find-management-consultant
Drive the ServiceGraph API (https://api.servicegraph.co) to find,
shortlist, and enrich US management consulting firms via the
pro_services dataset. The catalog tags firms with
industry:management_consulting and a 7-tag service sub-taxonomy:
strategy-consulting, operations-consulting, executive-coaching,
leadership-development, organizational-development,
pmo-project-management, sales-revenue-consulting.
Always pin industry:management_consulting. Sub-services are
structured service_provided tags — confirm exact names via
/v1/datasets/pro_services/fields?include_values=1.
Any HTTP client works (curl, fetch, requests). Examples below use curl.
When NOT to use this skill
- "Help me build a strategy / write a plan / make a recommendation" — do-the-work, not procurement.
- In-house strategy/operations hires (Chief Strategy Officer, COO).
- Life or career coaching for an individual — the catalog's
executive-coaching tag is for B2B (the firm hires the coach for their executives), not for the user themselves.
- Framework explanations (Lean vs Agile, Porter's Five Forces).
- MBA program questions, academic research.
- Non-US firms / individual freelance consultants.
MCP server (preferred for authed calls)
If your harness has the ServiceGraph MCP server loaded (tools
containing servicegraph), prefer those — OAuth 2.1 + PKCE keeps the
token in the harness sandbox. Otherwise use the REST flow below.
API surface (dataset id: pro_services)
Every endpoint requires the bearer (Authorization: Bearer vk_…).
No anonymous tier.
| Endpoint | Cost | Use it for |
|---|
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/fields[?include_values=1] | free | Confirm management_consulting industry value and sub-tag names. |
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/check?filter=… | free | Validate filter. |
POST /v1/datasets/pro_services/translate-intent | free | {intent} → DSL filter + sanity count. |
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=…&limit= | free | Brief firm cards + per-row unlock hint + total. |
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/:apex | free | One row brief; detail only if unlocked. |
POST /v1/datasets/pro_services/unlocks | 10 credits / firm | {apexes:[...]} ≤100; atomic; 30-day TTL on detail. |
GET /v1/me/credits | free | Balance. |
Cost model. Discovery / validation / search / brief reads are
free. Detail (url, phone, email, social, address, full platforms
map) costs 10 credits per firm and lasts 30 days.
Auth
vk_* API keys minted in the dashboard. Keep the token out of the
LLM context — never read .env* into your context; dispatch via
shell.
-
Try the call first through a shell wrapper that sources .env.local:
( set -a; [ -f .env.local ] && . ./.env.local; set +a;
curl -sS -H "Authorization: Bearer $SERVICEGRAPH_API_KEY" \
'https://api.servicegraph.co/v1/datasets/pro_services/fields' )
-
On 401 prompt the user:
"Open https://servicegraph.co/profile/api-keys, create a
key, and add SERVICEGRAPH_API_KEY=vk_… to .env.local here
(or export it). Tell me when done. Please don't paste the key
into chat."
-
Retry after the user signals ready.
Filter DSL
GitHub-search-style.
filter := orExpr
orExpr := andExpr ("OR" andExpr)*
andExpr := notExpr (("AND")? notExpr)* # whitespace = implicit AND
notExpr := ("NOT" | "-") notExpr | atom
atom := "(" filter ")" | predicate
predicate:= IDENT op valueOrList | bareword
op := ":" | "=" | ">=" | "<=" | ">" | "<"
valueOrList := value ("," value)*
value := IDENT | NUMBER | tagAtEvidence
tagAtEvidence := IDENT "@" ("low"|"medium"|"high")
bareword := IDENT | NUMBER # → keyword:<bareword>
Four rules that bite: AND binds tighter than OR (use parens);
comma list = OR within one predicate; negation is -x or NOT x;
bareword = keyword search (quote multi-word phrases).
