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The next consulting advantage is not account-led or expert-led. It is a combination of the two.

Dr. Karsten Ballüder, Partner at Deloitte and leader of the firm’s European Application Modernization practice, joins David to discuss how consulting firms can stay differentiated when AI makes generic knowledge and polished output easier to produce.

Karsten argues that relationships still open doors, but they are no longer enough on their own. In complex, mission-critical work, clients need confidence that the people in the room have seen the problem before, know where it tends to break, and can bring expertise that is not simply available to everyone through AI. This conversation explores the tension between account-led growth and expert-led credibility, why internal incentives can block real collaboration, and what consulting leaders need to build if they want trust and expertise to reinforce each other.

You’ll learn:

1. Why generic consulting output is becoming harder to defend
2. How account leaders and experts create value together
3. Why lived delivery experience matters more in the AI era
4. How internal incentives can keep the right expertise out of the room
5. What experts must do to become commercially visible inside the firm

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Dr. Karsten Ballüder is open to connecting about consulting growth, expert leadership, AI-driven commoditization, and the relationship between trust and expertise.

If you would like to exchange perspectives, reach out on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karsten-ballueder/
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Karsten’s reading recommendation:
Getting Things Done | https://www.amazon.de/dp/0143126563  

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David is a Partner at entero and has extensive experience in Salesforce consulting, particularly in advising consulting firms on the optimization and digitalization of their processes. Over the past ten years, he has led teams, managed complex client relationships, and implemented digital solutions that improve operational efficiency. His passion lies in helping companies use technology to drive growth and transformation, ensuring they remain competitive in an increasingly digital world.

Simply write to David by email at [email protected]

or connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danheier/

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For more perspectives on how leaders are navigating topics like this, follow the LEADERS IN CONSULTING Community on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/leadersinconsulting-en/  

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Selling inputs led to price pressure. Selling outcomes delivered a 20:1 ROI.

Most consulting firms don’t lose pricing power because of competition. They lose it in how they define their value. In this episode, Rob Ferrone, Founder of Quick Release, explains how his firm moved from selling person-days and deliverables to owning measurable business outcomes.

After facing increasing commoditization, Rob and his team reframed their work around cost, speed, and quality impact. This shift unlocked significantly higher pricing, stronger client access, and scalable growth. Through real examples, including a $21M impact project with 20:1 ROI, Rob breaks down what actually changes when consulting firms move from execution to outcome ownership, and why this model is becoming critical in an AI-driven market.

You’ll learn:

1. Why selling inputs like time and headcount leads to pricing pressure
2. How to reframe consulting work around measurable business outcomes
3. What it takes to access senior stakeholders and “the keys to the castle”
4. How to structure outcome-based pricing with upside potential
5. Why solving client problems creates more demand, not less

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Rob Ferrone is open to connecting about outcome-based consulting and pricing strategy.
If you would like to exchange perspectives, reach out on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-ferrone/

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Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients. Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/ 

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The most dangerous place in consulting today isn’t the bottom…

It’s the middle.

Mid-sized consulting firms continue to grow, but many are becoming structurally fragile without realizing it. In this episode, Amol Punekar, Regional Director of Business for the UK and EU at Lyzr AI, explains why only service-led models create non-durable revenue and increasing pressure over time.

He outlines how firms get squeezed between scaled incumbents and niche specialists—and why competing on effort is no longer viable. The conversation explores how productized, IP-led offerings change revenue quality, improve margins, and create long-term defensibility, along with what it actually takes to make that shift inside a consulting organization.

You’ll learn:

1. Why service-led consulting creates fragile, reset-every-year revenue
2. How the “squeezed middle” makes mid-sized firms structurally vulnerable
3. What productized services change in margins, win rates, and positioning
4. How to identify what to productize using the “three-time rule”
5. Why most firms fail—and the leadership trade-offs required to succeed

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Amol Punekar is open to connecting on enterprise AI transformation and IP asset-led consulting models. If you would like to exchange perspectives, reach out on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amol-punekar-3760671/

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Amol’s book recommendations:
The Changing World Order by Ray Dalio | https://www.amazon.de/dp/1471196690/
Visualize by Maya Raichoora | https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Visualise-Maya-Raichoora/dp/1846048524/

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Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients. Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/

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More episodes and insights: https://www.leadersinconsulting.com/podcast

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Client loyalty is collapsing.

