Field Notes

Practical writing for product leaders and boutique advisors – on deciding what to build, answering the hard questions, and running a sharper practice.

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Consulting Operations

Due Diligence Now Has to Catch AI-Washing, Not Just Check the Tech

Fieldway's take on PwC's 2026 M&A outlook: roughly a third of 2025's 100 largest deals cited AI in their rationale, and PwC now calls AI due diligence

6 min read
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Consulting Operations

Intent Is the New Constraint: Where Engineering Craft Moved in 2026

Fieldway's take on the Goldratt-style argument running through 2026 commentary (berme.io; Linear's CEO; Theory of Constraints): as agents thin out the

5 min read
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Consulting Operations

The Real Threat to Boutique Advisors Isn't the Big 4. It's In-House.

Fieldway's take on the 2026 Management Consulted rankings, which for the first time added an Internal Consulting category (and put a government agency, DOGE

6 min read
Eventually everything hits the bottom, and all you have to do is wait until someone comes along, and turns it back again. ⌛️
Consulting Operations

The Death of the Billable Hour Was Always Going to Be an AI Story

Fieldway's take on the 2026 outcome-pricing shift (Inc 6-trends + AlphaSense): clients can now see the deck took an afternoon, so consulting is moving off

5 min read
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Consulting Operations

AI-Washing Just Became a Legal Liability, Not a Credibility One

Fieldway's cross-audience take on the 2026 enforcement wall: the SEC has charged firms for misrepresenting AI capabilities ('AI-washing'), 2026 exam priorities

6 min read
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Consulting Operations

The Squeezed Middle: Why the Consulting Market Is Splitting in Two

Fieldway's take on the 2026 consolidation data (AlphaSense + Consultancy.eu deal flow + Management Consulted rankings): the top 5 firms now hold ~40% share and

5 min read
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Consulting Operations

Your CEO Has Detailed Opinions About Software Delivery and No Idea How It Works

Fieldway's take on Rebecca Murphey's 'Physics of Software Delivery': why executives hold firm delivery expectations they were never taught to understand.

6 min read
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Consulting Operations

Getting Faster at the Wrong Things: What Atlassian's 2026 Product Report Actually Says

Fieldway's data-led read on Atlassian's 2026 State of Product Report: half of product teams save 10–60 min/day with AI, yet 49% still lack time for strategy

6 min read
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Consulting Operations

AI Passed the Professional Licensing Exam. So What's the Moat Now?

An AI passed every recent U.S. Customs Broker License Exam. When a machine can pass the credential, knowledge recall stops being the moat – judgment and

5 min read