Inside the quiet revolution: How AI in consulting is forcing giants like McKinsey to rethink everything.
You ever wonder which jobs are really safe from AI? We hear a lot about artists, writers, and coders, but I always figured the high-flying, six-figure strategy consultants were probably fine. You know, the ones from firms like McKinsey who parachute in to solve a company’s biggest problems. Turns out, that assumption might be totally wrong. The rise of AI in consulting isn’t just a new tool; it’s forcing the industry to ask some pretty deep questions about its own future.
It makes sense when you think about it. For nearly a century, companies have paid a fortune for the brainpower of elite consultants. These are the people who can dive into a sea of data, find the signal in the noise, and present a clear path forward in a slick PowerPoint deck. But what happens when an AI can do a huge chunk of that—the analysis, the data crunching, the slide-making—in a matter of seconds, not weeks?
This isn’t some far-off future scenario. It’s happening right now. At McKinsey, AI is reportedly a topic at every single board meeting. They’re not just talking about it; they’re building it. The firm has already rolled out thousands of “AI agents” to its workforce. These digital assistants are helping consultants draft documents in the classic, sharp “McKinsey tone,” check the logic of their arguments, and summarize massive research documents. It’s a fundamental rewiring of how they work.
How AI in Consulting Changes the Entire Business
The old consulting model was straightforward: hire the smartest people from the best universities, put them on a project, and bill the client for their time. But AI blows that model up. If a project that used to take 15 consultants can now be done by three consultants and a handful of AI agents, you can’t really bill the same way.
This is pushing firms toward a whole new way of thinking. Instead of just selling advice, they’re selling outcomes. About a quarter of McKinsey’s work is now in outcomes-based deals, meaning they get paid based on whether their solutions actually achieve the promised results.
Clients aren’t looking for a “suit with a PowerPoint” anymore. They want a partner who will get in the trenches with them, help implement new systems, and co-create solutions. And in a world where AI is on every CEO’s mind, they want to work with a consulting firm that’s actually using and experimenting with the tech themselves. As it turns out, advising clients on AI and technology now makes up a whopping 40% of McKinsey’s revenue. You have to practice what you preach. For more on this shift, check out how other industries are adapting their business models in this Harvard Business Review article.
The Future of Consulting: Fewer Rookies, More Experts?
So if AI is handling the grunt work, does that mean consulting firms will stop hiring? The leaders at McKinsey say no. They insist they’ll continue to hire “aggressively.” But the shape of the teams is already changing.
A classic strategy project that once needed a manager and 14 consultants might now only need a manager and two or three consultants working alongside AI tools. The people who will be most affected are the junior employees, the ones typically tasked with the rote work of data collection and analysis.
This creates a fascinating dynamic. As Kate Smaje, who leads McKinsey’s AI efforts, put it, AI can get you a “pretty good, average answer” on its own. This means the need for basic, mediocre expertise is disappearing. But what becomes even more valuable is distinctive, deep expertise. The senior partners with decades of experience who have seen it all before become indispensable. They can guide the AI, interpret its findings in the context of complex human systems, and provide the wisdom that a machine can’t.
It seems the future of AI in consulting isn’t about replacing every human. It’s about creating a new kind of “centaur” workforce—part human, part machine. The consultants of the future won’t be replaced by AI, but they will be working alongside it every single day. The age of arrogance might be over, but the age of augmentation is just beginning. As originally reported in the Wall Street Journal, this is an existential moment for the profession, but one that could ultimately be a force for good.