The gap is wide between how consultants see themselves and how others do. As a consultant it is important to be aware of stereotypes and preconceptions to avoid them at all costs.

1. 6 false ideas about consulting
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“Give a man a fish, and
you'll feed him for a day
Teach a man to fish, and
he'll buy a funny hat
Talk to a hungry man about
fish, and you're a
consultant”.
- Scott Adams

2. When you were 6, you dreamed about becoming a fireman, a teacher, an astronaut,
an artist or even an archaeologist ….
… but probably not a
consultant
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The gap is wide between how consultants see themselves and how others do. As a consultant
it is important to be aware of stereotypes and preconceptions to avoid them at all costs.

3. Consultants’ “raison d’être” is to deliver value added to their clients…
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Shaping the future. Together
The people to Lead
The knowledge to Innovate
The vision to Transform
We transform business

4. Being independent
Being true professionals, with solid
background & working methods
Being able to create action based on
their recommendations
Sharing experience
Providing competence not available
elsewhere in the organization
… value added they create by
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Source: the critical success factors in the client-consulting relationship Steven H. Appelbaum
Having time to study the problem in
depth

5. Nevertheless, stereotypes and preconceptions against consulting & consultants are
common, sometimes even among clients’ teams
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Consultants only
repeat what they
have heard from
clients
1 2
Consultants are
biased
Consultants talk
(too) much
instead of taking
actions
3
4
Consultants are
nothing but slide
machines
Consultants use
words nobody
understands
56
Consultants are
(way too)
expensive

6. Consultants only repeat what they have heard from clients
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1
A consultant is someone
who takes your watch
away to tell you what
time it is.
- Ed Finkelstein
Clients’ data is actually an important source of
information for consultants … but it is only one
among others:
Good consultants’ value added does not come
from repeating what client said: it stems from
how info is analysed and put into perspective.
Public In-house Client

7. Consultants are biased
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2
Whoever pays the consultant
gets pretty much what they
want to hear.
- Matthew Stewart
Consultants are paid by their clients to
solve problems, provide insights or
analyses.
All these tasks require, in order to be
successfully conducted, to take a step back
with independence of mind and integrity.
Blindly relying on clients’ views
would ruin this integrity and dry up
future sources of business.
Good consultants know how to say “no” to
their clients in a gentle but firm manner.

8. Consultants talk (too) much instead of taking actions
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3
Per definition management consultants are
not supposed to do the job of clients’ teams
instead of them.
They provide assistance to solve problems
which means first analyzing, second
recommending. They can take part to
implementing but in any case ‘cruise speed’
monitoring is clients’ sole responsibility.
Good consultants make sure relevant info
and knowledge is transferred to the client
before the end of the assignment.
Give a man a fish, and
you'll feed him for a day,
teach a man to fish, and
he'll buy a funny hat,
talk to a hungry man
about fish, and you're
a consultant”.
- Scott Adams

9. Consultants are nothing but slide machines
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4
Management consultants unquestionably
produce tens of thousands of slides
throughout their career.
But reducing their role to slide writing is an
error of interpretation.
First, slides are a medium, not an end.
Second, slides require hours of collection
and analysis work before being crafted.
Third, slides are far from being the only
communication vector used by
consultants.
We live in a culture that's been
hijacked by the management
consultant ethos. We want
everything boiled down to a
Power Point slide.
- Carl Honore

10. Consultants use words nobody understands
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5
All professional branches develop their own
technical jargon which is used to share ‘technical’
views but also to strengthen integration among
the community.
Consultants are no exception.
What may be disturbing is the inability of
some of us to leave this jargon at the
office.
A consultant is someone who
takes a subject you understand
and makes it sound confusing.
- Unknown
Deck = slides
Key = critical
On the beach
= between assignments

11. Consultants are (way too) expensive
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6
A consultant is someone
who saves his client
almost enough to pay
his fee.
- Arnold H. Glasow
That
Consultants have high chargeable daily rates, even
if the last few years have seen a drastic drop.
Some people doubt that hiring consultants
presents a sufficient (even positive) ROI.
A few facts to keep in mind when
measuring consultants’ profitability:
▪ They generally work very long hours
▪ They provide collective knowledge and
experience that go far beyond the skills of
the individuals who make up the field team
▪ They can quickly adjust their team mix ->
part of their fee covers flexibility

12. Stereotypes and preconceptions may turn out to be true
but only with poorly qualified consultants
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D

13. 08/05/2017 13
Consultorama
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