The rainmaker model is dying - here's what works instead

I've spoken to hundreds of boutique consulting firms over the years, and there's one thing I keep seeing over and over again: an over-reliance on rainmakers.

So many firms rely on this relationship-driven 'lone wolf' to handle sales and conjure up business on repeat.

But some firms have started to notice it's not quite "rain" - more of a light drizzle. And it's not sustainable.

The rainmaker model doesn't fit with the way modern consulting firms work anymore.

These are complex sales with multi-stakeholder buying processes that need genuine expertise... and an entire team supporting them, not just a single rainmaker.

I recently spoke to Brian Andersen, Senior Partner at Kvadrant, about this very topic on a recent episode of The Consulting Pulse - and I've collated some insights from this discussion.

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From 'lone wolves' to collaborative selling

The long-standing tradition in consulting firms is that the partners carry the weight of business development.

Their personal relationships and reputation solely determine the pipeline - while the rest of the team play a supporting (and often invisible) role.

But Brian pointed out that sales is rarely linear in consulting - there are many steps along the way, with many different people supporting each one.

“There’s someone who has dialogue and has the initial connection. There might be someone else who has the right thinking for how do we solve this problem. And then there’s always someone helping do the proposal and do the pre-research for what to put in and maybe do a little bit of data crunching and so on.”

Each contribution is a critical piece of the sale - and if you want to recognize these contributions, you need to shift away from the rainmaker model to one of shared ownership.

Your clients are buying a team's expertise, not a single individual's. Reflect this internally and you'll be better positioned to compete externally.

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Attribution, not anecdote

At Kvadrant, they formalize this collective approach with a sales attribution model that focuses on each stage of the process:

"We attribute a sale across the team that works on it. I think it's a more fair way to think about sales attribution - so that it doesn't just all end up on Ben because Ben knew the CEO of the company."

You might be concerned that such an approach might result in some in-fighting about who did what or who deserves what - but Brian clarifies:

"Whoever owns the account and the relationship has the majority almost no matter what. And then around thirty percent can be completely based on, did you do a great proposal? Did you think it through? What does the solution need?”

Adopting this structure allows for even junior team members to contribute meaningfully - so even if you haven't built any relationships yet, you can still help out with proposals, prospecting, etc.

So this model isn't purely motivational - it develops commercial skills throughout the business and creates a pipeline of future leaders.

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Talking about the 's-word'

The s-word - sales - isn't mystical. It's not reliant on charm or aggressive persuasion. It simply requires clarity, contribution, and - most importantly - collaboration.

"Smart consultants are great sellers because they advise us… some of the best consulting sellers I’ve met are deeply, deeply introverted. They spend a lot of time in their own head and are problem solvers."

The skills that make great consultants - listening, problem-solving, empathy - also make great sellers.

But it's up to the firm to create an environment where these skills are both recognized and rewarded.

Everyone can contribution, regardless of perosnality type.

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Final thoughts

If your firm still relies on one or two rainmakers, growth is built on fragile ground. When those individuals leave, the revenue pipeline evaporates.

Kvadrant’s model presents a smarter, more sustainable alternative: a firm-wide approach to winning work, where everyone - from associates to partners - understands their role in sales.

The best rainmakers are the teams that sell together.