How to evaluate a strategy consultant in 30 minutes.

The sales call.

You're on a call with a strategy consultant. They're sharp. The slides are polished. The frameworks are familiar. The proposal will arrive Friday with a five-figure number on it.

How do you know if they're going to ship a brief or a deck? An evidence chain or a vibes round?

Five questions, asked in this order, tell you everything in 30 minutes.

The five questions.

1. "What's the deliverable shape?" Real answer: a 6-15 page brief with a ranked recommendation on page 1. Bad answer: "It depends on the engagement," "a comprehensive report," "a 60-page strategic plan."
2. "Can you show me a real (anonymized) brief from a past client?" Real answer: yes, here's one, and they walk you through the ranked recommendation. Bad answer: "We treat client work as confidential" (translation: nothing to show).
3. "How do you handle being wrong?" Real answer: a specific example of a past recommendation that didn't work + what they learned. Bad answer: "Our recommendations are always grounded in evidence" (translation: they've never said they were wrong out loud).
4. "What does your evidence chain look like?" Real answer: 3-5 specific signal types (reviews, ads, search demand, pricing, etc.) and how they connect into the recommendation. Bad answer: "We use a proprietary framework called..."
5. "What's your refund policy?" Real answer: full refund if the brief doesn't give you a defensible move, named window. Bad answer: "We don't offer refunds because the value is in the engagement."

How to read their answers.

Score each answer 0 or 1. Pass = 4+/5. Sub-scores below 4 = walk.

• Q1 (deliverable shape): a real brief format, page count, structure. 0 if they describe a "comprehensive plan."
• Q2 (show me one): they show one. 0 if they invoke confidentiality with no offer to redact.
• Q3 (handle being wrong): a specific incident, not a philosophy. 0 if they pivot to "we're rigorous."
• Q4 (evidence chain): they name 3-5 signal types you can actually verify in public. 0 if it's a framework name with no inputs.
• Q5 (refund policy): named window + named condition. 0 if they say "results vary."

When zero refund policy is acceptable.

Very specific case: pure facilitation work (workshops, off-sites, decision rooms). Output is the alignment, not the brief. For all strategy briefs / market intelligence / category work, refund policy is a basic signal of confidence.

Back to the Friday proposal.

You asked the five questions. They answered crisply on three. Hedged on the brief sample. No refund policy. Score: 3/5.

You take the next call with a different consultant. Five for five, including a real anonymized brief and a 14-day refund window. You signed Tuesday.

The proposal was never the deciding document. The 30-minute call was.

[TODO B · Mechanism/why]

[TODO: Explain WHY the thing in A happens. Cite mechanism, data, evidence.]

[TODO C · Application/the move]

[TODO: What to do with the insight. Concrete steps.]

1. [Step 1] description
2. [Step 2] description
3. [Step 3] description

[TODO: When NOT to do this / counter-case]

[TODO: One paragraph showing edge case or when the move is wrong.]

[TODO A' · Callback to scene]

[TODO: Return to the opening scene with new meaning. 2-3 sentences. Don't over-resolve.]