reader, your consulting expertise is a tool, a capability. It means nothing without a real problem!
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A Bi-Weekly 'Think Piece' For Consulting Firms

EDITION #120

MARCH 12, 2025

The Authority 120

Dear reader, 

Here comes the 120th edition of the newsletter. 

 

Our new article in this edition discusses why consulting firms should shift their thinking from selling expertise to selling solutions to high-stake problems.

 

Consulting expertise is essential. It allows a consulting firm to make bold statements and back them up with a track record of delivering the promised value. However, expertise is a tool—a capability—and it means nothing without a real problem!

 

As always, we hope to create a bubble of calmness with this bi-weekly ‘think piece’, a place of stillness in the face of everyday stress—a chance to reflect on what really matters in your consulting work.

 

Enjoy reading, 

 

Luk & Florian

OUR NEW ARTICLE

 

Want More Clients? Stop Talking About Your Expertise!

 

Want More Clients - Stop Talking About Your Expertise

 

We had an awkward conversation with a consulting firm that proudly claimed to be experts in Lean Management.  

 

We challenged them: “Who is looking for Lean Management?” They hesitated.  

 

The truth is that no one wakes up thinking, “We need more Lean.” Clients do not have a Lean problem; they have a productivity issue, a supply chain bottleneck, or an operational inefficiency. Lean is merely one potential approach to resolving these issues.  

 

If a consultancy's proposition revolves around its capabilities, it risks being ignored. But if they focus on their clients' real-world pain points, identify trigger points, and position themselves as the consulting firm that can fix them, they’ll command attention. This is what I discuss in this article.

 

READ THE NEW ARTICLE

 

RECENT ARTICLES

The AI Hype in Consulting Time for Specificity Not Buzzwords

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

The AI Hype in Consulting: Time for Specificity, Not Buzzwords

There Are Two Ways to Run a Consulting Firm – One Drains Profitability.

STRATEGY 

There Are Two Ways to Run a Consulting Firm. One Drains Profitability.

How Consultancies Can Get Started With Value Proposition Design (Without Getting Overwhelmed)

VALUE PROPOSITION

Building a Winning Consulting Value Proposition

Consulting growth is stalling - how can you respond

STRATEGY

Consulting Growth Is Stalling – How Can You Respond?

MOST RECENT LINKEDIN POSTS

LUK

NARROW FOCUS

Why do so many consulting firms avoid being specific?

BUSINESS GROWTH

Your consulting firm isn’t stuck. Your weak value proposition is keeping it there.

STRATEGY

When focus meets quality of life. 

SERVICE DESIGN

Ditch the consulting Royal Buffet services menu! 

CASE STUDY

Without a client success journey, you're just selling consulting projects.

CLIENT SUCCESS JOURNEY

More consulting services, more revenue? Or just more complexity?

VALUE PROPOSITION

AI consulting is drowning in empty promises, and we see it daily.

INTENTIONAL DESIGN

Nobody admires a consultancy that chases everything.

DIGITAL PRESENCE

"Luk, don’t assess our website because it’s outdated…"

FLORIAN

STRATEGY

Some AI optimism for consulting firms—from someone who's usually quite skeptical.

MANAGING A CONSULTANCY

Can your consultancy even "solve for x" in its own business? 

VALUE PROPOSITION

Is your consultancy struggling with 'thought leadership' and 'content creation'?

FUTURE OF CONSULTING

Still on the fence about whether to revise your consulting firm's strategy? Well, time might be running out.

HERE'S HOW WE HELP CONSULTANCIES

Luk and Florian announcement-1

 

Our newly designed service offering for Consulting Firms and Consulting Firm Buyers/Investors    

 

We help our clients chart a path to superior consulting value. We help them stop chasing revenue through the default capability and capacity selling and build a differentiated, issue-led, and outcome-based consulting proposition that attracts the right clients and scales profitably.


In the long run, our approach to building or redefining the consulting proposition helps them reduce complexity, standardise repeatable success, and move away from headcount-dependent growth. If done well, it will ultimately lead to higher margins, a more predictable pipeline, and a consulting business that runs intentionally—not by default.


Here’s how we chart the path to superior consulting value for our ideal consulting clients.

 

1. Consulting Value Review

 

A structured, 4 to 6-week, value-proposition-anchored rapid assessment of a consulting firm's growth and performance potential. We analyse the strength of the consulting proposition, messaging, client positioning, high-value characteristics, and service-market fit to identify quick wins and long-term improvement opportunities.

 

Best for:

  • Buyers or Investors evaluating the proposition and performance of a consulting firm pre- or post-acquisition/investment

2. Value Maximisation Program

 

A 10 to 12-week intensive program designed to define, sharpen, and operationalise a firm’s consulting proposition. We ensure the firm’s differentiation is clear, compelling, and actionable and provide the foundational elements of a high-impact business development strategy. 

 

Best for:

  • Boutiques struggling with differentiation & business development
  • Practices in large consultancies needing a clearer positioning
  • Consulting firms launching new service lines
  • Enterprise SaaS companies starting a consulting/service function or needing to improve their current consulting proposition

3. Service Portfolio Optimisation Program

 

A deep dive into the cohesion, efficiency, and superior client value of a consulting firm’s service portfolio. The goal is to ensure each offering has a strong value proposition, clear differentiation, and logical fit within the broader portfolio.

 

Best for:

  • Consulting firms with too many overlapping or unclear service offerings
  • Consulting firm practices seeking to scale profitably by optimising service-market fit

 

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