Sebastian Hartmann

Next Generation Management for Professional Services

Category: People & Culture

The Future Workplace for Consulting Professionals
March 15, 2022

The Future Workplace for Consulting Professionals

The past two years have shown that consulting services do NOT need to be delivered on-site for clients by default. Based on our survey across representatives from 40 consulting firms, we can see that 60% of firms plan to deliver at least 50% virtually – some 25% even want to provide more than two-thirds of their work remotely.

This has far-reaching implications on the way consulting services and solutions are architected and sold. 86% expect significant changes here. It puts the technology backbone of the firm and the modern workplace for professionals at the center of attention. But what are the consequences for the management and leadership of professional services firms? What does it take to become and operate as a more digital „connected firm“?

Your Future Workforce won’t fit into Your Firm!
December 23, 2021

Your Future Workforce won’t fit into Your Firm!

For most professional and B2B services firms, human capital constitutes the largest single cost driver of business activities. The current pace of change across consulting, legal, accounting services, and other professions is driving massive shifts in human capital requirements, skill transformation needs, and talent shortages. At the same time, top-tier talent is increasingly harder to recruit, develop and retain. Professional services firms are recognizing that they are not immune to the Great Resignation.

That’s why more and more firms are beginning to leverage a mix of employees and contingent workers to meet their clients’ needs, deliver competitive services and solutions and transform themselves. An extended workforce approach helps firms reduce fixed costs, leverage specialized skillsets for varying periods, increase capacity and individual flexibility or even innovate and grow in new markets. Building management capabilities for an extended workforce that combines internal and external resources will define the success of many professional services firms in the coming years. This article outlines some fundamental building blocks for designing a workforce ecosystem strategy and management capability.

Designing for Client-Centricity: A Lens for Legal, Consulting, Accounting and Technology Services Firms
May 19, 2020

Designing for Client-Centricity: A Lens for Legal, Consulting, Accounting and Technology Services Firms

Facing the current challenges has unleashed innovative thinking, agile methods and more dynamic organizations in many professional services firms. But how to anchor this way of thinking permanently?

Infusing old ways of working and outdated services with technology will not do the trick. Collaboration tools may provide a pioneering bridge, but will fail to deliver sustainable value – unless engagement models are re-designed.

The Benefits of Virtual Design Thinking Workshops
April 8, 2020

The Benefits of Virtual Design Thinking Workshops

Professional Services, like everyone else, are forced to move quickly towards delivering their expertise virtually or even digitally in the face of the COVID19 crisis. For legal, consulting and other expert services, design thinking takes on a whole new meaning, in order to adapt services and solutions for clients – and to develop and design answers to unprecedented challenges.

However, Design Thinking has been mostly known for its playful, innovation and creativity fostering and immersive on-site workshop settings… until now. And like everything else, these workshops need to take place virtually now. But is this even possible?

Can Old Dogs still learn New Tricks? Towards the Next Gen Playbook for Managing Professional Services
September 23, 2019

Can Old Dogs still learn New Tricks? Towards the Next Gen Playbook for Managing Professional Services

The inherited recipes for growth and profitability are eroding as the input-oriented models of traditionally fuzzy knowledge-based services are being replaced by throughput- or output-based compensation for much more client focused and increasingly digital solutions. Leaders and managers in charge of professional service firms need to adjust their management playbook in order to remain relevant in the next generation of professional services. But where to begin?

Next Generation Rainmakers in Professional Service Firms: Solution Managers (aka Product Managers)
July 23, 2019

Next Generation Rainmakers in Professional Service Firms: Solution Managers (aka Product Managers)

While the term „product management” may still sound foreign and incompatible with the fuzzy and often ill-defined (lovingly called “bespoke”) professional service business, its essence is already emerging in many forms, roles and organizational setups. Embracing the role of solution managers consciously and adjusting the organization surrounding them must be a key workstream within the digital transformation journey of any professional service firm today.

Next Generation Career Paths in Professional Service Firms
January 30, 2019

Next Generation Career Paths in Professional Service Firms

In order to thrive as a next generation PSF, leaders and managers need to acknowledge the need to hire, grow and retain top talent outside of traditional career paths – offering alternatives to contribute to a firm‘s success, to shape its path and drive its future.