AlixPartners what takes you from VP to SVP? Seems unclear after multiple discussions with directors there.
In the recruitment process to join as VP, but I’m on cusp of promotion at my current firm that would undercut a lot of the comp benefit of joining & would hate to get stuck multiple years at VP. Tenure seems to be all over the place on LinkedIn.
It takes many years, in contrary to what the recruiter told me (1 year if you perform)
Rising Star
I’m with AP2, if you do join the team, you can browse the AP bowl and read allllll the posts from people who joined expecting a quick promotion but got stuck in the same role for 2-3 years despite seemingly exceeding expectations. Push for SVP 💯
Huge gap here - a VP is a support function and an SVP is seen as an engagement/people manager
A lot of our hiring is done on aptitude as opposed to tenure, but definitely push for SVP if you’re concerned about being stuck
Thanks for the insights
Agree it takes years and no to the people manager part. You will lead workstream s as a SVP but because of the structure of the firm and our hiring strategy, we don’t have a sea of people for SVP to manage. A lot of times SVP are lone wolves on their own work streams. Yes you can leverage resources from the client. But a lot of times you do t have VPs to lean on (team / practice dependent of course)
I’ve always had consultants and vps to manage but this might be more specific to strategy
A stellar VP manages projects, delivers results, and works more closely with their direct/indirect reports.
SVP needs to do that but for a less amount. And do more of revenue generating work, including new business pitches and WIN. Cross-selling to bring in revenue growth from existing clients. Be up to date with markets. Think about new capabilities or how to improve current ones. There are also the parts about internal process and workflow.
At my old job, I was expected to work on clients billable project for 70% as a VP. When I got promoted to an SVP, the requirement dropped to 50%.
Also, some companies demand the vouch from at least 2 external senior clients to warrant the promotion and set a goal for the revenue you must manage or bring in, for example, 2.5 mil or 5 mil or 10 mil a year.