LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast Logo

LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast

Listen

Ep. 130 — Why Mid-Sized Consulting Firms Are Structurally Fragile - And How Productized, IP-Led Models Win in the AI Era - with Amol Punekar

Ep. 130 — Why Mid-Sized Consulting Firms Are Structurally Fragile - And How Productized, IP-Led Models Win in the AI Era - with Amol Punekar

The most dangerous place in consulting today isn’t the bottom…

It’s the middle.

Mid-sized consulting firms continue to grow, but many are becoming structurally fragile without realizing it. In this episode, Amol Punekar, Regional Director of Business for the UK and EU at Lyzr AI, explains why only service-led models create non-durable revenue and increasing pressure over time.

He outlines how firms get squeezed between scaled incumbents and niche specialists—and why competing on effort is no longer viable. The conversation explores how productized, IP-led offerings change revenue quality, improve margins, and create long-term defensibility, along with what it actually takes to make that shift inside a consulting organization.

You’ll learn:

1. Why service-led consulting creates fragile, reset-every-year revenue
2. How the “squeezed middle” makes mid-sized firms structurally vulnerable
3. What productized services change in margins, win rates, and positioning
4. How to identify what to productize using the “three-time rule”
5. Why most firms fail—and the leadership trade-offs required to succeed

___________

Amol Punekar is open to connecting on enterprise AI transformation and IP asset-led consulting models. If you would like to exchange perspectives, reach out on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amol-punekar-3760671/

___________

Amol’s book recommendations:
The Changing World Order by Ray Dalio | https://www.amazon.de/dp/1471196690/
Visualize by Maya Raichoora | https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Visualise-Maya-Raichoora/dp/1846048524/

___________

Sammy and SAWOO offer a B2B community-building service that establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and helps you build genuine, human-to-human relationships with your dream clients. Get in touch with Sammy Gebele on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammygebele/

___________

More episodes and insights: https://www.leadersinconsulting.com/podcast

About

The LEADERS IN CONSULTING Podcast is dedicated to helping Partners and MDs of consultancies grow their business faster. If you want to learn best practices from other leaders in consulting, this show is for you.

Each episode features an interview with a consultancy Partner, MD or thought leader, discussing topics like:

  1. How to set up a winning strategy for your consultancy
  2. How to upsell and cross-sell more
  3. How to win big whale leads and convert those to clients
  4. Hiring and keeping valuable team members
  5. How to become a thought leader by building your personal brand

Hosted by

Sammy Gebele, CEO of SAWOO