Top Consultants Industry Series

3:45 PM | Arrival and Registration

4:15 PM - 4:25 PM | Lightning Presentation 1: The New Consulting Model: Outcome-Based, AI-Enabled, Future-Ready

Agentic AI is compressing decades of operational change into a few short years, compelling consulting firms to fundamentally rethink how they price, staff, and deliver work. In this session, Certinia Chief Business Officer Prasad Narasimhan Sulur will examine the structural forces reshaping the consulting business model, from the shift to outcome-based pricing to the disruption of the traditional workforce pyramid. Drawing on nearly two decades as a senior leader in Bain & Company's software and services practices, and his role as a key author of Bain's AI impacts on services perspectives, Prasad will outline the three main imperatives for success in this new era: effectively leveraging AI, managing profitability against customer price expectations, and establishing an 'AI-native' identity. He will offer a frank look at what firms need to get right—on AI governance, delivery model redesign, and talent strategy—to capture value on the other side of this platform shift.

Prasad Sulur, Chief Business Officer - Certinia

4:25 PM - 4:35 PM | Lightning Presentation 2: The External Storm: Advising Clients Through Geopolitical and Market Disruption

Not since the dawn of the Information Age have we faced an inflection point of this magnitude. While there are similarities, the velocity of change presents a distinct challenge. The multivariate external forces of deglobalization, geopolitical uncertainty, and economic complexity add to the disruptive force of AI. Clients are facing structural changes, not merely cyclical trends, and those changes require a modern approach to strategy focused on optionality and speed, allowing for a more dynamic way of thinking about external pressures. Former linear models will not suffice. These conditions open the door to an entirely new approach to strategy consulting.

Michael Valocchi, Senior Client Solutions Advisor - Toptal

4:35 PM - 4:45 PM | Lightning Presentation 3: Growth Under Pressure: Finding New Markets, Models, and Revenue Streams

4:45 PM - 5:30 PM | Deep-Dive Panel Discussion: The Human Edge: Talent, Trust, and the Future Identity of the Consultant

To close the program, each of our three presenters will return for a dynamic panel discussion moderated by Consulting Magazine Director Michael Webb. This interactive session connects the dots between the various disruptive factors and how our industry can apply knowledge, awareness, and flexibility in operations while guiding clients through uncertain business conditions.

Michael A. Webb, Director - Consulting Magazine / U.S. Group Awards Director, Arc Network

5:30 PM - 6:00 PM | Program Ends / Pre-Networking Break

6:00 PM - 7:00 PM | Pre-Awards Dinner Cocktails

For registered awards dinner attendees*

7:00 PM - 9:30 PM | Awards Ceremony Dinner

For registered awards dinner attendees*

*For information on attending the Awards Dinner, please contact Eric Gordon at 917.685.2996 or email Eric.Gordon@arc-network.com.