is also US-centric, with an enterprise client base concentrated in Fortune 1000 companies. Neither platform has a strong native presence in APAC.

Procurement & Compliance

For heavily regulated industries — finance, healthcare, government contracting — GLG's compliance infrastructure is significantly more developed. GLG runs mandatory expert compliance training, has established protocols for wall-crossing in financial services, and is a known quantity for institutional procurement teams. Catalant's compliance posture is serviceable for most corporate work but was not built for buy-side investment research.

Verdict: Which to Choose

The honest summary: if you're an investment firm or large enterprise running ongoing research, GLG is the market standard for a reason. If you're running a specific project and need someone to do the work — not just talk about it — Catalant is a better fit. Many large organizations use both.