Helene LAFFITTE

Consulting Quest

Consulting Quest helps companies to better use, buy and manage consulting services.
Leveraging proprietary methodologies, digital tools and databanks, we help companies generate more value through consulting. Spend on the right projects, work with the right consultants and get the best possible outcomes for their projects at the right cost. 
On average our customers save 30-50% of their consulting costs while working with high-quality consulting firms.

Key Activities: Consulting Sourcing

Learn more at https://consultingquest.com or feel free to say hello at Helene.laffitte@consultingquest.com

Consulting Procurement Expert | Author | Founder | CEO

Why Not Partners

Why Not Partners is an advisory boutique focusing on sustainable growth and innovation for small to medium size companies. 

Key Activities: Strategy, Procurement, Organization

Managing Director | Consultant | Founder

Columbia Business School

MBA Graduate Student

GrDF

Gaz réseau distribution France (GrDF) is a gas distribution company, a 100% subsidiary of ENGIE (a global energy player and an expert operator in the energy sector.

Key Activities: Procurement Strategy, Performance Management, Change Management

Senior Project Manager | Industrial Strategy | Operations & Construction

The Center of excellence for GrDF is an entity that provides leadership, change management, best practices, research, support and training for technical focus areas.

Key Activities: Performance Evaluation, Make or Buy Strategy, Change Management

Project Manager | Center of Excellence | Construction

Gaz de France

The ENGIE Group research and operational expertise center (~400 persons) is dedicated to gas, new energy sources, and emerging technologies.

Key Activities: Project Management, Strategic Partnerships

Research and Development Project Manager

A Regional Gas Operations group designs, operates and maintains the gas grid for more than 100,000 clients while guaranteeing the safety of people and property, as well as the quality of delivery.

Key Activities: Quality Management System, Management, Process Improvement

Deputy Head of Regional Gas Operations

I’m the founder and CEO of Consulting Quest, a global leader in consulting sourcing and performance improvement, and I’m on a mission to make intellectual services procurement smarter, leaner, and future-ready. 

An engineer by training, I found my calling in management consulting. I’ve recently expanded into the SaaS world to help digitalize and elevate consulting procurement to the next level. 

Over the past decade, I’ve helped organizations navigate complex sourcing decisions, optimize spend, and elevate the way they engage with consulting across multiple sectors—chemicals, manufacturing, the public sector, and more. 

Along the way, I’ve helped clients save millions, upskill their procurement teams, and implement digital solutions to make their sourcing more efficient, faster, and more predictable. On average, I’ve enabled organizations to cut 30–50% of their consulting spend without compromising on quality. 

My work spans the full spectrum of the consulting procurement lifecycle: 

- Crafting RFPs and project scoping 
- Make-or-buy analysis 
- Implementing demand management practices 
- Market landscaping and benchmarking 
- Tailoring sourcing strategies to business needs 
- Evaluating and selecting the right providers 
- Leading contracting and negotiation processes 
- Project management and value tracking 
- Assessing consulting performance 
- Conducting procurement maturity assessments 

I'm not one of those "advise and vanish" consultants. I roll up my sleeves and work alongside my clients, making sure the expertise they invest in is embedded—creating lasting impact and long-term value for their organizations. 

Curious how this could apply to your team? Always open to exploring what’s possible.

Fellow consultants — before you hit submit on that RFP question, think twice. The quality of your questions says more about your professionalism than your proposal ever will.

Consulting Procurement Expert @ Consulting Quest | Author, MBA

Most companies treat legal–procurement friction as an unavoidable headache. 

But here’s the truth: the companies that solve it gain a huge competitive edge. 

Why? Because they unlock 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲. 
While competitors are stuck in 90+ day contracting cycles, they’re launching strategic projects in half the time. 

And they’re not reinventing the wheel—it’s the same simple fixes: 
⚖️ Joint governance structures 
📑 Standardized MSAs 
💻 Technology for visibility & automation 

💬 For legal leaders: what’s the one thing that would make your collaboration with procurement actually feel like a partnership?

📢 Excited to share the latest episode of Procurement Game Changers #PGC! Now available

Buying AI solutions is not a straightforward IT purchase — it’s full of uncertainty, evolving models, and complex risks. In this episode, I sat down with Debo Lufadeju, a seasoned procurement and project management professional, to explore how procurement can lead AI adoption responsibly.

We discuss:
 • How to define measurable business value before investing in AI
 • Running pilots and proof-of-concept initiatives without wasting resources
 • Setting up cross-functional teams and risk guardrails
 • Evaluating vendors and avoiding hype-driven purchases

For anyone navigating AI procurement, this episode is full of practical insights and real-world examples. Listen now and take the guesswork out of AI. https://lnkd.in/eipvAhTB

Open video: Navigating Uncertainty of Buying AI: Risks, Rewards, and Smarter Choices on youtu.be

Navigating Uncertainty of Buying AI: Risks, Rewards, and Smarter Choices

Let’s be honest—executives don’t wake up one morning thinking: “Today feels like a good day to spend millions on consulting.” 