This episode explores why you need more than a strong relationship to secure follow-on work.

Matthew Dixon, co-founder of DCM Insights and co-author of The Activator Advantage, says consulting growth is breaking away from its traditional model. Despite strong delivery and trusted client relationships, firms are increasingly forced to compete for work they once would have won by default.

Matthew unpacks the structural decline in client loyalty, the rise of broader and AI-driven buying processes, and why most partners are still operating with outdated assumptions. The conversation explores the shift from reactive selling to proactive demand creation, and what distinguishes high-performing “activators” from the rest.

You’ll learn:

1. Why strong delivery no longer guarantees repeat consulting work
2. What’s driving the drop in client loyalty from 75% to 37%
3. How AI is reshaping how clients shortlist consulting firms
4. What top-performing partners do differently to create demand early
5. How to build momentum before the client defines the need

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Matt Dixon is open to connecting. If you would like to exchange perspectives, reach out to him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewxdixon/

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Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients.

Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/

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For more episodes and insights: https://www.leadersinconsulting.com/podcast

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Clients don't want to be dependent anymore. They want self-sufficiency.

James Cawthorne, CEO of FOIL, explains why consulting is undergoing a structural shift. As AI makes productivity widely accessible, differentiation through effort is eroding, while complexity and decision pressure continue to rise.

James outlines why traditional consulting models built on dependency are increasingly misaligned with what clients now expect. Instead of delivering answers, firms must embed capability, encoding institutional knowledge into systems that enable faster, more consistent decision-making. The conversation explores system intelligence, the limits of standalone AI tools, and what it takes to redesign consulting around value rather than control.

You’ll learn:

1. Why competing on productivity with AI leads to a race to the bottom

2. How system intelligence enables scalable decision-making inside organizations

3. What clients actually mean when they ask for “capability” instead of support

4. Why dependency-based consulting models are becoming structurally unstable

5. How to stay relevant when value replaces effort as the core driver

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Get in touch with James on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesmcawthorne/

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About the host Sarah:
Sarah Edwards is Chief Product Strategy Officer at Kantata and has spent over 30 years helping professional services firms scale, transform, and deliver measurable business value across the US and Europe. She is passionate about how AI is reshaping the consulting industry, from how firms win work and deliver outcomes to how they empower talent and strengthen client relationships.

Get in touch with Sarah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahedwards3/

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Past guests on the LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast include: Friederich von Hurter, Melanie Tobler, Tilman Au, and many more!

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Thanks to our friends at SAWOO for producing this episode with us!

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Berater sind gedanklich oft einen Schritt weiter. Umso wichtiger, dass sie ihre Kunden auf diesem Weg mitnehmen.

Florian Warring ist Managing Director bei FTI-Andersch, Teil von FTI Consulting mit weltweit über 8.100 Mitarbeitenden. In der DACH-Region begleitet er Unternehmen bei ganzheitlichen Transformations- und Performance-Improvement-Programmen. Neben der Projektverantwortung ist er außerdem verstärkt im Business Development und bei der Akquise aktiv.

Seine Überzeugung: Die beste Lösung wirkt nur, wenn sie die Akzeptanz des Kunden findet.

Im Gespräch mit Host David Anheier erklärt Florian, warum zu frühes Vorpreschen Akzeptanz kosten kann, weshalb vermeintliche Einigkeit im Meeting trügerisch sein kann, und wie Paraphrasieren zum strategischen Führungsinstrument wird.

Er spricht über Authentizität als USP im Consulting, über die „Bringschuld“ von Beratern in der Interaktion mit Kunden und darüber, warum Massenmails keine belastbaren Beziehungen schaffen.

Freue dich auf folgende Learnings:
1) Warum aktives Zuhören oftmals wirkungsvoller ist als Argumentieren.
2) Wie man echte Akzeptanz schafft, statt nur Lösungen auf dem Papier.
3) Weshalb Authentizität die Basis für langfristige Mandantenbeziehungen ist.
4) Warum weniger Folien in der Akquise mehr Wirkung entfalten.
5) Wie KI die Rolle junger Berater verändert, aber nicht ersetzt.

