The consulting research problem: You have 12 industry reports, 3 analyst briefs, 200 pages of client interview notes, and a deck due tomorrow morning. Reading everything thoroughly isn't possible. Presenting without understanding everything is a risk.
Edithly compresses research synthesis from days to hours.
The Research Synthesis Bottleneck
Management consulting engagements are research-intensive. Before a client presentation, consultants are expected to have synthesised:
- Industry reports (200–400 pages each)
- Analyst briefs (McKinsey Global Institute, Deloitte Insights, etc.)
- Client-provided internal documents (financial data, process documentation)
- Interview transcripts from stakeholder conversations
- Competitor intelligence
Traditional synthesis: read each document, take notes, identify themes, cross-reference, build the narrative. For a large engagement, this takes 3–5 days of analyst time.
With Edithly: upload everything to a project repository, ask cross-document synthesis questions, generate a draft narrative structure. Same quality output in 4–6 hours.
Research Synthesis Workflow
Step 1: Build the Engagement Repository
Create an Edithly repository named for the engagement (e.g., "Client X — Digital Transformation").
Upload:
- All industry reports (PDF)
- Analyst briefs (PDF)
- Client documents (PDF, Excel, Word)
- Interview transcripts (text or PDF)
- Previous engagement workstreams (for context)
Step 2: Ask Synthesis Questions
Across all uploaded documents:
- "What are the 3 most frequently cited growth barriers across all industry reports?"
- "What does the client's financial data suggest about cost structure vs. industry benchmarks?"
- "What themes emerged consistently across stakeholder interviews?"
- "Which analyst reports are most bullish on the sector and what is their primary rationale?"
Edithly searches all documents simultaneously and returns synthesised answers with citations.
Step 3: Generate the Deck Skeleton
From the synthesised findings, use Edithly's presentation feature to generate a structured first-draft narrative:
- Situation: What is the current state? (from industry reports and client data)
- Complication: What is the core problem? (from interviews and analysis)
- Resolution: What are the strategic options? (from consultant-led analysis + document evidence)
The AI generates the slide structure. The consultant adds the insight layer and the recommendations.
Analytics for Consulting Deliverables
Client Engagement Analytics
Share client-facing materials via Edithly links. Track:
- When the client opened the shared material
- Which sections they returned to (what's generating questions internally?)
- Whether the link was shared further (is it being forwarded to decision makers?)
Use case: Share a pre-read document with a client before a board presentation. Analytics show which sections they reviewed most — giving you intelligence on where the conversation will focus before the meeting starts.
Content Resonance Across Engagements
Across multiple client engagements, which research formats and content structures generate the most client engagement:
- Executive summaries vs. full reports
- Visual presentations vs. text-heavy briefs
- Data-forward vs. narrative-forward decks
This meta-analytics insight shapes how future deliverables are structured.
Specific Consulting Use Cases
Market Entry Assessment
Repository: Target market industry reports, regulatory landscape documents, competitor annual reports, market size analyses.
Edithly queries: "What are the regulatory barriers to entry in this market?", "What growth rates are projected across reports?", "What do competitors report as their primary expansion challenges?"
Output: A synthesised market entry brief in hours, not days.
Operational Due Diligence
Repository: Target company financial statements, operational process documents, industry benchmarking data.
Edithly queries: "How does the target's cost structure compare to industry benchmarks?", "What operational risks are referenced in the management letters?", "What efficiency metrics are documented in the operational reports?"
Output: A risk-graded operational assessment with documentary evidence at each claim.
Post-Merger Integration Planning
Repository: Both companies' process documentation, technology architecture documents, HR policies, customer contracts.
Edithly queries: "Where do the two companies' HR policies conflict?", "What technology systems need to be integrated based on the architecture documents?", "Which customer contract terms create post-merger risk?"
Output: A conflict map and integration priority list grounded in actual documentation.
Why Consultants Are Adopting AI Document Tools
The McKinsey Technology Council's 2024 survey found that 78% of professional services firms expected AI to materially change research and synthesis workflows within 2 years. The primary drivers:
- Volume of information is increasing — more reports, more data, more complexity
- Client expectations are rising — faster turnaround, more comprehensive analysis
- Talent leverage — senior consultants doing synthesis; junior consultants doing structuring
Edithly addresses all three by compressing the synthesis layer.
Get Started
Create an engagement repository and run your first synthesis query — free to start, Enterprise plans available.
