5 ways to sharpen your consulting with AI.

5 ways to sharpen your consulting with AI.

There’s a lot of talk about AI in consulting. But not much guidance on how to use it 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 commoditising your thinking.

Here are 5 practical ways you can adopt today to make AI augment - not substitute - your craft as a consultant.

1. 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿

Instead of: “Write me a consulting deck for client X about Y.”

Try: “How can I best structure a recommendation for this problem?”

Then, build the story in your own words - into that structure.

Or use AI for a critical perspective:

“The COO I’m working with is a Driver type. She's decisive and action-oriented. She’ll want outcomes and a 10-point plan. Will this draft executive summary land with them?”

Bottom line:
You’re still doing the thinking and shaping. AI accelerates the feedback loop.

2. 𝗗𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗲-𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 (𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗳 → 𝗔𝗜)

Draft your problem tree, issue analysis, or storyline first.

Then ask AI to critique: “What gaps or assumptions might I be missing?”

Why this works:
You’re building judgment by practicing first. The AI critique then trains you to spot blind spots faster in the future.

3. 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 & 𝗩𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗜 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆

This one’s a favourite.

Ask AI to role play as a skeptical client: “Challenge my presentation as if you were the CFO who isn’t a fan of consultants.”

Or as a junior colleague: “I’ll explain this framework. Ask me clarifying questions as if you don’t understand.”

Impact:
Sharper communication, adaptability, and lets you rehearse in a low-stakes environment.

4. 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀

Never paste a client problem and ask for a canned solution. You’ll get a vanilla answer - use that with clients and your advice becomes a commodity.

Instead, think for yourself. Start with your own draft hypothesis, framework, or storyline. Then ask AI to stress-test and refine it: “What alternative lenses or risks am I not considering?”

Result:
You stay in control of the insight, while AI broadens perspective.

5. 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗝𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁

Ask AI for a proposed solution to a business case. Then you critique the AI answer.

Ask yourself: “What’s missing? What assumptions are shaky? What would my client push back on?”

Why:
This strengthens your consultant's instinct - the ability to filter, prioritise, and sharpen solutions.

𝗕𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗺 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗲

AI is a great sparring partner (to practice structuring, client challenges, and communication) and mirror (to test and refine your output).

But it should never replace the first pass of your independent thinking - because that is your consulting superpower.