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Vernetze Dich mit Florian Warring auf LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/florian-warring-45a855104/

Florians Leseempfehlung:
Never Split the Difference  von Chris Voss |   https://amzn.eu/d/0glqCDPq
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Über den Host David:
David ist Partner bei entero und verfügt über umfangreiche Erfahrung in der Salesforce-Beratung, insbesondere im Consulting von Beratungsunternehmen bei der Optimierung und Digitalisierung ihrer Prozesse.
In den letzten zehn Jahren hat er Teams geleitet, komplexe Kundenbeziehungen verwaltet und digitale Lösungen implementiert, die die betriebliche Effizienz verbessern.
Seine Leidenschaft gilt der Unterstützung von Unternehmen bei der Nutzung von Technologien zur Förderung von Wachstum und Transformation, um sicherzustellen, dass sie in einer zunehmend digitalen Welt wettbewerbsfähig bleiben.

Schreibe David einfach via E-Mail unter [email protected]
oder connecte Dich auf LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danheier/

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Bisherige Gäste des LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcasts: Friederich von Hurter, Melanie Tobler, Tilman Au und viele weitere!

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If a buyer looked at your firm today, would they see focus or fragmentation?

Daniel Schwartmann, Managing Director at ServTeq Capital Advisors, has spent decades on the buyer side of the table, including leading 150+ acquisitions during his time at Accenture.

In this conversation with host Sammy Gebele, he breaks down what strategic buyers and private equity investors actually pay for and what they label as “distraction.”

You’ll hear why differentiation is rarely about having more capabilities and almost always about owning a specific swim lane, building a story the market can instantly understand, and making growth decisions with the end in mind.

Daniel has seen how growth without a defined endgame leads to diluted positioning and a lower valuation, and he insists that the years leading up to a capital event must be treated as a deliberate value-creation phase.

He also explains how private equity can serve as a strategic "booster" rather than a final exit, and what investors actually look for before committing capital.

You'll learn:

1. Why unclear positioning quietly erodes valuation and how to build a niche buyers will pay a premium for.

2. How to grow with the end in mind by aligning your equity story, operating model, and leadership bench years before a transaction.

3. When private equity acts as a growth accelerator and when it becomes a strategic mismatch.

4. How to expand into adjacencies, technology, or new markets without diluting the positioning that drives your valuation.

5. How buyers assess founder retention risk and the subtle signals that can lower deal confidence.
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Get in touch with Daniel on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-schwartmann-820a0/

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About the host Sammy Gebele:

Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients.
Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/

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Past guests on the LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast include: Friederich von Hurter, Melanie Tobler, Tilman Au, and many more!

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Thanks to our friends at SAWOO for producing this episode with us!

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How do you grow a buy-and-build consulting platform where founders genuinely want to stay after the deal?

In this episode of the LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast, Alexander Thress, Partner and Head of M&A at AdEx Partners, shares how a PE-backed consulting platform can scale founder-friendly growth through disciplined buy-and-build.

Alexander joined AdEx with a very deliberate mandate: to grow the platform by selectively adding high-quality consulting firms that strengthen AdEx’s core positioning in large-scale transformation at the intersection of business, digital, IT, and AI — while preserving the entrepreneurial DNA of the firms that join.

Rather than chasing deal volume, Alexander invests significant time upfront to identify early fit across four dimensions: strategic alignment, cultural compatibility, financial fit, and genuine partnership intent. This early focus on fit avoids late-stage surprises and ensures that due diligence and contractual negotiations mainly validate decisions made with conviction beforehand.

The conversation also touches on AdEx’s growth strategy. While the current focus remains on the DACH region, the firm has already built a well-filled pipeline beyond it. In a second growth phase, AdEx sees attractive opportunities in culturally compatible markets — including the Nordics and other “beer-drinking countries” — where shared values and consulting cultures support sustainable integration.