Management-consulting examples (validate yours with /check):
industry:management_consulting service_provided:strategy-consulting@high
industry:management_consulting service_provided:operations-consulting state:NY
industry:management_consulting service_provided:executive-coaching
industry:management_consulting (service_provided:strategy-consulting@high OR service_provided:operations-consulting@high)
industry:management_consulting service_provided:organizational-development change
industry:management_consulting service_provided:strategy-consulting@high rating>=4 has:clutch
industry:management_consulting service_provided:pmo-project-management
Sub-service tag → typical user phrasing:
| User asks for | Tag |
|---|
| Strategy / strategic planning | service_provided:strategy-consulting |
| Operations / ops consulting | service_provided:operations-consulting |
| Executive coach (for senior leaders) | service_provided:executive-coaching |
| Leadership development programs | service_provided:leadership-development |
| Org design / change management | service_provided:organizational-development |
| PMO / program management | service_provided:pmo-project-management |
| Sales/revenue ops | service_provided:sales-revenue-consulting |
Identifying firms — apex
Firms are identified by their apex domain (mckinsey.com, not
www.mckinsey.com/about).
Recipes
A. Strategy consultancy in a state
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=industry:management_consulting+state:CA+service_provided:strategy-consulting@high&limit=10
# Present, get pick of 3. "Unlocking 3 = 30 credits, 30-day TTL."
POST /v1/datasets/pro_services/unlocks
{ "apexes": ["firm-a.com", "firm-b.com", "firm-c.com"] }
B. Boutique ops consulting + vertical
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=industry:management_consulting+service_provided:operations-consulting+healthcare+-company_size_signal:large_50plus&limit=10
C. Executive coach for a CEO
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=industry:management_consulting+service_provided:executive-coaching@high&limit=10
D. Indirect intent — post-merger / change
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=industry:management_consulting+service_provided:organizational-development+(merger OR integration)&limit=10
If thin, drop the keywords — organizational-development@high alone
captures change-management work.
E. Indirect intent — "fractional COO"
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=industry:management_consulting+service_provided:operations-consulting+fractional&limit=10
F. Quality threshold + Big-3 alumni
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=industry:management_consulting+service_provided:strategy-consulting@high+rating>=4+(mckinsey OR bcg OR bain)&limit=10
The "alumni" angle isn't structured — keyword the firm names of the
shops the alumni came from; many spinout consultancies advertise it
in bio text.
G. BYO apex list — enrich domains
User pastes 8–20 consulting-firm domains:
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/:apex per domain — free brief
(404 = not in catalog, no charge).- User picks N to fully enrich.
POST /unlocks = 10×N credits,
atomic, detail returned.
- Re-runs within 30-day TTL are free.
Gotchas
- Always pin
industry:management_consulting. Without it, service_provided:strategy-consulting surfaces marketing or IT firms that list "strategy" as a sub-service.
executive-coaching is for B2B. When a firm hires a coach for their executives, this skill applies. When an individual asks for a life coach or career coach for themselves, it's out of scope.- "Help me build a strategy" is do-the-work, not procurement.
- Framework comparisons (Lean vs Agile) and MBA questions are knowledge, not procurement.
- In-house hires (CSO, COO) are NOT procurement.
- Briefs DO include
apex, name, location, ratings. They DON'T include url, phone_primary, email_primary, legal_name, address_full, full platforms — those require an unlock.
not_found / not_in_dataset 404 = not in pro_services. Skip; not charged.- Unlock is atomic. N apexes either all charge (up to 10×N credits) or none on 402.
- Within-TTL re-views are free (
was_cached:true).
Errors
JSON envelope: {"error": {"code": "...", "message": "..."}}.
| Status | Code | What to do |
|---|
| 400 | filter_parse_error | position included; fix and re-validate with /check. |
| 400 | kind_in_filter | Strip any kind: from filter. |
| 400 | field_not_in_dataset | Drop the disallowed field. |
| 400 | invalid_apex | Re-normalize. |
| 401 | unauthorized / invalid_audience | Re-prompt for fresh vk_…. |
| 402 | insufficient_credits | needed and balance; nothing charged. |
| 404 | not_found / not_in_dataset | Skip; not charged. |
| 429 | rate_limited | Honor Retry-After. |
End-to-end example
User: "Three top management-consulting firms in California focused on
strategy, with strong third-party ratings."
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/fields?include_values=1
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/check?filter=industry:management_consulting+state:CA+service_provided:strategy-consulting@high+rating>=4+review_count_total>=20
GET /v1/datasets/pro_services/search?filter=...&limit=10
# Present briefs. "Unlocking 3 = 30 credits, 30-day TTL."
POST /v1/datasets/pro_services/unlocks
{ "apexes": ["firm-a.com", "firm-b.com", "firm-c.com"] }
GET /v1/me/credits