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How Generative AI is Redefining Productivity for Consulting Firms

May 23, 2025 (4 min read)

In consulting, firms aren’t just adopting genAI, they’re using it to change what productivity means.

The report, Setting the Pace: How Management Consultants Are Leading the GenAI Revolution, reveals that 56% of consultants now save 3–4 hours daily using genAI—a figure that towers over results for financial (34%) and technology (31%) industries. But for Knowledge Management and Data Strategy leaders, it is important to discover how that time being used and how it can help teams capture even greater efficiency.

This piece explores what that productivity really means for consulting firms and how knowledge and data leaders can be at the frontier of genAI transformation.

From time saved to value delivered

The time savings alone are staggering. GenAI now handles many manual tasks consultants once managed: streamlining research, drafting content, summarizing documents, and even supporting due diligence tasks.

This is not just about getting hours back. It’s about where those hours are going. For firms already adopting genAI tools:

  • 82% of consultants report higher productivity
  • 53% say their job satisfaction has improved
  • Top benefits include better decision-making, faster project completion, and higher-quality deliverables

For consulting firms, this means genAI isn’t replacing talent—it’s amplifying it. Time once spent chasing data or drafting reports is now redirected toward deeper analysis, sharper insights, and client-ready deliverables.

MORE: 10 best practices to ensure AI meets (or exceeds) your company’s objectives

GenAI enhances, not replaces

For knowledge and data managers, one of the key concerns is protecting the strategic value of their research teams. The good news: consultants don’t see genAI as a replacement, but as an enhancer.

The report shows that:

  • 56% believe genAI will enhance and not replace human work
  • 54% expect new roles to emerge alongside AI adoption

That’s an opportunity for knowledge leaders to position their teams to help consultants integrate genAI into workflows, surface high-value insights, and make smarter use of saved time. The same goes for research teams that knowledge managers oversee, as their own deliverables stand to enjoy the same augmentation through genAI adoption.

MORE: How to capitalize on generative AI to enhance decision making

What Are leading firms doing differently?

The most forward-thinking consultancies are embedding genAI into firm-wide strategy:

  • 68% of firms have purchased or implemented genAI tools in the past year
  • 42% of consultants have received advanced training (compared to just 15% in other sectors)
  • 70% of consulting organizations run genAI training quarterly

This reflects a larger trend toward moving beyond experimentation, and into full-scale enterprise integration. What sets these firms apart is a commitment to scale; they’re not only investing in tools but building the muscle to use them effectively. That includes creating org-wide playbooks, rethinking service delivery models, and embedding genAI into client-facing workflows.

MORE: Generative AI 101

What this means for knowledge managers

As stewards of research quality and data accuracy, knowledge managers are uniquely positioned to lead genAI adoption if they act soon, and with clear goals.

1. Reinforce the knowledge function as a strategic driver

GenAI can perform document review and data extraction, but it’s up to users across consulting and research teams to validate, contextualize, and deliver trusted insights. Clients still rely on human judgment to guide them to the best insights.

2. Enable smarter use of saved time

Consultants want to do more than move faster—they want to go deeper. Help them use genAI to:

3. Embed genAI into your workflow

Rather than fearing a shift in their role, knowledge leaders should embrace co-piloting genAI tools:

  • Design training on prompt engineering to help consultants get better outputs from genAI tools, accelerating productivity without sacrificing quality.
  • Curate trusted datasets for genAI use so outputs are based on accurate, vetted, and relevant information and therefore avoid hallucinations or irrelevant responses.
  • Establish governance and accuracy frameworks to ensure the firm's use of genAI aligns with compliance standards, mitigates risk, and reinforces client trust

These efforts don’t just support consultants, they also shape how genAI delivers value across the business.

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Addressing risk head-on

While optimism around genAI is high, so is awareness of its risks. From the report, surveyed consultants showed several areas of concern that must be addressed in order to encourage successful adoption:

  • 58% cite data privacy and security as top concerns
  • 34% worry about accuracy and overreliance on the technology
  • Medium-sized firms, in particular, show the highest sensitivity to these risks

This underscores the critical role of knowledge and data leaders in every firm. You’re not just a buyer of technology but an authority on trust. GenAI implementations must be rooted in transparency, ethical sourcing, and reliable outputs. From verifying sources to setting usage guardrails, knowledge managers are essential in ensuring genAI augments consulting work without compromising quality or compliance.

MORE: What is RAG and why does it matter for trusted generative AI?

Don’t Just Catch Up—Lead

Consulting firms are no longer asking if genAI can enhance productivity—they’re figuring out how to scale it responsibly. The firms that succeed will be those that connect genAI tools to high-value consulting outcomes, guided by trusted knowledge professionals.

 Want to see what leading consulting firms are doing with genAI?

Download the full LexisNexis Setting the Pace: How Consultants are Leading the GenAI Revolution report and explore:

  • How 80% of consultants are using genAI tools in daily work
  • The biggest time-saving use cases by firm size
  • Why firms with AI training programs are pulling ahead
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