They bring in consultants when invisible forces start pushing hard: 

🚀 Strategic Shifts – entering new markets, M&A buzz, digital pivots. 
📉 Performance Pressures – stalled growth, rising costs, quality hiccups. 
👥 People Dynamics – leadership changes, talent shortages, cultural friction. 
🌍 External Forces – regulation, tech disruption, competitive threats. 

Now here’s the kicker: procurement usually gets involved only at the sourcing stage. But by then, the why behind the project has already been shaped by these forces. 
 
👉 Procurement has to understand why executives need consulting. 
👉 Executives need to understand procurement’s constraints—and recognize their need for bringing them in from the start. 

When both sides align: 

Executives get smarter choices tailored to their goals. 
Procurement becomes a strategic partner, not just a gatekeeper. 
The organization gets maximum value from every consulting dollar. 

Bottom line: Consulting isn’t just about deliverables—it’s about context and collaboration. The stronger the exec–procurement handshake, the more successful the consulting engagement. 

💡 For more insider strategies on buying consulting right, join 4,000+ execs already reading Consulting Sourcing Spark. 

👉 Subscribe here: https://bit.ly/3J4I1Yx

Here’s something I’ve observed in Fortune 500s: 

🔹 Legal rarely understands consulting delivery models deeply. 
🔹 Procurement often overlooks liability landmines legal sees instantly. 

The result? Long back-and-forth cycles, mistrust, and sometimes poor outcomes. 

What if both sides had consulting-specific training? 

It’s a small investment with big payback: 
✅ Faster contracting 
✅ Smarter negotiations 
✅ Reduced frustration 

💬 If you’re in Legal—would consulting-specific training make your life easier?

One of the most heated debates I’ve seen in consulting procurement: 
Who owns the IP? 

Legal teams push for work-for-hire clauses. Consultants resist—arguing it kills their model. Procurement? Stuck in the middle, watching costs climb and deals stall. 

The fix? Pre-negotiated MSAs with standardized terms. Solve the tough IP clauses once—and stop paying the friction tax every single time. 

💬 Legal leaders: how does your org handle IP in consulting contracts?

Let’s be honest — buying consulting isn’t like buying software or office chairs. 

It’s complex. It’s strategic. And sometimes… it’s a little mysterious. 
But too often, organizations rely on instinct rather than insight. 
And that’s when costs go up, outcomes blur, and someone says, “We’ll do better next time.” 

In our upcoming webinar — 🎙️ “Where Does Your Organization Stand? Assessing Maturity in Consulting Procurement” — Laurent Thomas and I will share what we’ve learned after discussing with hundreds of consulting buyers around the world. 

You’ll walk away knowing how to spot blind spots, benchmark your practices, and turn maturity into money. 

Register here: https://lnkd.in/eVpjXCtK

Oh, and before you join — take the Maturity Survey [https://lnkd.in/egBCa723 ]
It’ll make the session way more valuable (and yes, you’ll get a free report).

A Gartner stat I often cite: 57% of contract delays are caused by compliance reviews that come in too late. 

In consulting procurement, those delays don’t just hurt timelines—they hurt margins. 

I’ve seen projects delayed by quarters, competitors moving ahead, and consulting firms raising rates to account for “negotiation fatigue.” 

👉 The real cost? It’s hiding in plain sight. 

💬 Have you ever seen a project stall for weeks over one liability clause? (I certainly have…)

𝗦𝗼... 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀? (𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗼, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻!) 

You’d be surprised how few organizations can actually answer that. 
Most teams have solid processes for indirect categories — but when it comes to consulting? Suddenly, it’s a mix of intuition, goodwill, and Excel spreadsheets from 2017. 

We’ve seen it time and again — great intentions, but no structured way to measure or improve. That’s exactly why Laurent and I built the 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 — your GPS for navigating consulting performance. 

Join us on this 𝟰𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 for a live session where we’ll unpack what maturity really means and how to turn it into your strategic edge. Register here: https://lnkd.in/eVpjXCtK 

💡Want to see where you stand before we go live? 
Take the quick 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆 and get your personalized report: 
👉 [https://lnkd.in/egBCa723]

Open article: Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Where Does Your Organization Stand? Assessing Maturity in Consulting Procurement. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting. by us02web.zoom.us

Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Where Does Your Organization Stand? Assessing Maturity in Consulting Procurement. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.

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