How do you attract and retain diverse and talented consultants in a dynamic and demanding market?

The candidate pipeline should be constantly developing with a wide range of candidates to anticipate client needs based on the business environment. The key to a diverse candidate pipeline is sourcing staff and employees having diverse networks in order to populate the pipeline. It has to be diverse in schools, work experience and life stories. Hiring a profile of graduating from certain schools and former employees can limit candidate pipeline diversity.

To attract and retain top talent in the management consulting industry, companies should look at four (4) specific areas which will be of value to consultants which are; work flexibility, meaningful and purposeful work (i.e give employees the chance to handle projects autonomously), competitive renumeration and benefits and investment in learning and development. Management consulting in itself is daunting and requires long hours of work with quite poor work-life balance in most cases. As such, it is crucial to keep employees interested through autonomous and purposeful work and make them feel valued through different employee wellness and support programs to ensure retention.

It is critical to formulate a concise "brand" to broaden and ease the consumability of what your company provides. This should be quickly digestible and memorable, but it takes thought in the same way that distilling a 200-page book into a short poem does.

I find it amazing that the most important things have been omitted. Respect, a path for growth and an understanding and fulfilling their passion for work... the real difference is that they want to make.

attracting and retaining top diverse talent in the competitive consulting market requires a strategic, multifaceted approach > highlight DEI commitments prominently in branding materials to signal authenticity > relationships with professional associations, affinity networks, conferences and community groups that connect high-calibre, non-traditional talent pools > competitive compensation but also highlight growth opportunities, flexibility, purpose-driven work and culture to attract talent seeking more than just pay > clear, measurable goals for improving representation at all levels IMO, competition is intense but leading with purpose, flexibility and compassion for employees gives a compelling edge in the war for talent

And this isn't merely subjective guidance - myriad studies show positive impacts to both individual productivity and organizational adaptability in the face of disruption. Companies that have more diverse leadership tend to also suffer less from "group drift".

As someone who has been an independent consultant for about a decade, I’ve found the biggest deal is to respect the subject matter expertise the company employees have, make sure the ideas are theirs, and just guide.

Fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion can take many forms, but a good example is the employee resource group program at Cisco Systems. Cisco's employee resource groups (ERGs) are voluntary, employee-led groups that support diversity and inclusion in the workplace. There are over 70 different ERGs at Cisco, each focused on a different demographic or interest group, such as the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) group, the Black Employee Network (BEN), and the Pride employee resource group for LGBTQ+ employees and allies.

Na minha experiência a diversidade de backgrounds é muito valioso para o desenvolvimento de soluções em consultoria. Ter pessoas provenientes de formações, experiências prévias e culturas diversas é uma rica estratégia para entregar cada vez mais soluções inovadoras e que consideram diversas perspectivas.

This can include competitive base pay, performance-based bonuses, health insurance, retirement savings plans, and flexible work arrangements.

Um ponto que acho muito válido é manter as opções na mesa em termos de desenvolvimento de carreira: poder transitar por várias práticas de consultoria e contribuir com a construção de soluções diferentes, além de acelerar o crescimento e "rechear" o repertório e portfólio do consultor, mantém o interesse e engajamento. Claro que um pacote de remuneração atrativo é imprescindível para um nicho de atuação que sempre demanda muito do profissional.

Consulting work is typically characterised by long work hours and lots of travel away from home. (pre-pandemic many consultants were expected to be travelling Monday to Friday or at least 4 days a week!) So unless the work offered is challenging, career enhancing and meaningfully interesting, it's bound to cause burnout and churn. Having worked for a big 4 management consulting firm in the past, I can say from personal experience that repetitive opportunities of the same type of work does not excite the employees. The lure of cutting edge technologies and solving complex business problems that are aligned to individual goals contributing to career enhancing skills & compensation growth helps in attracting & retaining top talent.

Providing challenging and meaningful work is another important factor in attracting and retaining diverse and talented consultants. This can include opportunities for professional development and growth, exposure to a variety of industries and projects, and a culture that emphasizes innovation and creativity. Especially GenZ - we want to learn and grow beyond our role!!

De fato além do trabalho em consultoria exigir usualmente uma dedicação de carga horária densa frente à complexidade dos problemas das empresas, isso sempre será um desafio pois exigirá do profissional uma curva mais acelerada de aprendizado e uma abertura maior a atuar fora da zona de conforto. Ter uma cadeia de ajuda aliada à um processo eficiente de gestão de performance e desenvolvimento, com feedbacks constantes e oportunidades reais de desenvolvimento e exposição à um ambiente de trocas, mentoria e aprendizado.

Taking into consideration such personal traits as curiosity, ambition, or intelligence that are common for the most of good consultants, you must ensure that the work that you offer gives the area for fulfilling them on a satisfactory level. Good consultants won't be motivated by doing simple, stupid, and/or repetitive taks - at least not without a tons of money waiting for them afterwards. Connect their tasks to their personal development goals and give them resources, and space to operate and they will help you to transform your business to something you haven't imagined yet.

Investing in learning and development is crucial for attracting and retaining diverse and talented consultants, as it demonstrates a commitment to their professional growth and development. For example, the consulting firm Deloitte invests heavily in learning and development programs for its employees, including a range of formal and informal training programs, mentorship, and coaching. They also have a unique Career Development Framework, which provides employees with a roadmap for their professional growth and development.

Primordial que a empresa valoriza o tempo de aprendizado dos consultores, não somente investimento em capacitações formais com cursos, workshops, feiras e certificações, mas como também fomentar um ambiente de trocas e aprendizados, possibilidades de desenvolvimento de novas capabilities, incentivar que as pessoas de forma mais livre e autônoma tenham iniciativa de desenvolvimento e protagonismo de carreira, mas acredito que isso precisa ser "suportado" pela empresa, criando este espaço nas agendas.

Good example - Salesforce. Salesforce also invests heavily in employee learning and development, offering a range of formal and informal training programs, mentorship, and coaching. They also have a unique approach to employee performance evaluations, which focuses on continuous feedback and coaching to help employees improve and grow.

Building a strong company brand definitely helps in attracting & retaining top diverse talent. Additionally, if the employees are given opportunities to showcase thought leadership externally (via conferences, attribution in company publications, events, endorsements via social media etc ) to help build their own personal branding, it is perceived positively as demonstrating a strong commitment to their career growth.

A consultoria gera valor para os clientes através da capacidade de suas pessoas em desenvolver soluções e resolver problemas, por isso, a retenção das pessoas deve ser pauta estratégica. A atividade por si só já traz muitos desafios, principalmente neste momento pós-pandemia, por isso criar e fomentar um ambiente de aprendizado, crescimento, suporte de carreira e desenvolvimento, aliado à uma cultura saudável e que pratique de fato os valores, serão diferenciais neste nicho para atrair e reter talentos.