>> I actually get this question a lot and all
my friends say, "Oh, what are you doing today?
You're not working or anything."
So, you know, I think the
conception amongst many people
who have a standard nine-to-five
job is that people
who do not have set hours aren't necessarily
working all the time, but in fact,
I find it to be just the opposite.
So, and again, I think just like you said, the
answer to that question is primarily determined
by what type of consultant you are and then what
your position is within your respective company;
but, personally, because, fortunately, I
no longer do any of the technical works,
so my job is to manage employees
and get new clients.
So, whatever that takes, that -- however
long that takes in a given day, you know,
you only make as much money as you generate.
There is no salary.
So, your day can be as long or
as short as you'd like it to be.
>> Yes, I can provide some good input
into this since I have a recent,
I guess, profession on this field.
Since many of you will be joining as, you
know, as analysts -- business analysts --
depending on your, you know, specific
background and what you're studying.
A typical day of, I guess, a consultant
or an analyst really is, you know --
again, it depends on your background; and
also, I think, this is really important,
but also the client engagement
that you're supporting.
So, I've been on projects where
I have, you know, it was very,
very fast paced [inaudible] are moving nonstop
from 7:00 in the morning until 5 o'clock
at night, you know; and then
there are some off-days.
Typically, what we expect at that
analyst level is really for you
to start building your core
consulting, you know,
fundamental capabilities, you know what I mean?
I know a lot of people frown upon the whole
PowerPoint development and that really is
like the whole like, you know,
background behind consulting, you know;
you're sitting behind a desk
developing PowerPoints from,
you know, when you get in until you leave.
Yes, you will spending a lot of time
developing PowerPoints, but that is just one
of those fundamental things
that we expect you to know.
And then, later on, as you progress in your
career, you know, you are really starting
to really let go of those developmental
areas; and then you're passing that on
and really providing the vision that
people need to kind of, you know,
develop these deliverables moving on.
So, you know, it all depends, I would say.
>> Well, I'll just add to it.
To -- [inaudible] to the previous point
that it does depend a lot on your background
in the firm, but if [inaudible] ideally
what your consultant case should look
like in a good firm with good training programs,
it should typically be a combination of a lot
of analytical work, some product management,
some taut leadership and some client management.
So, you will spend close to 50%, 40%
of your day reading a lot analyzing
and developing Excel spreadsheets or developing
PowerPoints where you're reading a lot
of information and you're
developing meaningful summaries
which will help to communicate to the clients.
And that's what essentially
all consulting is all about --
you read a lot and then you try
to develop one or three, four,
five key things that matter for your clients.
[Inaudible] things I want is product management;
you do work on it where you're part of either --
if it's a U.S.-based project
or global project you --
that [inaudible] various aspects of deliverables
which are managed over several weeks
or several months, so you have to
be part of that project management
and try to understand what's due next
few hours, next few days, few weeks,
so you have to be fully on top of that.
So, you learn all those project management
skills very early on in your consulting career.
Third is, a good firm [inaudible]
in business development
where they will have you attend conferences,
have you attend some of the client meetings
where they make pitches about their
capabilities, about what they do, how they do
and then you will see how actually
the work comes to the firm.
The fourth thing which you
can be involved early on
or you can be involved a little
later is taut leadership.
All consulting firms are
usually built on new ideas
and that idea exists and then how [inaudible].
So, a good firm would also involved you early
on in developing some of these new ideas
and then communicating them into the
public, and that's where some of the things
like the Google presence and your -- the SEO
that Av mentioned also becomes important.
So, you will see all of those
pieces as part of your job.
So, it's a lot of things in consulting.
You almost operate also as -- almost
like a small business in a large firm.
So, that's one of the myths about consulting --
you work in a large firm but every single team
works almost like a self-sustaining business
which has to get work, do
the work and get more work.
>> I would agree with everything that's said.
The only difference at APCO is
that you do all of those things --
the project management, that analytical
piece, understanding the industries you serve,
understanding the clients you serve.
Typically, someone who's starting out at
APCO might work on anywhere from three
to five accounts, and so balancing that work,
making sure that you are
meeting those deliverables.
Our rules are also very heavily writing focused,
so writing press releases, writing client memos.
And I think, so much of what you're doing
in that first year is really getting
an understanding of the business,
of the industries you serve
and the clients you serve.
And really, just soaking up as much information
as you can and learning what, you know,
what's important, what are the
up-at-night issues for those clients
and how do you address them and how do you
get in front of them is really important.
Another big piece, I think, when you're starting
out in a consulting role is really balancing
between working autonomously and working
in the greater context of the team.
So, much of what you do is going away
and working on deliverables on your own,
but then reporting back and working
in the greater context of that team.
And so, really understanding how to manage up,
how to, you know, tell people where you are
in a current project, you
know, maintaining your projects
and making sure you're meeting
deadlines; and if you're not,
making sure you're raising
those concerns ahead of time.
So, again, working just independently as
well in the greater context of that team.
And sometimes, as a remote team, and
so kind of working with, you know,
remote work locations and time zones sometimes.