Consulting Confidential

Consulting confidential is a behind-the-scenes look at a career that is often misunderstood. What do consultants really do? Why is it that 70% of digital transformation projects fail to meet the defined objectives? How do consultants manage to be away from home for 100+ nights and maintain normal relationships, and board game nights?

This story is a fact-based, unbiased account of what really happens during a 60- 80 hour work week. Although all of the names were changed to provide anonymity for the clients, and consultants, the narrative highlights the true cost of success. It’s not all suits, stake dinners, and salary. The unexpected recipe involves psychology, technology, and sacrifice. What do a 100-year-old painting by Van Gogh, and a career in implementing cloud-based enterprise software have in common? Read more and find out.

Release Date:  June 2023

For a decade I have been explaining complex concepts in oversimplified terms, in a suit and a smile. I could rattle off the best approach to managing a procure-to-pay process using a cloud ERP or negotiate the nuance of saving personal data on a server in Europe versus the United States. But I was at a loss for answering the question “what do you do?”
 
As a management consultant, I was constantly asked to solve unique problems, influence decisions, and manage cross-functional teams. I have traveled to three cities in one week for work, and have not seen more than the hotel room and the office. And I have been routinely awake for 20 hours on Sunday or Thursday, travel days. I have managed people in India, China, and Canada for years that I will never meet in person. I’ve missed emergency trips to the hospital with my wife because I was working on a client presentation.
 
Through it all, I never felt that anyone in my life really understood what I did. My wife would get lost in the technical jargon and acronym when I explained work. My co-workers would be surprised that I came back from Paid Time Off just as tired as when I left. Raising a family and the honey-do list is a different type of work from spreadsheets and power points slides. Despite being in love with my wife, kids, and career, I did not have a sense of being fulfilled.
 
In movies, there is sometimes a meet cute when two unlikely characters share eye contact and a moment of recognition. They seem to understand themselves or see a reflection that engenders a deep connection. This book is my attempt at finding that connection.
 
I hope that someone reads this and finds a little of themselves in the words. And one quaint day a stranger will say to me “I read your book, and I feel you. “
 
I hope my wife reads it and laughs out loud. I hope my kids read it and feel closer to their dad.
 
I hope you read it, and it becomes part of your lexicon. You talk about it at book club, buy copies for your friends as presents, and share a nod of connection when you see someone reading a copy at the airport.