AI copies the methods, not the value
FAZ recently tested the idea with “Meckie,” an AI fed MECE, the Pyramid Principle, 7S, SWOT, PESTEL, and Porter’s Five Forces.
The case study: should a car manufacturer launch an electric convertible in DACH?
The output: a polished executive summary, hypotheses, risk analysis.
The verdict: “highly risky.”
Impressive output, but the bigger issue is what really matters in consulting.
Tools are easy. Judgment is not.
78% of organisations now use AI in at least one business function, up from 55% only a year earlier (McKinsey).
GenAI maturity is rare, with only 1% of firms fully integrated (EY/Reuters).
The real edge is knowing which questions to ask, which assumptions to challenge, and how to synthesise insights.
Clients buy trust, not slides.
PwC now prioritises emotional intelligence and ethics in hiring.
IBM finds 75% of executives expect AI to increase consulting spend, but only if firms deliver deeper human insight.
Knowledge beats frameworks.
McKinsey’s “Lilli” taps into 100,000+ internal documents and is used by 70% of consultants, saving 30% of research time.
Internal data suggest it saves up to 50,000 consultant hours monthly, shifting juniors from formatting to analysis.
AI is changing the workflow, not the job.
BCG, Deloitte, PwC, and KPMG all have in-house AI platforms like Deckster, GENE, Sidekick, and Ascend.
UK consulting is forecast to grow around 5% in 2025, driven by digital and AI.
Firms are reskilling so consultants focus on strategy, not admin.
Adoption without fluency is risky.
Only 42% of firms offer advanced AI training.
Governance, ethics, and strategy are now as important as the technology itself.
The takeaway
AI can structure like a consultant, but it cannot replace judgment, client insight, or trust.
Tools like Lilli and Deckster streamline the craft but do not replace human context.
The future consultant is AI-fluent, ethically grounded, and deeply contextual.
Consultants need not worry, unless McKinsey sells its entire knowledge base to ChatGPT.
Common sense says that will never happen.
And common sense usually prevails.
This post comments on:
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ): How to train an AI to be a business consultant (Wie man eine KI zum Unternehmensberater trainiert)
3-August 2025
Ben Appleton is the founder of Strat-Bridge, a specialist executive search partner to the strategy consulting industry. He works with global consulting firms and senior leaders across the UK, Germany, Switzerland, and beyond — helping them build capability at the Partner and Director level.
