It is surely not uncommon for business leaders to have trusted advisors to whom they turn to discuss the challenges of the day. Leaders have long sought voices from outside the company’s echo chamber as well as thoughts and insights from loyal and confidential sources from outside the company who are independent and thus often more objective and critical.

Given the accelerating trend towards specialization, it is increasingly more common for leaders to find their imminently qualified staff – and outside counsel – lacking a breadth of experience critical to particular decision-making analyses.

It is also not uncommon for companies to embark on deals or projects with scales of size and complexity that require the assembly of in-house and outside talent and the coordination of complex and time-sensitive matters that would benefit from the skills of someone experienced in such things and not burdened with existing operational obligations within the company.

And often leaders find themselves facing new and different challenges (sometimes crisis management or damage mitigation) that would benefit from someone with experience in such matters and contacts and relationships with those outside the company who can contribute to the resolution.