Those looking for a digitalisation consultant usually have one of two problems.
- Either: you know something needs to change but not exactly what or how. Too many opinions, too little clarity, and somewhere out there should be someone who sorts it out.
- Or: you know exactly what you want. The idea is clear, the direction is set. But internally the capacity or the right people to implement it are missing. So you look for someone who helps.
Both are legitimate. Both are understandable. And there are plenty of offers out there for both. The question is just: what do you actually get?
The two types of people reading this.
Those currently looking for a digitalisation consultant are usually one of two types.
Type 1: You know something needs to change but not exactly what. Processes are stuck, systems do not talk to each other, the team is working at capacity. Something is off, you can name it but not yet solve it.
Type 2: You know exactly what you want. The direction is clear, the idea is set. What is missing are people to implement it. Not available internally, not yet found externally.
For both the same applies: what you need is not someone who analyses the problem again. What you need is someone who starts.
What you are looking for. And what you often get.
You are looking for someone who understands what is broken, who says clearly what they think, and who starts. Ideally tomorrow.
What you often get: a strategy workshop. Then a second one. Then a document with best practices. Then a presentation with recommendations for things everyone internally already knew. And then a proposal for phase two.
That is not malice. That is the model. Those paid by the hour have no incentive to make it shorter. Those who want to extend mandates nod along to ideas instead of asking uncomfortable questions.
Consultant vs. doer. The difference in practice.
- The consultant runs strategy workshops.
The doer pops the hood, says honestly what they think, and suggests starting with XYZ tomorrow. - The consultant delivers a PowerPoint with best practices.
The doer builds you a solution tomorrow so people can finally work properly again. - The consultant nods along to your ideas to extend the mandate.
The doer puts their finger on the wound, asks uncomfortable questions, and tells you when the current software architecture is simply garbage. - The consultant analyses, talks to everyone, paints slides and delivers a recommendation.
The doer has already built something before the consultant has started painting slides.
Why this matters more now than ever.
In the age of AI, time is a critical factor. Everything moves faster. Those who do not start today watch others get three steps ahead tomorrow.
Months-long analysis phases were always expensive. Today they are also dangerous. Start tomorrow, validate the day after: that is what makes the difference. Not because you should act without thinking, but because clarity comes from doing, not from slides.
While others are still reading the manual, the doer already has the wrench in their hand.
When do you need which?
Honestly: there are situations where classic consulting makes sense. When a company genuinely does not know where it stands, when complex stakeholder landscapes need to be aligned, when external validation is politically necessary internally.
But those are exceptions, not the rule.
Those with concrete ideas who need someone to implement them: doer.
Those who know something is broken and need someone to say it straight: doer.
Those who need someone to blame for the next decision: consultant.
What makes a doer.
Not the tool. Not the method. The attitude.
A doer measures themselves by results, not output. Not by the number of slides, not by the milestones checked off, not by the final report. But by whether things run better afterwards.
A doer says what they think. Even when it is uncomfortable. Even when the architecture is garbage. Even when the CEO’s idea does not work. Those who do not say it are optimising for their own mandate, not for the result.
A doer starts. Fast, with what is there, and adjusts along the way. Not because they are unprepared, but because they know that real insights come from doing, not from planning.
There are plenty of digitalisation consultants. Really plenty.
Someone who pops the hood, says it straight, and starts tomorrow: that is a different story. And that is exactly what companies need right now.
We are doers by conviction. How we approach things is in the playbook.
— Robert
