Consultancy in the time of AI

 

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

The all-consuming tidal wave of AI has impacted more professions than what one usually believes. Things like writing and coding are low-hanging fruit, which the AI juggernaut has apparently swallowed effortlessly, while other professions are on notice. From teachers and healthcare professionals to cab drivers and an increasingly large number of blue-collar workers, apparently, more and more working men and women fear for their jobs.

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In this article, we shall look at consultancy, the hitherto unassailable bastion of human intellectual ability, and how it is getting increasingly impacted by AI.  Over the years, their expertise enabled consultants to benefit from unbelievably fat consultancy fees calculated on a billable per-hour basis. The advent of AI, with its ability to both automate routine tasks and provide cutting-edge analysis as well as insights, has led to consultancy firms adopting a value-based work model that speaks to their customers’ needs in a much better manner than the traditional model. This is on account of faster and better deliveries at a much better cost.

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Wake-up call for the consultancy industry

The only thing that one can expect never to change is the fact that there will always be change. This is at the heart of the human conundrum of existence. Overnight, the much feted and eugelised consultants have woken up to the realisation that what they would take weeks to do can be rustled up by AI in minutes. Consequently, clients have begun to have higher expectations than before, with consultants scrambling to change the way that they provide value to clients. It is telling that an IBM report found out that 66% consultancy services buyers will not work with consulting organizations that do not deploy AI.

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What AI does is to make technology more accessible, empowering one to enhance business value in unprecedented ways. It helps create an ecosystem. The most sought-after consultants are those who can leverage AI to break down and resolve the most complex and knotty of problems extremely speedily and in the most optimal manner possible.

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The new age consultancy expert can no longer be a generalist relying on intuitive brilliance but, instead, be an empowered professional capable of delivering impactful solutions in real-time. With traditional expertise and core competencies becoming irrelevant, whole new delivery models that require consultants to become agents of AI-powered transformation need to be developed in order for the profession to survive and thrive.

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Businesses these days do not need to rely on the exclusive expertise of highly priced consultants, as they have unimpeded access to economically priced AI tools that help them conduct their businesses optimally. The reasons, therefore, for hiring the former have to be compelling ones. The principal challenge facing the consultancy profession lies in its ability to move from relying on formulaic expertise to dynamic and nimble AI-powered abilities.

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