Can consultants change the world?

This is a question I hear a lot from young professionals committed to achieving a positive impact in their professional life and attracted by the consulting profession. I’ve spent almost 40 years in strategy consulting, the last 14 as the founder of Hystra, and another 18 with McKinsey that I left as a senior partner.

While these years give me a broad base of experience to answer from, they also come with a bias I will not attempt to deny.

Part of my answer is the recognition that I have asked myself this question quite a few times. Here are my thoughts about it, which led to a positive resolution… as I am still a consultant today!

Choosing the right clients

A consultant doesn’t change the world, his or her clients do. Hence choosing the right clients is the most important decision a consultant makes. Considering the dozens of clients I have worked with over the years, corporations, social entrepreneurs, foundations or public agencies, I have been at my best when challenged by strong clients. Without any hesitation, “the better the client, the better the consultant”. At Hystra, we are privileged to work with some of the leading foundations, corporates and entrepreneurs in the field of impact and we are breaking new grounds and learning with them along the way.  Strong clients will not always follow your advice but will value a robust and honest discussion. Trust and respect are at the heart of a productive and impactful client-consultant relationship. Trust because of the shared depth of commitment for impact, willingness to challenge your own view of the world, willingness to take the risks of getting out of their comfort zone. Respect for each other base of experience, hard learned lessons of failures as well as limitations and constraints. 

Serving or partnering?

It is often said that consultants serve their clients. When I started Hystra, a friend at Ashoka asked me “can consultants have an agenda?” In my experience, the answer can only be “yes” and making this agenda explicit is key to building an effective relationship with your clients. At Hystra, we often are the ones who come up with opportunities to have positive impact (e.g., we believe the market for solar lanterns is ready for disruption) and convince our clients (e.g., we believe you are ideally placed to make it happen) to work together to explore and capture these opportunities for business and impact. Having a common goal and deciding to join forces is what matters in the relationship; the fact that our clients happen to pay our fees is secondary. We see our clients as true partners and I trust they would say the same.

Influence or power, you must choose

I sometimes hear the frustration of young consultants when our clients are unwilling or unable to act on our recommendations. Indeed, a common caricature is that a consultant job is limited to producing slides and writing reports. Though it is undeniably a part of the trade, this view is missing the point that these tools are only means to an end: influencing decisions and actions by powerful players. Early on in my career, I have made the decision to have a lot of influence rather than a little bit of power, and I don’t regret it. Whether or not consultants will publicly be given credit for it, they – and their client - will know that they have influenced key decisions that have impacted thousands or millions of lives. Writing public reports, as we sometimes do at Hystra, is akin to putting a message in a bottle and throwing it at sea. We don’t know who will eventually read it and – if our ideas are compelling – actually do something about it. Over the years, a few very impactful entrepreneurs have told us that their initial spark had come or gained strength when they read one of our reports. So, as you toll on your next power point slide, think that you may be empowering an unknown entrepreneur on the other side of the world.

As a consultant, asking yourself this question regularly (Can consultants change the world?) will only make you better consultants. Questioning your skills and methodologies, your choice of clients, of sectors is key to avoid complacency. A consultant that is not learning every day is falling behind and will soon be irrelevant.

In the end, there are many different ways to “change the world”: as a consultant, a social entrepreneur, a corporate intrapreneur, a civil servant, an investor…. What these ways all have in common is that they take time, years actually, to produce any sizable, lasting result. As one of my favorite clients said: “time doesn’t respect what is done without him”. Therefore, as you think about the best way for you to have positive impact, make sure that you will enjoy the journey … because it will be a long one!

As far as I am concerned, I know I strive in solving complex problems, discovering new worlds, working in a team of young and diverse colleagues passionate about changing the world…as consultants.

And you, what is YOUR way?

Olivier Kayser is the founding partner of Hystra, a strategy consulting firm specializing in inclusive and sustainable businesses.

#inclusivebusiness #strategyconsultant #impact #socialentrepreneur