Having been a consultant for over a decade myself, I was curious to find out what were generally considered the top qualities consultants need to succeed. So, I looked into the literature and spoke with some consultants who work exclusively in the industry. My focus was on management consultants. I wasn’t greatly surprised by what I learned. Some things stuck out, however. One such thing is that technical knowledge and industry-specific experience, while important, were rarely cited as the most important. The quality most often cited was that of commitment to the client(s).