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Bowl Leader
Heyhey.
Looking to hire a product UX/designer to freelance and help design + run ideation workshops for our Fortune 100 client looking to drive innovation and create/incubate b2c apps.
Would be great if you also knew how to set up an intake form to get a specific brief in order to design the workshop.
Bonus if you know how to design and set-up early stage usability experiments via landing pages/figma to validate problems/solutions before developing a MVP.
DM or email contact@swidia.com
Bowl Leader
Anyone at Motorola able to provide a referral?
Additional Posts in Consulting Exit Opportunities
Are corporate finance or pricing dead end ops?
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Coach
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Subject Expert
I generally find there to be a number of key skills at the M level that are a pretty substantial differentiator from the SC level, any of which can doom a manager:
1) People management: Quite a few people can lead a team of, say, 2-4 people as a SC, but fail miserably at leading a project team of 15-20 people.
2) Engagement leadership: As a SC, you are often working in a set swimlane and the extent of your strategic involvement is focused on *how* to do a task. As a M, you're generally focused on *what* to do. Making the jump from focusing on the tactical details to the strategic direction of an engagement is a sink or swim change and I've seen many Ms over the years sink.
3) Sales: At the firms I've worked at, Ms generally take on the key leadership roles in the proposal process, whereas SCs tend to lead individual sections of a proposal and are given direction by those above them. I've seen plenty of Ms, both new Ms and those who've been around for a while, struggle with this and saw a firm I worked for lose out on a $25M+ bid because of a new M's ineptitude in leading a major portion of a quick turnaround proposal.
4) Networking: This is true at every level, but it's where I've seen lots of Ms shoot themselves in the feet. Promotions to C and SC, and to a lesser extent, M, are generally a function of putting in the time and being at least average. Once you hit M, you gotta start really networking with the SM+ above you, as you're now often the public face of the firm with clients and can really impact the bottom line for a P through your actions, so the internal expectations from those SM+ level folks really start to be magnified on you as a M. Add in internal politics and this is the stealthy factor that has been a career ender for many, many Ms.
In my anecdotal experience, you can suck at one of those factors and scrape by if you are rock solid in the other three, but if you suck at one and are only passable at another, you're likely on the chopping block no matter how good you are at the other two.
I agree with this to some degree - switching firms I lost all the political capital and goodwill that my previous high performer rep carried within my network. But I think it's not the only story because it's not only about external perception - I feel like I'm falling short myself as well!
Coach
I have one piece of advice. Look up a podcast called “Manager Tools” and listen to their first podcast from 2005 titled “Solution to a stalled technical career”. It’s a 20 minute podcast, see if it talks to you.
Same idea, Marshall Goldsmith’s book “What go you here won’t get you there”. But the podcast is a shorter time investment.
https://www.manager-tools.com/2005/06/solution-to-a-stalled-technical-career
Coach
You’re welcome. I think everyone has to learn this lesson. When I did, you could have knocked me over with a feather.
I feel I am in the same boat. I have been analyzing the issue and the conclusion I'm coming to is that I am completely not motivated by what I do, I despise consulting, the shallowness of it and lack of impact. Thinking about doing a major change. PhD or a senior level in a non-profit organization. But mostly lost in trying to identify next step.
OP, Do you feel this plateau you're experiencing is *mostly/primarily* motivation- (i.e. "I know what to do but don't feel like it..."), technical skills- (i.e. "how to do this is escaping me more and more over time..."), or relevance- (i.e. the organization/larger context(s) around me just doesn't see or cannot seem to leverage my capabilities...) related at the root of the state you find yourself in? I know we want *and* rather than *or*, but when I went through similar introspections in the past starting with *one* area allows me to more tangibly take the next steps.
OP, It sounds like you might be more towards the externally-motivated end of the spectrum (unlike me, who's very internal/cerebral/private, etc.). I think what's going to be key therefore is to have others/someone around in whom you can confide with your letdown in the aftermath of a gig. We all experience it, and that voice can stick around in our heads, for better or for worse (your circular characterization, i.e. downward spiral) . These individual(s) should support, challenge, even inspire you to hopefully help you more productively process your immediate impressions of the gig (positively or negatively). This *motivation* might be the key to help you methodically upskill without the back and forth/second guessing, i.e. being motivated externally but not at the mercy of your work-related circles.
