Do you have the Skill Edge you need to thrive as a consultant?

The good news: Upskilling and Reskilling are themselves Skills...and you can learn them

The consulting world is moving faster than ever. Unless you are learning new skills at pace, you’re not just standing still - you’re falling behind.

The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 suggests:

Workers can expect that two-fifths (39%) of their existing skill sets will be transformed or become outdated over the 2025-2030 period… Skill gaps are categorically considered the biggest barrier to business transformation by Future of Jobs Survey respondents, with 63% of employers identifying them as a major barrier over the 2025-2030 period.

A 2024 TalentLMS study found that 71% of employees want to update their skills more frequently, and 80% are pushing for greater employer investment in learning.

When I speak to consulting team leaders, which I do multiple times a week, they are increasingly unsure about the skills they’ll need in 12, 18, or 24 months from now. All they know is they will be different. Client needs are changing, team churn is increasing, AI is looming (it does feel like it’s constantly looming and never quite landing - suspect it will be suddenly then all at once when it does).

This all means the cycles of upskilling (enhancing existing skills) and reskilling (learning entirely new ones) are accelerating. Firms struggle to hire against these future needs, so developing their existing teams becomes a priority. Except they don’t know what they need to develop!

For consultants, whether you’re embedded in a firm or flying solo, this is both a challenge and an opportunity. Those who master the art of rapidly developing new skills will have a razor-sharp edge over those who don’t.

The good news?

Upskilling and reskilling are themselves skills, and ones you can systematically build. The formula for this isn’t complex but it does take deliberate focus. I think of it as four stages: Awareness, Learning, Practice, and Teaching.

Your 4-stage blueprint for skill development

Awareness: From Unconscious Incompetence to Conscious Incompetence

You can’t learn what you don’t know you need. Awareness is about spotting the gap between where you are and where you need to be. In a firm, this should be guided by a competency framework that outlines the skills required for your role and the next one up. But let’s be real: many frameworks are either outdated or too generic to keep pace with 2025’s demands. As an independent consultant, you’re on your own to define this… which can be a blessing in disguise.

Start by mapping two things: the skills your clients need you to have now (e.g., scoping projects for quick proof-of-value) and the skills they’ll need you to have soon (e.g., leveraging AI for deeper insights). Then, self-assess honestly. Tools like 360-degree feedback or candid chats with colleagues and clients can help. If you tell ChatGPT to be brutally honest and not sycophantic, it can provide some great insight. The goal is to move from blissful ignorance (“I’m fine!”) to a humbling realisation (“Oh, I need to level up”).

Learning: From Conscious Incompetence to Conscious Competence

Once you know your gaps, it’s time to learn. This stage is about building a foundational understanding of the skill - its principles, patterns, and applications. You’ve got options here: self-serve resources like online courses (think Coursera or LinkedIn Learning), books, or podcasts; or structured learning like the programmes Honeycomb runs. Give me a shout if you want some guidance on where to start.

For consultants, blending both is key. Self-serve is flexible and often available on-demand, but can lack context; taught programmes offer depth but are too time intensive to work for all skill gaps.

Let’s say you’re learning to use AI for personal productivity. You might start with a course on prompt engineering, then join a peer group to swap tips on tools like ChatGPT or Copilot. The aim is to get to a point where you can apply the skill deliberately, even if it feels clunky. You’re not a master yet - you’re just competent enough to try.

Practice: From Conscious Competence to Unconscious Competence

Learning without practice is like reading a recipe without cooking. To make a skill second nature, you need to do it — repeatedly, imperfectly, and bravely. This is where many consultants stall, paralysed by the fear of looking foolish. But stepping through that fear is non-negotiable.

For me, this is the gap in the classic 70/20/10 model of learning. This says learning happens 70% on-the-job (apprenticeship model), 20% through peer feedback & coaching, 10% through structured training. The %s are just ball parks but you get the idea. I think deliberate practice is missing in here, or at least hidden in the 70% and the 10%. It needs to be more explicit.

Adeption.io nails this with their vertical development framework of Heat Experiences (high-stakes tasks that stretch you), Colliding Perspectives (diverse feedback from others), and Reflection (making sense of it all). Want to get better at trust-building through vulnerability? Try sharing a personal story in a client meeting and see how it lands. Scoping for proof-of-value? Pitch a small, experimental project to a client and iterate based on their feedback. Each attempt, paired with reflection, inches you toward mastery where the skill feels instinctive.

Teaching: From Unconscious Competence to Reflective Competence

The ultimate test of mastery is teaching others — explaining a skill forces you to articulate its nuances and cement your own understanding. This Reflective Competence lets you adapt the skill to new contexts and stay ahead of the curve.

For consultants, teaching can take many forms: mentoring a junior colleague, writing a blog post, or leading a client workshop. If you’re simplifying and sharing expertise, for instance, you might create a short guide for clients on a complex topic. In this way, teaching doesn’t just solidify your skills but helps position you as a thought leader, amplifying your value.

The skills every consultant needs in 2025

If you asked me to hang my hat on the skill areas that are critical for consultants right now, I’d go with these four. They’re based on conversations we’re having and what clients are already demanding.

1. Trust building through emotional intimacy & vulnerability

   Clients want partners, not just advisors. Sharing authentic stories, admitting uncertainties, and showing empathy build deeper connections. Practise this by opening up in low-stakes settings first, then scale to bigger moments.

2. Using AI for personal productivity

   AI tools can automate research, draft proposals, or analyse data, but only if you know how to wield them. Start with prompt engineering basics and experiment with tools tailored to consulting, like Notion AI or Jasper.

3. Simplifying and sharing expertise

   Complex ideas lose impact if they’re not clear. Learn to distil insights into bite-sized, actionable advice. Try explaining a technical concept to a non-expert friend, then refine your explanation based on their questions.

4. Scoping for proof-of-value

   Clients are sceptical of big promises. Master crafting small, measurable projects that demonstrate ROI fast. Practice by proposing a pilot project to a client, focusing on clear outcomes over flashy deliverables.

The edge is yours to claim

The pace of change isn’t slowing down. In the next five years, the majority of workers will need new skills to stay relevant. The consultants who thrive will be those who treat upskilling and reskilling as a core competency. The four-stage process — Awareness, Learning, Practice, Teaching — gives you a repeatable system to stay ahead. Whether you’re in a firm with a shiny competency framework or an independent carving your own path, the responsibility is yours.

So, what’s your next skill? Pick one of the four above or identify your own, map your gaps, and get started. The edge isn’t just in what you know — it’s in how fast you can learn what’s next.

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