How artificial intelligence is reshaping the consulting industry from the bottom up
The rapid spread of artificial intelligence is starting to reshape the consulting industry, but not without pain. The technology can now handle many tasks once assigned to junior, entry-level consultants—often faster, cheaper, and more accurately. As such, AI has been linked to thousands of job cuts planned by consulting giant McKinsey & Company, as well as starting salary freezes at several major companies.
However, concerns about widespread automation may be overstated. Alex Adamopolous, CEO of London-based software company Emergn, noted on Consultancy.uk that AI is more likely to disrupt consulting services than eliminate them. As AI enables previously high-end tasks such as market research and strategic planning to be completed in minutes, consulting firms will be forced to abandon the traditional model of diagnosing a problem, recommending fixes and then walking away, he said. Instead, a new approach is emerging – with partners focused on transferring capabilities to customers and embedding “repeatable ways of working”.
The demise of the consulting pyramid
Journalist Joe Nocera debate This shift may actually be good news for the consulting industry’s tarnished reputation. He pointed to the industry’s long-standing business model in which companies charge clients for “labor and time spent on projects.” This structure rewards long-term, intense work, even if results are not guaranteed. Over time, this resulted in many clients viewing profit-focused advisors as “scams.”
In the age of artificial intelligence, this model is losing its grip. Clients can now use artificial intelligence tools to perform analysis and research that once cost millions of dollars in consulting fees. As Nocera points out, this has prompted companies to demand results-based contracts—paying for results rather than time worked. That pressure is already showing in the numbers. According to Business Insider, 25% of McKinsey’s fees now come from results-based pricing.
This shift is also forcing consulting firms to rethink their internal structures. Traditionally, companies have operated in a pyramid format: a broad swath of junior consultants conduct research and analysis, topped by a small group of senior leaders focused on strategy and client relationships. This structure is starting to crumble.
Arda Ecevit, co-founder of NexStrat AI, an artificial intelligence strategy platform, told the Observer that as AI takes over tasks once handled by junior consultants, “the current pyramid model will gradually transform and the bottom half of the pyramid will continue to shrink”. Instead, he said, the company should move to a “more senior, expert-based” model.
Thinning of the pyramid is already underway. The “Big Four” accounting firms—KPMG, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, and PricewaterhouseCoopers—are all cutting entry-level positions, in large part because of the adoption of artificial intelligence.
The changing role humans will play in consulting
Ecevit said it’s not just entry-level positions that are at risk. Professional AI platforms can now “play a lot of key roles related to the role of a project manager or even a partner,” he said. This includes developing project plans, developing strategies, advising on key decisions, and even flagging potential risks.
Still, some parts of counseling are human. Ecevit stressed that people will continue to play a key role in leadership, motivating organizations through change, implementing strategy, aligning stakeholders and navigating “tricky” internal dynamics.
In a Harvard Business Review article, three consulting experts divided consulting roles that cannot be automated into three groups: AI facilitators, engagement architects, and account leaders.
In the framework, AI facilitators will be junior consultants who are proficient in the latest tools and responsible for designing and improving AI-driven workflows to help “teams generate insights quickly.” Engaging architects will be more experienced consultants who define problems, apply human judgment to AI-generated findings, and translate those insights into strategies. Client leaders, meanwhile, will focus on executive relationships—helping organizations manage change and anticipate disruption.
If this model is implemented, AI fluency will become critical to both consulting firms and how clients judge its value. As Ecevit puts it, the message for “incumbent consulting firms” in the age of artificial intelligence is simple: “Adapt or die.”
