A half-built rocket
won’t take you to the Moon

In his famous 1962 speech, JFK declared the ambition to go to the Moon “not because it was easy, but because it was hard”. 60 years later it’s still an inspirational quote printed on mugs but this wouldn’t have led to one of the greatest achievements of mankind if not for the thousands of people who worked around the clock to make this bold statement a reality. In the same way, business is driven by promises of success and innovation but it becomes meaningless without people who actually do the hard work. Unfortunately, the consulting industry is skilled to lure businesses into a trap of overpromising and underdelivering, using template solutions that don’t address the company’s specific needs. The result is a half-built rocket that crashes on the way to launch, leaving the client to pick up the pieces while the consultants move to yet another project.

It seems like the ability to make inspiring promises has become the face of our age – we see it in marketing, business, and social media, but often the crucial question of HOW to make it happen is brushed off and presented as one’s own failure to deliver.

Enough with the BS already

The consulting industry frequently thrives on the excitement of shiny new ideas and solutions, capturing clients’ attention through engaging presentations, inspiring talks, and pledges of success. Unfortunately, this leads to the vicious cycle of overpromising, failing to meet expectations, and moving from one project to another.

As a result, the business is left with a half-built rocket that was promised to reach the Moon but ended up crashing on the way to launch, and now, metaphorically speaking, Branson is stripped from his engineers and left with a wrench to fix the mess himself…

The vicious cycle of the consulting industry

The most important question of all – what is the core problem and the best possible solution for the specific business – is never asked. Instead, a template solution is used but it’s as absurd as treating depression with cancer medicine. It might sound harsh, but most often nobody genuinely cares whether the client actually needs the solution or if it addresses the root problem that caused the trouble in the first place.

Unfortunately, the process is focused on closing the deal whatever it takes and overpromising is an integral part of it. The aftermath of a signed contract becomes tomorrow’s challenge and the one left to deal with it is the business itself.

Cynical? Exaggerated?

Perhaps, but it’s difficult to overstate how often this is precisely how niche consulting operates. Take a look at any website of a consultancy agency – all of them are so skilled at promising unmatched growth and industry leadership, no wonder you start imagining an unprecedented future success if only you worked with them – it’s an irresistible hook, and you are sold!

A few months later, you find yourself watching the consultant you hired demonstrating a presentation, outlining the background, all the hard work they have done, and the findings of the investigation. You see your colleagues nodding in agreement when self-evident, but still relevant weak points are mentioned. Finally, the consultant flips to the most awaited part of the presentation – the solutions. Since you’re already hyped up from hearing the pain points you don’t question the improvement ideas straight away – after all, change is hard. The consultant mentions solutions you have already considered but abandoned because of the lack of human, time, and financial resources, but you think to yourself that perhaps the agency has found a better way to solve this. You eagerly wait for the details and try to escape the rising dread that all of this was for nothing. After all, it was your initiative to bring them on to solve the pressing problem that no one on the team had the time nor the skills to figure out. At one point the presentation is over – there are a few questions about some of the proposed solutions but the consultant brushes them off easily. Why shouldn’t you believe them, they have experienced the same problem working with other customers in the past – and the same solutions worked, at least you think so…

But what happens next? Most ideas go and die in the PowerPoint slide and some that are easier to implement and understand – the low-hanging fruit are completed. And what happens in 2 years time? The same problems creep-up again, but when you open the presentation: most of the information is outdated. The technology stack has changed, there are new products and it’s time to call in the agency again to help you figure out where to go next…

It’s so simple to propose ideas in PowerPoint presentations, but getting sh*t actually done, is another story that often requires the ‘ugly’, hard work that no one is willing to do. The business couldn’t implement the consultancy’s advice? It’s their failure! But is it really? Of course, this is painful to admit because it would mean companies are regularly spending large amounts of money on something that turns out to be partially useful.

Business of getting sh*t done

Hate to admit but we were the guys on both sides of the table. The ones on the consultancy side, clearly understanding we were overselling a solution that isn’t fit to the client’s needs and the ones sinking in desperation, realizing that the presentation had created even more headaches than before.

Back then we promised ourselves to one day kill the PowerPoint presentation vibe and transform that into executing a clear step-by-step plan on how to solve the problems and achieve the business goals, backed by enough details, examples and variations to make it just a matter of doing, not figuring out HOW. Besides, executing it together with the client, instead of abandoning the ship while it’s still a float.

Problems are meant to be solved, not made even bigger. Sorry for the directness but we believe that a bit of a cold shower is exactly what the industry needs. For too long there have been empty promises that have led the companies to an even bigger mess. That’s why we are in the business of getting shit done – we are Winston Wolf of Pulp fiction and we solve problems.

No fluff, no bullshit, instead we provide:

Attentive Listening
understanding in depth why we are needed/why we were approached and the bigger picture –  to know how our work might impact other projects in the company
Root Cause Analysis
Identify hidden obstacles and issues that have prevented the business from achieving its goals.
Strategic Evaluation
Assess whether it’s the right time to start the project or if there are software, team, process, or other resource dependencies that need to be addressed before engaging with us.
Roadmap Creation
clear, step by step plan on how to get the results we propose with the resources available
Resource Maximization
Utilize budget, time, data, external factors, team capabilities, and software to craft a unique solution that sets the company apart from competitors.
Effective Communication
we will speak clearly, give examples from your industry or company and avoid overcomplicating things – to ensure we’re on the same page from start to finish
Persistence Until Success
Never give up on a client – Stay committed to the client and the project until the desired goals are reached.

In short – we take a deep dive in the root of the problem and keep going until it’s solved and turned from problem to profit. We do all of that by maximizing the resources the business already has, without selling the client something he definitely doesn’t need or can’t afford.

No more half-built, overpromised, and underdelivered rockets – getting to the Moon takes more than inspiring ambitions. It’s a lot of hard work that requires the ability to roll up your sleeves and get dirty.