Joined S& as an M with promise for promo if I proved myself. I'm performing ok but not going to happen and I'm not seeing my skills develop or improve with experience anymore. Worried I'll be looking for a job again in 6 months or a year, or that I've just plateaued and it's time I think about a fundamental career change. Any advice?
Community Builder
Following because I’ve been in a rut over the last year or so and felt much of this. Thanks for posting OP
What are you asking for here? You ask for advice but later divulge you know your shortcomings and are having trouble attaining those skills. It takes
some natural instinct and reps to build on that foundation. Relationship building, being a trusted advisor, and strategic selling are different skills than executing. Plenty of people hit a glass ceiling in this career when getting out of the intellectual side to sales side. You just need to decide if you have the natural instinct for it. If you don’t, it’ll be hard for you to stand out against those that do.
I did not and left. I am perfectly happy in industry where those skills do not matter as much.
This is helpful - my problem isn't that I dont know WHAT I need to improve, it's that I don't know how. So what I'm looking for is what has worked for others. Surely it can't be that lack of natural instinct can't be overcome
Relax. Did you see Warren Buffett’s slides during Berkshire’s annual meeting? Consulting is overrated.
Are you happy?
Love this head analytics 1
OP, thank you for posting. I'm exactly in your shoes, I feel like I'm on the chopping block soon. So many good suggestions here, it helped me. I think your issue may be that you are expecting answers to come to you, maybe some extra handholding. If you know the what, you need to figure out the how - identify mentors, learn to podcasts, make mistakes and learn. You asking here in 1 step in the right direction, do keep going at it! I know it can be hard when you've been on the chopping block but like you I've been searching and I've concluded that career is a sink or swim, people will coach you but won't rescue you from the sharks
I think consulting makes us all plateau after 2 years unless we are aiming for partner
I'm with you OP. I'm pretty sure I plateaued when I was around 46. Now that I don't have any more shots at Partner, I've been giving fewer and fewer f***ks, and been liberated to just be average. It's so refreshing.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle
For example, why are your points not landing with the clients?
Mentor
OP, have you considered talking with a therapist or counselor? I suspect your issue is more mental than skills based. You mentioned feeling unmotivated when you can't tell if you're doing a great job. I think this line of thinking, possibly a form of imposter syndrome, puts you into a vicious cycle: you do something decently, but don't get immediate positive feedback, so you are demotivated, you try less hard, your results slip, and the cycle repeats. In the past, you had a virtuous cycle: you did a little better than your peers, got immediate good feedback, felt motivated, tried harder, did better, and so on. I think you need to focus on getting over that imposter syndrome or insecurity that is driving or stalling you.
If the above approach (therapy to identify and treat mental issue) doesn't work, then either leave consulting or trade down to another, lower tier firm. The catch with trading down is poorer exit options in case things don't work out there either.
Op - I think you don’t have your people at S&. What you need is a good mentor. Is there a partner you’ve worked with, or just know, who you like?
How is it going at S&?
Have you been getting any developmental feedback?
I know my development needs - it's how to address them and build the skills. They're typical, transitioning from landing the plane to being a client's thought partner and trusted advisor both in terms of sales and execution. I've been trying through reps, reading/podcasts, advice through others but just don't see it translating to results.
What was the reason for counseling out at your previous firm? Is it consistent with your development areas at your current firm?
Rare case where I was surprised and didn't have a warning. I had a good year with good reviews on paper but my most recent 2 projects were one where I genuinely dropped the ball a bit and another where I personality clashed with the AP. There was no single "official reason".
To be clear, I'm having good but not stellar reviews at S& and wont get promo this year. Maybe I'm just sensitive but I'm also trying to be self-aware and can't help but see opportunities for personal growth when comparing myself to peers and above.