PA Consulting · AI strategy
Helping PA Consulting shape its AI strategy.
A practical strategy for how PA could use custom AI assistants in its services, support its consultants and build a new platform capability.
Strategy engagement / 2023–24
- Sean’s role
- Strategy research, use-case development and presentation design, working with PA’s senior leaders.
- What we delivered
- Opportunity analysis, platform concepts and implementation options.
- The focus
- From AI possibilities to practical choicesWhat to pursue, how to develop it and where to start.
The challenge
Custom AI assistants opened up new possibilities for consulting. PA wanted to understand where they could add value, how they might fit its services and what it would take to build the capability.
The leadership team needed a clear set of options to support an investment decision.
What we did
We worked with PA’s senior leaders to turn an emerging technology opportunity into a practical strategy. Sean researched the market, developed use cases across PA’s sectors and helped shape the proposed platform and its value to clients.
We brought the analysis together in a leadership presentation, connecting the opportunities to operating-model choices, priorities and next steps.
How it works
The work compared existing consulting workflows with ways AI assistants could support them. Use cases described the manual work involved, the people and time it required, and potential applications for custom GPTs.
We also assessed whether PA should build, partner or buy. Platform concepts, initial features and implementation scenarios helped make those choices concrete.
The results
We produced a strategy and decision-making pack covering AI opportunities, platform direction, build–partner–buy options and implementation priorities.
This gave the leadership team a shared basis for discussing which opportunities to pursue and what would be needed to develop them.
What we learned
A useful AI strategy connects the technology to real work. The important questions are where it helps, what the business needs to deliver it and which step is worth taking first.