So you're thinking about becoming a Consultant?
We're in hiring mode right now, which made us think about the differences between working in a Corporate environment and Consulting and what someone considering the "Consulting Life" should consider before making the leap. Based on our team's collective experience, we thought we'd share the top traits that we think you need to have to be a successful Consultant and some things to consider before jumping into this lifestyle!
Successful Consultant Traits:
Intellectual horsepower
You like intellectual stimulation and get bored doing the same old routine. You're often called on to juggle multiple clients and learn different businesses and you're expected to keep up to date with the ever-changing Salesforce environment and the solutions that we implement. This is more exciting than scary to you.
Constant learner
You are intellectually curious and have a willingness and ability to learn and adapt. You love learning, and you're always interested in finding out about new things.
Taking ownership
You're comfortable 'being the expert' in front of an audience. You like taking ownership and your willing to admit when you make a mistake and fix it quickly.
Self motivated
You work remotely, with no one looking over your shoulder. You have plenty of freedom to set your own schedule, which is great, but you need to be self-motivated to get the job done.
Creative
Being a consultant involves an element of creativity. There are often multiple ways to solve a problem for a client, and you embrace the creative process.
Ideas & Execution
Having great ideas and proposing cool solutions is only half the battle. You also need to be willing and able to be a 'hands-on keyboard' to execute on delivery. "Every Marine is a rifleman first."
Confidence & Humility
To be a great consultant, you have to have self-confidence, but you always need to remain humble because there will always be something new to learn, and you can't know it all.
To be, or not to be a Consultant that is the question:
Reasons to become a Consultant
- You want to work in a fast paced, constantly changing environment, with an awesome team at your back
- You get things done, and as a Consultant you are directly rewarded and celebrated for your ideas and delivery
- You get bored easily, so doing the 'same old 9-5 job' even though it's comfortable, isn't going to work for you
- You want to have an impact and make a difference, being able to see the tangible results of your work and helping clients
- You like being the expert and finding creative solutions to interesting problems
- Your self motivated, and you don't want or need someone scheduling out your days for you
- Learning is cool!
Reasons that you should not become a Consultant
- The work is challenging, and you'll probably end up working harder than you did in the Corporate world, but this is offset by working with a fantastic team, constantly being challenged and making a difference. You need to have a thick skin and be comfortable admitting when you're wrong and fixing mistakes quickly
- It can be stressful, especially around Go-Live time. The staff at most of our clients will go through a handful of new system implementations during their whole careers. We do this stuff for a living!
- Our variable compensation component rewards you for all your hard work but is only for some.
- Sometimes, there are demanding Clients.
If you've read through this far and are still thinking, "This sounds like a job for me," what are you waiting for? Head on over to our Open Jobs page and apply!