Review of 39pg McKinsey Presentation

McKinsey & Company do great work. On this blog, I have written about McKinsey’s leader, culture, high-visibility assignments at the CIA, and Department of Corrections. Overall, have enormous respect for the work they do, and the way they have built their...

What Millennials think (in 2016)

In 2016, Deloitte surveyed of 7,700 millennials globally The respondents were folks born after 1982 with college degrees, working in large organizations (100+) across 29 different countries. You work with millennials everyday – anyone under 33 years. As I have...

Good day for me, Tableau stock up 20%

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,...

Presenters, the PowerPoint is there to help

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...

Consultants need to get paid, get the AR

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...

Bain & Co: Stop wasting valuable time

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...

Mad Men had it right, do the work

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”...

Metrics are important, and also over-used

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...

What do consultants do?

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...

Big Design: McKinsey & Company buys Lunar

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...

Poor, slow decision-making is everywhere

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...

New Darden dean is ex-McKinsey

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...

Consultants are hired to be the bad guys

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...

The one with the most stories wins

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...

I am here to make you successful

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,...

BP 150/100

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...

Do you have what you need?

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);...