Disruption has become a constant within every industry, but the nature of consulting makes the profession particularly susceptible to changing market dynamics and macroeconomic tailwinds. While economic uncertainty, labor shortages, and tech advancements have had significant impacts on all industries over the past few years, these dynamics have fundamentally changed the way that professional services firms operate.
As organizations have reevaluated their workforce needs and organizational priorities in a rapidly changing business environment, their consulting needs have drastically changed.
Frankly, this evolution has been playing out for a long time and is simply coming to a head in today’s fast-changing environment. The consulting industry was a completely different animal when I started in this business nearly three decades ago, and each and every technology advancement and market shift – from the prioritization of customer and employee experience to ERP and the digitization of processes – has had a profound impact on the way consulting work is done.
The latest massive disruptions have been driven by growing AI and digital transformation investment, changing views on the role consultants play, and the challenges employers continue to face in filling skill gaps.