Concentrating your focus

Justin — Tue, 04 May 2010 13:17:56 +0000

As a follow on to yesterday’s post on blogging your brand, how do you know when to laser-focus on developing your brand? Through many conversations with various leadership in my segment, i’ve created a notional view describing by level how to narrow your focus – to thread the needle so to speak. This necking down and concentration culminates at the intersection of the Manager/Senior Manager levels, with a broadening of focus leading into PPD.

(Note: Graphic still in development)

Analyst / Senior Management Analyst

At this level, the objective is exposure and learning. Basically, act like a sponge and get as much diversity of experience as possible. You will grow your network almost by accident, and your focus should be on improving client delivery, and the supporting consultative skills: deliverable creation, presentation and briefing skills, persuasive and logical thinking, etc.

Consultant

The focus remains on client delivery, with additional effort going towards the support of firm activities. This helps expand your network and create additional skills while continuing cultural growth and fit within the firm. Project roles should be increasing in scope and responsibility, including leading deliverable creation.

Senior Consultant

The focus remains on client delivery with extensive leadership of client deliverables and occasional direct supervision of other staff. Increasing leadership and involvement in firm activities and development of an internal network. The beginnings of a brand emerge. Proposal and sales support may be appropriate.

Manager

The focus begins to shift away from client delivery and towards staff development and firm growth. Active focus on staff development through counseling and mentoring, and an active effort to expand one’s network both internally and externally. Manager’s are often responsible for managing engagements or WBS elements and the staffs that support those efforts. Increased involvement and leadership in firm activities and proposal efforts. Managed and Sales Revenue become metrics. The manager’s brand becomes important, and communicating it internally and effectively is required to make it to the next level.

Senior Manager

Engagement leaders. Client delivery is mostly achieved through orchestrating engagement staff, with some direct contribution. Staff development is a critical priority, and increasing responsibility for securing follow on and new work is levied. The senior manager’s brand begins to expand to incorporate the business(es) she manages. Support for leadership through additional firm activities and an active networking effort are needed to make the next level.

PPD

Client delivery is mostly attained through the management of staff. Staff development and communication remains critical, and the primary focus is generation and maintenance of the business, including proposal and bids through active leverage of internal and external networks.

Blogging and Branding

Justin — Tue, 04 May 2010 03:59:46 +0000

The art of blogging isn’t one that comes naturally, at least to me – but as i look forward and focus on my future career here at Deloitte, it becomes a critical aspect of eminence creation, professional awareness, and personal brand development. I continue to struggle to find balance between client delivery excellence and firm activity participation. At BearingPoint, the focus for me had always been completely on the client (since utilization was king, and the firm was trying to get acquired – which was unknown at the time). At Deloitte, the client remains important, but not a kingmaker alone. Rather there are multiple axes, and the story becomes the area under a radar chart rather than the demonstrated excellence at client delivery.

Like muscles unused to being flexed, skills at networking, internal communications, personal brand management, and managing your own career are atrophied, and their first use is painful. The initial meeting is very much like that first workout – painful, but in a good way. I prefer the focus on multiple characteristics, the challenge of growth along multiple axes. Some axes i value less than others, but on the whole, i like the idea of actively managing my value proposition, and the responsibility to ensure that my career is progressing against my goals, rather than the arbitrary goals of my most senior managers.

This still leaves a great deal of catch-up work that needs to be done. Do you know what your brand is? Have you mapped out your career? Are you sure you are in the right career model? These aren’t simple questions anymore – in fact, they require a great deal of introspection and serious conversation with colleagues to be answered truthfully and accurately. I have only recently begun the analysis and discovery of what my value and brand are, and have planned with a peer group a weekend long introspective getaway to think seriously about these topics.

I’ll keep a log of these activities, and update My Brand with my progress, statements, and documents. Please let me know your thoughts on my brand, and solicit my input if you like. I believe this type of exercise to be critical to personal success generally, and here at Deloitte.

Table Stakes