Job Responsibilities
Providing clients with information and services to grow/change their current
business, start a new business and develop new products.
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Uppers
I am always learning. Every new client is a new challenge: new industry, new
products, new politics, new country...the diversity is interesting, challenging
and fulfilling. Also working in new cultures with new teams of people is good
experience and never boring. You learn to work with the best and the not so good.
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Downers
Traveling alone; long stretches of solitary work; working long-distance: phone,
fax, email can't replace in=person communications. You miss the innuendo, the
body language, and don't develop relationships that are as trusting. If you're
not
consulting for a biggie like Boston C.G. or McKinsey you also have to be your
own rain-maker. Finding work while you're busy with work is a killer.
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Lifestyle
You need endless energy, enthusiasm and good people skills. You need excellent
communication skills. You need to be able to think on your feet, present to 1
person or 1000+ people. You need to love research and have intuition and the
ability to pull insights from a wide variety of information. You have to be able
to look years into the future from the top of the CEO's office, but still honcho
the details, coordinate the activities, manage budgets/timing and still take out
the trash.
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Compensation
Depends on client/number of clients and economy. I've made as little as
$90,000 a year and as much as $270,000 a year.
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Advice to Jobseekers
Be well connected. Keep taking classes/courses so you keep adding value to
yourself. Network-network-network. Be willing to partner with other
consultants. Have a specialty you can promote and earn the right to be that
specialist through experience. Have a stint at a corporation and/or with a
consulting firm to add to your credibility.
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