281 - Chris Gant, Craig Walker, Eddie Short, ex-Big 4 Partners & CSuites: Veles Consulting - Economics of Advice - The Changing Role of Management Consultants in the Professional Services Industry

Let us know your thoughts. Send us a Text Message. Follow me to see Heads Talk Podcast Audiograms every Monday on LinkedInEpisode Title: 🇬🇧Economics of Advice - The Changing Role of Management Consultants in the Professional Services Industry🇬🇧🌎PLEASE NOTE HEADS TALK HAS TAKEN A BREAK AND WILL BE BACK EARLY IN THE NEW YEAR. This special end-of-year episode of Heads Talk® I am joined by three gentlemen I’ve known for decades, former colleagues, industry peers, and each a respected voice in the evolution of consulting. In the spirit of the season, you might even say I’ve gathered three wise men to help us navigate where professional services go next in the age of AI.Craig Walker, Chris Gant, Eddie Short: Between them, they’ve led major global transformations, shaped technology strategy in the Big 4 (KPMG, EY, Deloitte), and held C-suite, board and leadership roles across organisations such as Shell, O2, Capgemini, Salesforce, and more. Now, they’ve come together to build a new kind of consulting firm: lean, senior-led, and AI-era ready:- Veles Consulting.This conversation isn’t about automation or incremental efficiency. It’s about reinvention - the new economics of advice, the erosion and rebuilding of trust, and whether agile boutiques are truly challenging the Big Firm model… or simply rewriting the rules with smarter tools.As one of my final episodes of 2025, with Christmas around the corner, it felt only fitting to close the year in conversation with three people I’ve known, respected, and collaborated with for years. It’s a sharp, lively, insider discussion about what consulting was, what it is, and what it must become in the age of agentic AI.Stay tuned. This one lands with impact!!Topics Covered:◽️ Is the Traditional Consulting Model Broken? What Changed from the 80s, 90s, 2000s?◽️ Why Trust Is the Defining Issue of AI Adoption and Has Consulting Lost It?◽️ Reinvention vs Redefinition: What AI Truly Means for Professional Services Today◽️ Eight C-Suite Commandments for AI-Powered Consulting◽️ How AI Changes the Economics of Consulting including Margins, Fee Models, Staffing and Scope◽️ Rise of Senior-Led Boutiques: Myth or Material Shift?◽️ Case Studies Where Boutiques Have Outperformed Big Four Incumbents◽️ Should Global Banks, Energy Majors and Others Trust Boutiques with Critical Systems?◽️ Agentic AI and Accountability: Who Owns the Chain of Risk?◽️ Continuity and Scalability When the Delivery Model Relies on Senior Operators◽️ What Does a Consulting Firm Become When AI Reasons, Designs and Decides for Clients?So download⏳grab a cup of Bird & Blend Tea Co. - Mulled Cider Tea ☕️& have a listen🛋Episode Sponsor◽️AccxiaABOUT THE HOSTContact the Veles Consulting Team HERESupport the showFollow, Support, Contact Heads Talk® - A Fly On The Boardroom WallLinkedInWebsiteTwitterEmail at [email protected]