by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
I am a terrible stock-picker Trust me, my portfolio returns lag the general market. If you read about a stock on this consulting blog – just look the other way. I am writing about it because management consultants need to understand how the capital markets,...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Most management consulting firms are privately held. They start off as partnerships and remain that way: McKinsey, Bain, BCG, Deloitte, E&Y, KPMG, PWC, AT Kearney, PA Consulting, and LEK etc. PRTM, Monitor and others were bought out. It takes a lot of patience,...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Every senior manager has a different style This is one of the hardest parts of being a consultant who rotates on projects. Have to cater to the preferences (some say whims) of managers. That said, some of it is common sense too. I reviewed a presentation today, and...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Who does not love using the whiteboard? It makes the experience creative, tactile, interactive, and open-ended. It’s a running joke with my teams that I will take any opportunity to pickup a dry-erase pen and head towards the whiteboard – like a moth to a...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Who said consulting was boring? Boston Consulting Group does a wonderful job of illustrating some of the extremes you find in broken thinking. They use history, anecdotes, and storytelling to show us some of the extremes. These are stories of explorers and pioneers...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Mechanics’ Motto Saw this sign at the car mechanic shop where I change my oil. It covered an entire wall. It was about 10 feet tall. Big talk on a big wall. If this is the standard that the mechanic holds for themselves, shouldn’t it be the minimum...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Reading PowerPoint = Painful to watch Last week I was a in a painful 1 hour meeting where the presenter kept reading his slides. Ouch. Each page was like a kick to my shins. Imagine, this is what clients see and feel when you read your PowerPoints. PowerPoint is the...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
For those interested in management consulting – Dominic Barton is a name you will recognize – the managing partner at McKinsey & Company. Basically the chief of the chief consulting firm. This interview with him is a 1,500 word read, but worth it...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Accounts receivable (AR) is what people owe you For anyone who has written an invoice or had difficulty getting a client to pay you for your work, you know how awkward and stressful it is wait for the money. Checking your email, mailbox and bank account to see in...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
“You have a typo on the 1st page” This was the low-light of my Friday. A partner was reviewing a proposal we had already printed out for the client. One typo was a missing helping verb “be” and the other typo was a verb in the wrong tense. It...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
If there is any question that management consultants are hired to do difficult projects, look at this – McKinsey & Company will help the CIA reorganize and restructure here. Apparently, the plan is for the CIA to go from a functional structure (with separate...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Organizations have trouble talking to themselves Ask any consultant and she will tell you that a good portion of her job is helping one part of their client organization talk to the other part. Odd, I know. For those not working with Fortune 500-size companies, you...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
WHO, What, Why, When, Where? These are five questions kids learn in grade school or when first learning a language. It covers the basics and helps you understand the situation and context. My high school friends can attest to my poor memory, but even I can remember...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
So I am a procrastinator. I will just admit it. Don’t make me give you examples. . . This is the right Bain & Company blog post for me here. Basically, here are Bain’s 7 ways to stop wasting valuable time. Get the most out of your executives. . . Bain...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
I am Generation X and I am getting tired. Getting tired of asking for permission to ask junior consultants to do work. Tired of the fear of offending their sensibilities. Tired of doing the thinking. Tired of trying to “charge them up, get them excited”...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Metrics are everywhere As a consultant, we are in the business of quickly understanding business problems, proposing solutions, and measuring results. Metrics are a necessary evil of any project. The classic continuous improvement methodology DMAIC depends on M...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
It’s one person’s opinion, but here are 130 blog posts which I wrote over the last 3 years to describe my world-view of consulting. Hope you find it useful. Consultants are a strange breed We span all industries, but ultimately we are in the business of...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Consultants have bad days Yes, a chorus of “amen” just came from the weathered consultants reading this blog. If you want an example of this, take a look at this blog post (in blue color) from 2015. Today was a rough day. Client disengaged. Technology not...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Lots of clients, not all the same Let’s agree that there are a lot of different people on the client side. Some are doing the work, while others are only curious. When you have more than a handful of people involved, it’s very easy to get confused and make...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Design is popular. It’s not surprising that McKinsey & Company bought a design company. Many consulting firms are branching out with acquisitions in areas which were once considered non-core. Deloitte has picked up a few digital agencies. Accenture bought...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Meetings are over-rated Okay, I said it. I have seen too many organizations put together committees to drive “alignment”, when in actuality, they are trying to mollify a miscreant or hedge away the risk by legislating an answer. Too often, it fails to...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Increasingly, I have been using this simple, but stark, analogy to talk about team management. Increasingly, seems like there are two ways to get outcomes. Democracy mode (what do you think?) Dictator mode (do what I say) As a manager, I want to get the most our of my...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
“Let me get lunch. I am the cheapest person here.” As a manager, hearing a junior consultant say this made my day. Not because I avoided the task of going and picking up lunch; I do it all the time Not because I was particularly busy that day, and...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Consulting is a career Consulting is more than just a job. You develop a way of thinking, unique skills, and lots of professional relationships. There is no better general business training than consulting. You work with super smart people, interact with clients...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
10,000 hours Malcolm Gladwell popularized this number in his book Outliers (affiliate link). Based on the research of Anders Ericsson, Gladwell notes that you don’t really start to excel at something until you put in the requisite blood, sweat and tears . . ....
