AI Won’t Replace Consultants. But It Will Change Who Wins

In this episode of The Leaders of the Workplace of Tomorrow, Host Steve Miksta sits down with David A. Fields mentor, advisor, and champion for boutique and solo consultants at David A. Fields Consulting Group, to discuss building and scaling consulting firms, defining client outcomes, and using AI responsibly in consulting work. David draws on 30 years in consulting, including his transition from pharmaceutical and corporate roles to firm leadership and coaching small consulting firms. He explains that consultants create value by helping clients achieve outcomes, while firms must develop systems, business development capability, and human expertise that AI cannot replace. ## **Key Takeaways** - Define consulting engagements around the client’s desired outcome rather than hours, tasks, or deliverables. - Ask why repeatedly to move clients from requested tasks to the business impact they want to achieve. - As consulting firms grow, build systems and develop additional rainmakers instead of relying on one person to win business. - Use AI as a tool to support expertise, not as a substitute for knowledge in unfamiliar areas. - Keep humans accountable for AI-enabled work and verify outputs, sources, and assumptions. - Protect consulting offerings by emphasizing implementation, change management, nuanced conversations, and human-to-human accountability. ## **Episode Timestamps** \[00:00] - Teaser \[01:23] - Steve introduces David and asks about his consulting background. \[03:15] - Common challenges consulting firms face as they grow \[05:05] - Importance of Defining Outcomes \[08:44] - How AI is changing consulting demand and delivery \[12:48] - The Importance Of Intent in Using AI for Defining Outcomes \[14:17] - How David’s services have evolved with AI. \[16:06] - Viewing AI agents as employees and how they fit into an organization. \[20:00] - Importance of Human-to-Human Interaction in Consulting. \[25:44] - What’s next and where to find David, Monday Live, and Win Clients Now Disclosure: *Portions of this episode (such as the introduction or promotional segments) use AI-generated voice narration produced under human editorial review.* ## **🔗 Follow the Guest David A. Fields and His Company:** ## 👉 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidafields/ ## 👉 Company LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidafields/ ## 👉 Company Website: https://davidafields.com/mondaylive ## **🔗Follow the podcast:** 👉Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/033rjH7T2gSv9KyUs4uC4x?si=db0aed8e99f84fc8https://open.spotify.com/show/033rjH7T2gSv9KyUs4uC4x?si=db0aed8e99f84fc8 👉Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/leaders-of-the-workplace-of-tomorrow/id1896864216https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/leaders-of-the-workplace-of-tomorrow/id1896864216 👉 YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@opptyunlimited9222https://www.youtube.com/@opptyunlimited9222 ## **🔗 Connect with the Host Steve Miksta:** ## 👉 LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevemiksta/https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevemiksta/ ## **🔗 Connect with the Host Company, Oppty Unlimited:** 👉 LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/opptyunlimited/https://www.linkedin.com/company/opptyunlimited/ 👉 Website:https://www.opptyunlimited.com/https://www.opptyunlimited.com/