Many firms are asking a difficult but necessary question: are their Partners truly driving business growth, or only equipped to simply respond to demand?...Read more about Are your Partners order takers rather than effective business development professionals?
The problem isn’t that firms lack the tools to redesign professional training. It’s that the incentive structure actively punishes them for doing so.Read more about The Last Analyst Class… So What?

Points of View

The Last Analyst Class

The grunt work nobody wanted to do was secretly the work that built every great professional. Now it’s gone.Read more about The Last Analyst Class
Ask most people in professional services what makes a good consultant, and you’ll hear the same answers repeated back to you: a strong work...Read more about Beating burnout: why professional services firms should look inwards to build resilience
Gen Z’s expectations for work are accelerating a shift toward flexible, skills-based development systems. As McKinsey & Company ’s [1]Aaron De Smet notes, younger...Read more about The future of skills-based progression
Senior managers, directors, or practice leads—are increasingly finding themselves in one of the most demanding positions within professional service firms. Positioned between senior leadership...Read more about The toughest level in consulting: senior managers 
Although I like to think that I have quite broad musical tastes, the hip hop music of the late 1980s – apparently now considered...Read more about 1980s Hip Hop, AI and the future of consulting
Ask most people in the profession what makes a good lawyer, and you’ll hear the same answers repeated back to you. A strong work...Read more about Why law firms should look inwards to build resilience
Neuroplasticity, often described as the brain’s ability to reorganise itself by forming new neural connections, is usually framed as a built-in feature—something the brain...Read more about Neuroplasticity: A superpower we can actively train
Is Consulting Just About Solutions, or a Catalyst for Change? The traditional role of consultants has primarily been seen as providing expert advice and...Read more about The Hidden Power of Knowledge Transfer in Consulting.
5 Ways to Collaborate Amongst Different Generations Wondering how to build a truly cohesive team? Our infographic on 5 ways to collaborate amongst different...Read more about 5 Ways to collaborate amongst different generations -infographic
Nostalgia isn’t limited to holiday music or consumer experiences; it can also play a significant role in the workplace. While driving after work last...Read more about Nostalgia in the workplace

Openside Group Points of View: Insight for Professional Services Leaders

Openside Group’s Points of View is an extensive library of thought leadership built over more than a decade, written specifically for professionals and leaders working in consulting, law, accounting, financial services and other advisory sectors.

The articles are deliberately challenging and thought-provoking, bridging the gap between academic research and real-world practice. Every piece is grounded in Openside’s deep experience of working with professional services firms across the globe, and comes with practical recommendations that readers can act on immediately.

The library spans a broad range of topics that matter most to people building careers and leading teams in professional services. On the technical side, readers will find rich content on analytical problem solving, structured thinking, hypothesis-driven approaches and critical thinking — the core intellectual skills that distinguish great consultants. Communication and storytelling feature prominently too, with articles exploring how to present with impact, craft compelling narratives and avoid the common trap of turning insight into a data dump.

Business development and client relationships are another major thread, covering everything from winning proposals and navigating procurement, to building trusted advisor relationships and differentiating your firm in a crowded market.

Leadership runs throughout the archive — from practical tips for new managers stepping into their first leadership role, to the complex dynamics of Partner performance, development and succession. Alongside this sits a growing body of content on wellbeing, resilience and workplace culture, including a widely read special report on the “always-on” culture that dominates professional services.

More recently, Openside has turned its attention to the future of the profession — examining how AI is reshaping consulting, what the rise of Gen Z means for firms, and how skills-based development is changing the talent landscape.

Taken together, the Points of View represent one of the most comprehensive independent perspectives on professional development and performance in professional services available today.