AT FIRST GLANCE, the connection between companies such as Lloyds TSB, Boots and Cadbury Schweppes may not be obvious. Although they all operate in the consumer sector, little links them. Yet they all rely for their strategic thinking on the same management consultancy, Marakon Associates.

The American firm has been in this country for a decade but it is a low-key outfit that borders on the secretive. Only recently has it emerged as the high-priest of shareholder value. Sir Brian Pitman, chairman of Lloyds TSB, was one of the first British businessmen to sign up with Marakon. He says: "It is the specialist in how to maximise shareholder value."

In America Marakon is better known -- at least among Fortune 500 chief executives. Its clients include Coca-Cola, Dow Chemical, BankAmerica and Nordstrom. But it is still a relatively unknown force compared with the big strategic consultancies such as McKinsey or Bain. That is how the firm prefers it, says Ken Favaro, managing partner of the British operation. It likes to stay focused on a small group of clients...