The Psychology of Quality and More

The Three Is of Consulting

David Straker

Introduction | Industry | Intelligence | Integrity | Conclusion

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Intelligence

Whilst industry is a basic promise of consulting, significantly more value may be added through the application of the consultant's brain. The consultant is more than a simple grunt (who can be hired for far less). In fact the primary value proposition of most consultancies is that they bring significant new intelligence to the table, and this is often what is sought.

The intelligence that the consultant brings can be in three forms: experience, knowledge and raw brainpower. These three intelligences can all be found to some degree in most consulting firms, although most consultancies specialize in one more than the others.

In the knowledge-based consultancy, significant efforts are expended on gathering, sifting and organizing huge amounts of business and industry knowledge. Libraries, case studies and databases are core tools and, after each engagement, consultants take time to extract and integrate explicit new knowledge. This is based on an assumption that many problems recur across organizations and that a well-stocked pharmacy can provide a standard solution for a properly diagnosed problem. In such consultancies there is typically a pattern of taking in younger and impressionable consultants who are taught the system and then carefully supervised in implementing the solution to a problem that has already been diagnosed by a more senior consultant.

In the brain-power consultancy, significant effort is put into the intellectual elite, who are typically recruited from the cream of top institutions and then continuously developed through tough business challenges. The basic assumption through which they sell themselves is that, although each problem is superficially similar to others, every problem is unique and at best standard solutions will only partially address the issue. Thus it is concluded that there is no substitute for raw IQ in getting to the real root of the issue and devising customized solutions that fully address the real problem. Such consultancies are staffed with fewer but higher-powered consultants who will forge long-term relationships with individual clients. It is the person and their potential that is sold to the client, not a knowledge base delivered through any available consultant.

Finally, the experience-based consultancy works on the principle that, as a basis for advising others, there is no real substitute for hard-fought, hands-on experience. These consultancies are a common destination for older managers and professionals who have retired early, been the victims of cutbacks or who have grown tired of the same old treadmill and who want more variety and the ability to share something of what they have learned. As with other consultancies, such organizations live and die on the abilities of their consultants, so must still be careful in their selection and management processes. Just experience is not enough and abilities to think and engage are also important.
Consultants who were once themselves senior managers must know that they are no longer in charge and that a good bedside manner is now a critical skill. Nevertheless, what they lack in general consulting skills they more than make up with in empathy for the client's real problems. When you know that your consultant has faced and overcome similar issues, then you are more likely to accept their proposals for a solution.

An issue occurs for clients when they have a need for one type of intelligence in which their consultants are not strong. The problem is compounded when the client and the consultancy are blind to this, resulting in unrealized client-consultancy incompatibility. The best that happens in such cases is that intelligence and empathy are applied to find an effective solution, despite differences. The worst that happens is an acrimonious break-up, with each declaring the other impossible to work with.

The bottom line for consultants: multiply value by what you know and your ability to think, both rationally and creatively. Stay ahead: never stop learning.

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