Hands or Brains? How to Hire for Strategy, Strategically
Summary
Hiring a consultant is no different from hiring talent: you need to look both for hard and soft skills if you want a successful and fruitful relationship. The most commonly used selection criteria, visual impact of the portfolio, same-industry experience, results achieved and price competitiveness don’t necessarily help to make a better selection. This presentation contains samples of the three key skills to look for, how they were critical in project success, and how to look for these skills in a consultancy.
Key Insights
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Hiring for known problems calls for 'hands,' while unknown problems require 'brains' with strategic skills.
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Evaluating agencies by portfolio visuals emphasizes output, not problem-solving effectiveness.
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Industry-specific experience is less important than demonstrated expertise across diverse challenges.
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Higher price does not guarantee better strategic capabilities; agencies also optimize their margins.
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Partnership mindset leads to value creation by challenging client assumptions rather than just delivering services.
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Successful strategy projects must produce solutions adopted company-wide, not just isolated deliverables.
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Facilitating cross-department collaboration, especially with technical teams, is key to project success.
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Flexibility means aligning on goals despite differing methodologies or tools, not simply adapting processes.
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Listening to how agencies navigate organizational context reveals leadership beyond technical execution.
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Proposals often better reveal strategic thinking and innovation than interviews alone.
Notable Quotes
"If you care about the solution, you’re much better off hiring hands."
"A vendor provides a service, but a partner delivers value."
"Knowing the difference between hands and brains is key to managing expectations."
"Choosing an agency based on portfolio visuals is focusing on output, not on how effective the solution was."
"The biggest challenge of a project is building a solution that’s going to be adopted company-wide."
"Flexibility is not about using the same methodologies; it’s about moving together towards the same goal."
"Big picture thinkers move past obstacles and create unexpected paths and new solutions."
"You find the right fit when someone challenges your assumptions and provides a different perspective."
"Success is about not sacrificing quality, not about mere integration."
"Listening for leadership is about understanding how they navigate a project beyond the solution."
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