Great perspective.

As a consultant I can think of few situations where there would have been any chance of success without client involvement. In fact, consulting engagements fail most dramatically when client staff or more particularly the sponsor fails to properly engage in the business at hand. I try to avoid situations where the client wants to give you a free hand. It shows a lack of ownership and spells trouble.

To your point about learning on the job, I think the question is complex. Most consulting engagements involve a significant degree of learning for both the client and the consulting team. How to staff for that learning process depends on the situation.

The most challenging and interesting assignments do not involve the kind of problem that has been solved 100 times before. In fact some consulting assignments tackle problems that were completely unknown ten years ago. At times a combination of “old hands” and early career consulting professionals can deliver the greatest value to the client, especially where a blend of hard won experience and current knowledge of the latest techniques and technology is needed.

As they say, your mileage can vary. Junior resources with limited experience can flounder and fail while others deliver outstanding outcomes. Properly selected and supervised the best juniors can deliver high quality results at competitive rates. To make the decision more difficult there seems to be only a small correlation between price and value. I recommend that clients fully check references and conduct rigorous interviews with everyone on the consulting team before signing any contract.