Do we even need human consultants in the AI era?
I answered this and other thorny questions in my latest lightning lesson. Plus, check out my group coaching circle!
"As a consultant, 95% of the value we provide is in aligning, influencing, and motivating people. AI does none of that."
Last week, I hosted a Lightning Lesson called "Position Your Expertise for Consulting in the AI Era" and it was so much fun. Missed it? Check out the recording and highlights below.
I also made an exciting announcement on the call:
I'm launching a group coaching circle! 🎉
This is a small, curated group that will dive deep into positioning and offer development, but also get tactical on proposals and pricing. I'll be your resource as you actually navigate the market. This is open to course alumni AND folks who haven't taken the course yet.
Click the button below to learn more and secure your spot.
Lastly, many of you continued submitting your intro blurbs, and I've really enjoyed providing feedback! In fact, the last batch caught the attention of a VC and had broader amplification through the Fractional Jobs newsletter! In my next newsletter, I’ll highlight several more blurbs and share my feedback. Want feedback on your blurb? Click here.
Highlights from my lightning lesson
We had a great conversation and some of the questions were so good that I wanted to capture a few highlights for everyone. You can watch the recording using the button below.
What's your 10,000 foot view of the consulting market right now?
The market's completely different from when I started as an independent consultant in 2022. Back then, the idea that I could drop in as a part time COO and then leave was pretty novel. At cocktail parties, I'd say "I'm a part time COO" and people would go "What the hell are you talking about?"
Now? Fractional work is everywhere. That's not my hook anymore. Instead, I lean much more on my industry experience and functional expertise. And then there's AI, of course. Companies are dealing with business model transformations and workplace changes that weren't even on the radar in 2022. It's essentially a completely different market, and you need to contextualize yourself within that reality.
Do we even need human consultants anymore when AI can generate strategy decks and financial models?
Yes! The market for consultants is growing because companies are trying to understand how to leverage AI technology, not just adopt it. If you look at the P&Ls of major consulting firms, they're ballooning out of control. There's increased demand due to tech disruption AND due to downsizing of headcount.
Just like your favorite AI assistant, you could always drop questions into the minds of smart analysts and get answers. That's exactly how I started my business. But that was never what I handed the client. There was always contextualizing insight, applying judgment, framing recommendations. You're not outsourcing any of that to AI.
As a consultant, 95% of the value we provide is in aligning, influencing, and motivating people. AI does none of that. There's always going to be opportunity and need for wisdom and real insight versus just information.
How do we justify premium rates when companies are cutting spending?
There are a few must haves to make this work. First, you need real expertise in whatever you’re working on. It shouldn't feel like a stretch assignment. You should be able to jump in on day one and add real industry expertise and value through access, know-how, or functional value.
If it's specialized, incredibly relevant to the problem the company is solving, and you're flexible in your billing (not demanding 3,000 hours upfront at $4,000 an hour), you're probably going to be the “one of one” answer to this problem. You're coming without the baggage of a full time executive, you're there fast, you ramp quickly, you solve the problem.
If that's the case, you should be billing at the appropriate rate. Don't discount your rate, and don't go insane because OpEx is tight. If you're delivering in a credible and relevant way, there's no risk in billing appropriately.
I contributed to a piece in the First Round Review that talks about what real relevance looks like for startups of all stages. Click here to give it a read.
Where are most of your leads coming from?
85% of my business has come from people I've worked with before, or people who know those people. You need a list of people who are waiting to work with you, who would be happy to give you opportunities. Without that short list, all the strategy in the world won't translate.
Now that I'm in year four, I'm starting to see referrals from current and past clients. But qualified cold leads from my website? That's just not happening. It's really about cultivating relationships with folks you already know.
If someone's just starting out with positioning, what's one thing they can do today?
Go through your work experience and synthesize your expertise across industry and functional areas. If you've been in any career for more than 15 years, this is brutal but necessary. One mistake I see often is over generalizing.
You need that mix of industry experience, functional expertise, and what I call thematic expertise (relevance). The thematic part shifts as you pay attention to the market, but your functional expertise should be durable. You can't be shifting from product leader to finance leader every quarter, because then I'd wonder if you were either.
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Amanda