Episode 107: Narrative, The Secret To Growing A $6 Billion Consulting Business
Jul 7, 2022
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Lawrence Hutter, a seasoned consultant, shares the secrets of growing a $6 billion consulting business. He discusses launching his own consultancy and scaling Deloitte's global consumer practice. The conversation delves into building successful consultancies, strategic leadership, and aligning global teams through narrative storytelling.
Crafting a powerful narrative for a business involves balancing aspiration with authenticity to energize internal and external audiences authentically.
Developing a coherent narrative requires building an elevator pitch and FAQs that encapsulate the essence of the business vision.
Balancing ambition and reality is fundamental in creating a narrative that motivates while staying grounded in feasible objectives.
Deep dives
Developing a Clear and Compelling Narrative
Crafting a powerful narrative for a business involves synthesizing ambition with reality to energize both internal and external audiences authentically. Leadership plays a crucial role in this process by balancing aspiration with authenticity. The narrative should be based on a clear vision that resonates with the organization's goals while being realistically achievable. In creating a compelling narrative, it's vital to have consistent messaging that energizes without being overly consensual and to ensure that the narrative is authentic and aligns with the business's true essence.
Building a Coherent Narrative
Developing a coherent narrative requires building an elevator pitch, frequently asked questions (FAQ), and answers that encapsulate the essence of the business vision. Conducting training sessions with professional facilitators can help team members internalize and deliver the narrative effectively. Practicing face-to-face scenarios, recording sessions, and reviewing them can aid in refining and personalizing the narrative for enhanced engagement and articulation. By engaging with the narrative actively, individuals can adopt and embody it more compellingly in their interactions.
Defining Key Questions for FAQ
Determining the top FAQs involves intuition about what stakeholders may inquire about and identifying commonly asked questions based on actual interactions. Understanding the prevalent queries and concerns can guide the selection of essential questions to address in the FAQ document. By incorporating real-world interactions and feedback, organizations can proactively respond to inquiries, alleviate concerns, and shape a comprehensive FAQ resource that addresses stakeholders' key interests and uncertainties.
Balancing Ambition with Reality in Crafting the Narrative
Balancing ambition and reality is fundamental in creating a narrative that motivates while staying grounded in feasible objectives. It is crucial for the narrative to stimulate enthusiasm externally and internally while ensuring that the story is authentic and achievable. Leaders need to synthesize aspirational elements with practicality to develop a narrative that inspires and resonates with stakeholders. By harmonizing ambition with realism, organizations can craft narratives that energize and engage both internal teams and external audiences effectively.
Using Narratives for External Marketing and Branding
Externalizing the narrative of a business is crucial for its success. Clients and colleagues play a significant role in shaping this narrative, impacting both the brand and the company's employer appeal. Advising people to present the narrative externally, whether in client interactions or marketing materials, is vital. Using the narrative consistently across different touchpoints like pre-sale engagements, pitches, networking, and recruitment enhances brand positioning and messaging.
Transitioning to Sustainability and Authenticity in Brand Narratives
Transitioning towards sustainable practices is a critical step for businesses, driven by the need for authentic and value-driven narratives. The shift from traditional CSR approaches to sustainable value creation is emphasized. Companies are urged to align their actions with their narrative to build trust and loyalty. By authentically communicating their sustainability journey, organizations can secure a competitive advantage, even amid industry-specific challenges.
In the latest episode of Climb into Consulting, Nick is joined by Lawrence Hutter, Senior Advisor to Quick Release and Alvarez & Marsal, and Chairman of the Brand Experience Group.
You don’t often meet many people who have ‘done it all’, but Lawrence certainly has!
Lawrence has spent his career building successful consulting businesses in the fast-paced consumer goods industry. From building his own consultancy, The Customer Group, to running Deloitte's $6 billion dollar global consumer practice, which he grew threefold during his time at the helm.
After retiring for only four days, Lawrence was contacted by Alvarez & Marsal, a conversation which led to him launching their European corporate transformation practice. A practice that Lawrence and the team grew into a €100m business.
Having since moved into a portfolio career, Lawrence now splits his focus between his main passions of tackling the climate change crisis and working alongside organisations to help them build and externalise their organisational narratives.
During this fascinating conversation, Nick and Lawrence explore many of the secrets to his impressive career so far. They discuss the key lessons he’s learnt from launching and growing multiple consultancies, including:
- How Lawrence was able to get his own consulting business off the ground at a time when boutique consultancies were anything but the norm.
- How Lawrence was able to grow Deloitte’s global consumer practice so quickly and the key strategies that helped him, that you can use to scale your own business.
- And the importance of narrative, what it is, why it’s so powerful and how it can be used effectively to help you grow your consultancy.
Whether you’re a budding entrepreneur building the business plan for your consultancy, or the leader of a global business, looking for advice on how to take your practice to the next level, this conversation is one you’ll find extremely valuable.
Enjoy!
Reach out to Lawrence: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawrence-hutter-7078b61/
Learn more about Quick Release: https://www.quickrelease.co.uk/
Check out the Brand Experience Group: https://brandexperience-group.com/
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