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
UVA Darden is a strong business school known for its case study method. Like Harvard, UVA uses this method to teach everything from finance to ethics. Over the course of 2 years, the students have more than 600 cases. Yes, it’s rigorous. Darden is known for...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Performance reviews In management consulting, there are performance reviews going on constantly. No seriously. . . constantly. Consulting readers, please disagree. A review for every project. A mid-year review. A year-end review. To the optimist, this is an ideal...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
In consulting, writing proposals and statements of work are the lifeblood of the firm. It is akin to fisherman throwing out nets, or farmers planting seeds. If you are not putting together proposals and pitching potential clients, you are dead. I’ve been...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
I know what success looks like I have been consulting executives for the last 15 years – as an external management consultant, as a strategic planner, or as a organization design project lead. Spent a fair amount of time with CEO, COO, CFO, VP of this, and...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
I recently read a 4,300 word article in the Harvard Crimson school newspaper that helps to explain why more than 14% of the Harvard graduating class goes into management consulting. If you are interested in understanding the psyche of young top talent that goes from...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Feedback keeps you sharp All professionals should be thankful for authentic and well-meaning feedback. It’s a way to gauge our performance, impact, and influence. Good or bad feedback is useful, when it comes from someone we respect. Companies pay $millions to...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Two workshops tomorrow: FedEx or print at the office? Tomorrow, we have 2 workshops, totaling 30 people. It amounts to 1,900 pages of color printing and binding. Since Fedex usually charges 69 cents per color printed page (retail), it comes out to approximately $1,300...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Sometimes we are the bad guys People hire consultants for many reasons, one of which, is to be the bad guys. Look at this article about how Deloitte is helping some of Iowa’s public universities cut costs here. Consultants usually stay behind the scenes This is...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
I do a fair amount of work in the hotel concierge lounge. Lots of snacks, stimulus, and a nice large marble table to spread-out and work. Last night, I was the last to leave at 10pm, and this morning I was one of the first in the door at 630am. The concierge person...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
This week I went out to dinner with team mates twice. On each night, I heard inspirational stories from my team mates – 1 personal and 1 professional – that really made me think deeply about how I am living my life. One story was about friendship; staying...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Meeting minutes are not boring Most people see this as a bureaucratic habit straight out of Mad Men, where Joan is typing notes at an old typewriter. I disagree completely. Meeting minutes are a way to shape the conversation, improve your professional brand, and add...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Client executives are busy Sometimes it takes weeks to get on a client’s calendar. Yes, that’s even AFTER they’ve hired you to do work. Get time when you can Some of the best conversations you have with clients are the ones on the way back from...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Consulting Mailman This is a phrase that I have used many times this week. It has come to be a short-hand way for me to say “overhead.” Like the post I wrote about not supervising others here, if you find yourself sitting in meetings where you are only...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
This is what consultants should be thinking. This is what consultants should be demonstrating through their work. When you have earned the right, say these words: I am here to make you successful There are all kinds of people in this world – selfish, petty,...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Everyone who reads this blog, knows that I am a huge Drucker fan. This quote from The Effective Executive here (affiliate link), published in 1967, sums up how good consultancies run. Consultants are knowledge workers The knowledge worker cannot be supervised...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
So my blood pressure was WAY high this week. Lots going on with work – some good, a lot bad. A big part of consulting is knowing how to deal with stress, lean on team mates, and get grace when you make mistakes. As a friend says, “we are in the business...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
This is my favorite expression. Do you have what you need? I usually ask it of at least 3-4 people a day. It’s simple, but clear. I don’t know the entirety of your situation, but I am here to help. It can be small (proof reading) or big (career advice);...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
When you are on a large consulting project, it’s easy to get lost. Lost in the activities, status reports, client meetings, and project management mess. It’s easy to forget the basics. . . Get back to basics Think What a great job where clients pay you...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
I listened to a lot of whining this week It was partly sad, partly frustrating. New consultants – unaware of what consultants really do – had a list of reasons why it is hard: I can’t get the data, so that’s why I am behind I sent an email;...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
This is a post I did 2 years ago. My new edits are in red color. Management consultants use the phrase “best practices” often. Perhaps too often. You will see that magical phrase mentioned numerous times in white papers and research on these...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
What’s the deliverable? You will hear this jargon often. A deliverable is the final product of a consulting phase or project. It comes in many forms: excel model, marketing plan, master facilities plan, workshop, customer research, or presentation. As an...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Nice things about consulting. . . Good food, restaurants, and wine New experiences and places New problems to solve, and things to learn People to teach and learn from Getting to know your team, becoming fast friends In my opinion, the 2 BEST things about...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Over the last 15 years, I’ve interviewed lots of candidates. Beyond the resumes and case interviews, it comes down to fit. When I think about the most important characteristics of a consultant – or anyone I plan to work with – it gets narrowed down...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting
Consultants, lawyers, accountants bill for their time For good or bad, the traditional time and expense way of billing still prevails. This means that your time is valuable to you (as a professional) and to the client (as an expense). Every hour that you bill, the...
by Consultant's Mind | Consulting, Learning
You cannot know everything As consultants, clients know more about their business than you do. Fact. However, we have the logical structuring, resources, focus, and objectivity to do great work. It’s a life-saving skill to get smart quickly on the topic, client...
