Consulting 2030: How AI Is Redefining the Industry Playbook

For decades, consulting has been defined by human expertise, sharp suits, late-night slide decks, and the promise of turning complex problems into clear strategies. However, a revolution is underway. Everybody knows that artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming how consulting firms operate, from the way analysts gather insights to how partners deliver final recommendations. The AI consulting services market, valued at US$11 billion in 2025, is expected to surge to over US$90 billion by 2035, growing more than eight times in a decade. Even established players are shifting as BCG projects that AI-related work will represent 40% of its revenue by 2026, while EY reports a 30% annual increase in AI-driven consulting services. Rather than replacing consultants, AI is redefining what makes them valuable. The future of consulting will belong to those who can blend analytical precision with human judgment; professionals who understand not just how to use AI, but how to translate its output into strategic insight and client impact.

AI in Daily Consulting Operations

The consultant job is on the edge of changing. In fact, AI is transforming the consulting workflow. Tasks that once required teams of analysts, research, modeling, and data cleanup can now be automated, letting consultants hone in on insight and strategy. McKinsey’s AI tool, Lilli, instantly retrieves insights from thousands of past projects; they describe Lilli as a “superpower” that allows users to go beyond human limitations. In fact, it removes the limitation of human recall and cognitive capacity by giving consultants instant access to firm-wide knowledge that would otherwise take weeks to uncover. Instead of relying on personal experience or informal networks, they can interrogate decades of institutional learning in seconds, unlocking a level of pattern recognition and insight no individual analyst could achieve alone. Similarly, BCG partnered with OpenAI that automates market scans and slide drafting. Deloitte has also embraced the shift toward AI with its Quartz AI platform, which offers a wide range of applications, from accelerating drug discovery to reducing due-diligence time significantly. That’s only from three firms but the shift is inevitable for all players, as AI is reshaping the whole industry. Beyond efficiency, AI enables predictive modeling and scenario testing, expanding the types of service offerings that firms can deliver to clients. AI has become a true extension of the consulting toolkit, enhancing precision, speed, and impact. 

The impact on Consulting Value Proposition  

 Although AI improves the efficiency of consulting firms, its capabilities extend far further. AI is redefining how these firms generate and capture financial value—by expanding margins through automation, creating new technology-based revenue lines, and increasing project throughput with the same human capital. More than 90% of executives view AI as pivotal to cost transformation in the next 18 months, yet only a minority successfully convert productivity into profit, because true returns require redesigning work, not simply automating it. Recent evidence underscores this shift: an IBM study found that 47% of organizations already report positive ROI from AI investments , while KPMG reports that 57% of AI leaders say their AI initiatives meet or exceed return expectations. For consulting firms, these metrics reshape client expectations, the value of AI projects is no longer judged by innovation alone, but by measurable contributions to profitability, margins, and scalable delivery. This evolution is transforming the consulting business model itself, moving from billable hours and slide decks to technology-enabled solutions designed to deliver quantifiable financial outcomes. 

The Future Consultant Skillset

The professional profile of the successful consultant will shift as artificial intelligence permeates every step of consulting work. Technical literacy is no longer optional: the future consultant must know how to use, interpret and challenge AI's outputs. More importantly, it is knowing how to prompt, validate, and translate machine-generated insights into clear recommendations that define the next generation of client advisors. But the most valuable consultants will go beyond technical skill. They'll combine data fluency with financial acumen, linking AI adoption to measurable ROI and margin impact. The ability to quantify efficiency gains, forecast cost savings, and model profitability improvements will become core to the consulting toolkit. And finally, with automation performing much of the routine analysis, human strengths-strategic judgment such as empathy, creativity, and communication will be valued more than ever. The consultants who can help bridge the gap between algorithms and human decision-making and ensure that technology serves strategy, rather than vice versa, will be the ones who thrive.

The Human Edge

 As AI continues to reshape consulting, one truth will never change: people drive impact. Algorithms can generate insights, but it is consultants who turn them into strategy, relationships, and trust. The firms that can command this new era will be those that pair the latest technologies with judgment-where data will inform but people will decide. Ultimately, AI will never replace consulting; the ones who learn to work with it will redefine it. The future will be of those consultants who can translate complexity into clarity and know the most powerful advantage in business is not artificial but human.