You’ll learn:

1. Why buy-and-build only works when early fit assessment is executed before exhaustive due diligence starts

2. How a private equity investor adds value as a capital provider and sparring partner

3. Why founders join platforms for attitude, partnership, and future upside potential

4. What separates AI consultancies that deliver real impact from those chasing buzzwords

5. How integration succeeds when it feels like building a shared home, not executing a takeover

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Get in touch with Alexander on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexander-thress-3b8ba6b3/

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Alexander's book recommendation:
The Last Weynfeldt by Martin Suter -  https://a.co/d/iCEh6Id

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About the host Sammy Gebele:

Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients.
Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/

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Past guests on the LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast include: Friederich von Hurter, Melanie Tobler, Tilman Au, and many more!

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What happens when you stop "selling" and start designing every interaction around how clients want to feel working with you? In an industry where collaboration reigns supreme, this question is more relevant than ever.

Ambrish Parmar, Partner and Consulting & Growth Leader at Cognizant, has transformed the empathetic coaching mindset into a practical playbook for landing complex transformation deals. In this episode, he joins host Sammy Gebele to explore five ways senior consulting leaders can move beyond classic sales and foster genuine co-creation.

In a high-stakes transformation with a major European financial institution, Ambrish witnessed how active listening and a single well-timed question shifted a tense executive room from polite resistance to shared ownership of the roadmap. He emphasizes structuring initial conversations around an “us together” agenda, even designing workspaces to reflect stakeholder personalities.

Along the way, he learned that transformation should be viewed as an energy that builds across both organizations, and that prioritizing mental well-being has become a non-negotiable aspect of the Partner, MD, and CEO role.

You'll learn:

1. How to turn sales meetings into co-created transformation conversations.

2. A simple question that surfaces risk, trust, and real buying intent.

3. How to design teams and spaces around your clients’ personalities.

4. How to treat transformation as an energy that grows between your firm and clients.

5. Self-care practices that sustain your work as a consulting leader.

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Get in touch with Ambrish on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ambrish-parmar-consulting-leader-executive-coach/
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Ambrish's podcast recommendation:
Empire: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/empire/id1639561921

Ambrish's book:
Buenos Aires Sunrise by Carlos Chambers https://www.amazon.co.uk/Buenos-Aires-Sunrise-mesmerising-historical-ebook/dp/B0BZSGGNZJ
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About the host Sammy Gebele:

Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients.
Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/

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Past guests on the LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast include: Friederich von Hurter, Melanie Tobler, Tilman Au, and many more!

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Thanks to our friends at SAWOO for producing this episode with us!

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Christian Underwood didn’t build a sales team. He engineered a lead-generation system that would never need one.

The CEO & Co-Founder of StrategyFrame®AI joins us once again, this time to lift the lid on how he operationalized a GTM strategy to scale his AI-powered consulting platform.

With an 8-person team, Christian is on track to hit a mid–double-digit million revenue scale next year. He got there by doing one thing exceptionally well: focussing on a niche he could own, and becoming the authority through repeatable trust points.

He launched the first German-speaking strategy podcast, published a book to deepen credibility, and hosts an annual in-person event to strengthen relationships offline.

He is also candid about what did not work. Paid advertising never became a reliable lever, so the focus shifted to what actually compounds on LinkedIn: consistency, frequency, and relevance. That means turning every podcast episode into a content machine and showing up daily.

This episode is a transferrable playbook you can use to build credibility and relationships that convert without a single pitch.

You’ll learn:

1. Why owning one focussed niche beats broad capability in consulting
2. How one podcast becomes a daily content engine that builds authority at scale
3. What converts guests into clients, partners, and warm introductions without pitching
4. How an in-person event deepens trust without selling from stage
5. Why inbound demand on LinkedIn comes through consistency rather than paid ads

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Get in touch with Christian on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/christianunderwood/en
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Listen to Christian's podcast Hope is not a Strategy: https://www.strategyframe.ai/en/strategiepodcast-overview
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About the host Sammy Gebele:

Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients.
Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/

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Past guests on the LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast include: Friederich von Hurter, Melanie Tobler, Tilman Au, and many more!

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Thanks to our friends at SAWOO for producing this episode with us!