How to choose consultants who deliver value—not just take your money and your watch

With consulting revenues soaring, choosing the right partner means defining objectives, setting scope, and avoiding solutions that miss the mark—or your watch.

The market for consulting services continues to expand rapidly, with global revenues estimated between $100 billion and $200 billion in 2024. That’s a staggering figure for a profession often jokingly accused of taking your watch, telling you the time, and keeping the watch along with your money!

However, those less cynical would argue that the best consultants not only help you adjust your watch but might even provide a better one. The real challenge is knowing which consultants will add value rather than simply charge for their time.

Having been on the buy side and today on the sell side of consulting engagements, I’ve learned—sometimes the hard way—that choosing the right consultants starts with a clear and agreed understanding of the assignment’s objectives. Are you looking to develop a business strategy, create a target operating model, onboard a tech platform, or manage a complex project portfolio? The first and most fundamental step in avoiding consultants who might just take your money and your watch is ensuring both parties clearly understand what needs to be done and what success looks like.

How consultants work—the ‘consulting hierarchy’

Consultants typically approach clients in one of two ways: expansively (“We’re here to help with everything you’re doing wrong”) or selectively (“We specialise in these key areas where you need support”). The expansive approach often leads to consultants searching for problems mid-engagement, whereas the selective approach allows for a focused, structured, and collaborative process.

This structured process follows a consulting hierarchy, typically represented as a pyramid. At its base, consultants provide data and insights, then move up through identifying problems, proposing solutions, assisting with implementation, driving operational change, and, at the top, becoming a strategic business partner.

Key principles for choosing the right consultants

Savvy clients and credible consultants work together through the consulting hierarchy, ensuring they identify the right problems, propose realistic solutions based on proven experience, and establish clear success measures. And they should explicitly agree on how many layers of the hierarchy the engagement will cover. This will keep scopes defined and timelines realistic.

Of course, reaching this clarity requires tough questions upfront. Consultants should ask: “What solutions have you tried before, and what were the outcomes?” “Do you already have a preferred approach?” and “Are all stakeholders aligned on the problem?” While these may seem frustrating, they are essential to ensuring the engagement doesn’t produce a brilliant solution to the wrong problem—or one that simply won’t work.

Transparency is critical. Consultants who genuinely seek to add value should operate within their proven areas of expertise or partner with specialists to extend their capabilities. A strong partnership approach can significantly enhance the assignment’s impact and prevent consultants from overpromising and underdelivering.

Regular check-ins and a structured end-of-engagement review are essential. Both parties should assess whether objectives were met, whether the engagement stayed within scope and whether the delivered outcomes justified the investment.

Ultimately, ensuring that a consulting engagement doesn’t turn into an exercise in watch theft requires:

• A jointly agreed definition of objectives before starting.
• A selective and focused approach to the problems being addressed.
• Clear identification of which layers of the consulting hierarchy are included.
• A written agreement on scope, timeline, and expected outcomes.
• Stakeholder alignment and commitment to the process.
• The inclusion of expert partners was needed to enhance effectiveness.
• Regular progress reviews and a thorough end-of-engagement evaluation.

Conclusion

While on the sell side, I haven’t asked a client for their watch, I did, whilst on the buy side, come dangerously close to handing mine over. That’s why I felt it might be helpful to share these insights, helping clients and consultants work together in a way that delivers true value—without any timepieces changing hands. I hope I’ve achieved that in this piece, that you enjoyed reading it, and that it helped you better understand the approach the best consultants take to their client engagements.