The Consulting Pulse by CMap (CMap)

Today I'm joined by Karen Thomas-BlandNon Exec, Optima Partners & Archus and David Jorgenson, CEO at Equiteq

Learn what makes consulting firms investable, what investors focus on, and how firms can prepare for PE investment or an exit – right across operations, finance, delivery and sales.

Follow Karen on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenthomas-bland/

Follow David on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-jorgenson-a5424a/

Follow Ben on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmedwards/

Visit CMap - https://www.cmap.io/

We're joined by Prof. Joe O'Mahoney & Michael Zipursky as they talk us through the key challenges and opportunities of growing a consulting firm in the UK & US.

Follow Prof. Joe on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joeomahoney/

Follow Michael on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/zipursky/

Follow Ben on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmedwards/

Visit CMap - https://www.cmap.io/

Tom Rodenhauser and Ramone Param join us today from Kennedy Intelligence, the trusted partner for research, M&A and strategic advisory for consulting services providers. Together, we explore the major industry-wide changes that have led to a critical inflection in professional services, which will change the future of the consulting industry.

Learn from leading growth & revenue acceleration consulting firm, SBR Consulting, who expertly advise professional service firms like yours, on how to master discovery, qualification and ultimately your pipeline.

I'm joined by Richard Longstreet, Founder of Tarka Talent, who has placed hundreds of consultants across both large and boutique consultancies. Using his firsthand experience, we'll discuss the opportunities, challenges, successes, and pitfalls of building high-performing teams.

Striking the right balance between securing top talent and avoiding costly mis-hires is one of the most pervasive challenges for consulting firms. Many still rely on traditional methods like personal networks or overlook critical factors like cultural and business fit—leading to inefficiencies and setbacks.

Follow Richard on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rwjlongstreet/

Visit Tarka Talent - https://tarkatalent.co.uk/

Follow Ben on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmedwards/

Visit CMap - https://www.cmap.io/

We're joined by Pip Morpeth, CEO at Method Grid, exploring how to master the productization of services & scale effectively.

Find out more about CMap at - https://www.cmap.io/

To learn more about Method Grid visit - https://methodgrid.com/

Follow Pip on LinkedIn at - https://www.linkedin.com/in/pip-morpeth-39398a5/

Follow Ben Edwards on LinkedIn at - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmedwards/

Whether you’re in growth mode or your firm has more rollercoaster-like demand, optimizing your talent supply, utilization, and client margin will be the biggest factor in your 2025 success.

Join Mark Sloan, MD @ Asaph Advisors, as we uncover what was holding firms back in 2024, and what needs to happen next year to sustain & increase growth for every metric.

Find out more about CMap at - https://www.cmap.io/

To learn more about Asaph Advisors visit - https://asaphadvisors.com/

Follow Mark on LinkedIn at - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-sloan-70500b3

Follow Ben Edwards on LinkedIn at - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmedwards/

CMap and former Channel 3 Consulting CEO, John Howard, explore the journey from growth to exit, covering ideation to execution. Learn the key strategies and efforts that prepared Channel 3 for a successful transaction. Discover essential KPIs and practices for scaling, and gain insights into the MBO and exit process for consulting leaders.

Get exclusive insights from from Greg Alexander, the author of "The Boutique", on how he'd attempt to build another 30-person consulting firm with $30m turnover & 80%+ margins.

Building on our hugely popular 2023 webinar we ran, we've invited 130+ person consultancy, 101 Ways, and leading UK consulting academic, Professor Joe O'Mahoney, to discuss how firms are moving from concept to delivery across an AI landscape intertwined with ML, Tech & Data.

We're joined by James O’Sullivan, CEO at Project One as we explore why personal brand always has been incredibly important in consulting - it’s why firms can have founder dependency for sales, or over-resourcing their superstars on delivery.

Today we're joined for a second time by James O'Sullivan, CEO of one of the UK’s best-known boutique consulting firms, Project One. 

We explore how he attracted high-quality talent & built a hugely successful firm… all without chasing growth, shiny service lines or inorganic expansion.

Follow James on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-o-sullivan-3a2596/

Follow Project One on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/project-one-ltd/

Follow Ben on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmedwards/

Visit CMap - https://www.cmap.io/

Striking the balance between tracking KPIs within an inch of their lives, or simply leaving success to chance based on strong historical, is a tightrope for most consulting firms.

The majority of boutique consultancies are in the extremes - measure far too little, or far too much, and often focusing on past performance. However, there is a sweet spot that our experts will reveal, enabling you to successfully plan for the future and achieve growth.

Both guests - Simon England & John Howard, Garwood Solutions - have vast experience leading consulting firms of all shapes and sizes, and now advise firms on tailored growth strategies... Listen to get a taste of how they help consultancies capture, assess & prioritize insights, to drive the firm forwards.