3 months gap till onboard - what would you do?

Question

I still have 3 months of time to utilize before starting my consulting job. What would you advise me to do to enhance my consulting knowledge to pass probation? Would any consulting training program be advised?

Specifically speaking, I would like to enhance slide-making and storylining (crafting a storyboard) - these skills are less developed in my previous role. While many people would say just practice on the job, would there be any way to self-train the skill set before I start the job?

I will indeed take some time to travel and enjoy my time, but I would like to be as prepared as possible to maximize my success likelihood. Thank you for any tips!

Answer 1

Hi there,

Congratulations on your offer! In terms of your question:

Q: What would you advise me to do to enhance my consulting knowledge to pass probation?

I would recommend to consider the following.

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IT TOOLS

You are probably fine with Excel and PowerPoint, if not you can take a quick course to review the basics. You can check in advance with your office if they recommend training on any other tool, such as Alteryx or Tableau and if so, do some prep on that.

One of the most important things you can learn with any IT tool is shortcuts – they will increase substantially your productivity.

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INDUSTRIES

If your office specializes in specific industries where you would like to work, it would be good to get a minimum knowledge of them in advance. You will still learn the most during the job so this is not strictly necessary.

You can find some tips on recent consulting trends here:

▶ 11 New Consulting Trends You Should Know

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READING LIST

A good way to invest your extra time before starting is to… read. You probably won’t have much time to do this later and reading can help you substantially to accelerate your personal growth.

Personally I don’t have much time to read, so I listen to books – Audible is great for this. You can easily listen to a book per week with minimum effort. You absorb books differently when you listen, so you have to check if this works for you.

The following are some books I would highly recommend to develop a growth mindset – key in any industry with high pressure. You can expand the list with anything you want to learn – just try to find a few really good books on that topic.

The Compound Effect – Darren Hardy (great book on long-term planning)
Tiny Habits – BJ Fogg (excellent, science-based book on habits formation)
The Mediations – Marcus Aurelius (written ~ 2000 years ago but incredibly actual – the personal diary of the most powerful man in the world at the time)
The 80–20 Principle – Richard Koch (very smart life tips from one of the founders of LEK)
Peaks and Valleys – Spencer Johnson (crisis management tale – from the same author of the famous “Who moved my Cheese”, I personally found this book a lot more interesting and applicable)
The Gap and the Gain – Dan Sullivan and Benjamin Hardy (excellent book in terms of mindset for happiness)

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FIRST WEEKS

Below you can also find some tips for the first weeks I usually recommend – you are probably familiar with most of them, but it might be useful to review the list just in case:

Take notes during meetings/discussions with your manager – this will help you to remember details and will show the team that you care.
Always double-check. The first impression is very important when you join a new company: if you show you are reliable from the beginning, you will create a good reputation. Double checks should be done on expectations for your job, your Excel analysis, your slides – basically everything.
Define priorities before starting any set of tasks. You want to identify the most important activities and prioritize them, applying the 80-20 rule. Align with your manager to define them at the start of the project whenever possible.
Socialize with your colleagues and start to build a network. A good start is key to develop good relationships long-term. Try to build connections in your first weeks with your peers to build a network.
Align with your team on your private life activities. You might want to organize some space for personal activities (sport/ friends/ family). It is better to align with your manager/teammates from the beginning on your core needs so that there are no surprises later on.
Ask for feedback every two-three weeks – this will show you are proactive and willing to learn.
Ask for help when you don't know what to do – better to let know you are in trouble with meeting a deadline than missing the deadline.
Be approachable and respectful to support staff – these people are generally great and influential in the company as well.

All the best for a great start!

Francesco

Answer 2

Great question.

Many people ask this one, so I've actually created these two resources as a starting point:

Aside from this, as high-level guidance, I'd recommed you don't focus too much on hard skills, but instead put your energy into developing soft skills (communication, negociation, etc.) These will make a much bigger difference.

Read the following for this:

Influence by Cialdini

Deep Work by Newport

Never Split The Difference by (can't remeber now)

Best,
Cristian

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Answer 3

Hi there,

Congrats on the offer!

MOST IMPORTANTLY: Know that no-one can perfectly prepare for the job and that's the point: You will mess up, you will learn, you will be trained and supported. That's OK!

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First: Read the 25 tips in my consulting handbook

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Second: In terms of things you can learn/do to prepare beforehand:

1) Daily Reading

The Economist, The Financial Times, BCG/Mskinsey Insights

2) Industry deep-dives

Learn, in-depth, how the industries/companies your office advises, work. (PM me for an industry overview template)

3) Analytics tools

Alteryx, Tableau, etc.

4) Excel

5) Powerpoint

Best practices/standards
Different layouts
Quickly editing/updating slides
Thinking in PowerPoint

6) Presentation skills / sharp communication

There are some online/virtual classes for this

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Third: In terms of doing well in your role when you're there:

1) Understand the context/prompt (what role are you in, what company, who's watching, etc.)

2) Understand the objective (what, specifically, is expected from you...both day to day, and in your overall career progression)

3) Quickly process information, and focus on what's important - Take a lot of information and the unknown, find the most logical path, and focus on that.

4) Be comfortable with the unknown, and learn to brainstorm - think/speak like an expert without being one

In summary, there will always be a flood of information, expectations, competition etc. and not enough time. Find out which ones matter when. (i.e. be visibile and focus efforts on the things that people care about)

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Fourth: Here are some great prior Q&As for you!

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/what-makes-a-good-consultant-how-to-get-a-good-review-6790

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/how-hard-is-it-to-excel-in-top-consulting-firms-6762

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/how-to-become-an-engagement-manager-and-partner-quickly-6722

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/need-to-learn-skills-in-the-ample-free-time-before-starting-at-an-mbb-what-should-i-do-6774

Answer 4

Hi,

I had a ~2.5 month gap between the offer and the start date.

I did what I liked to do - travel, scuba dive, catch up with friends.

The only thing I would have done differently is to ask for a longer gap e.g. 6 months, so I would have more time to travel and dive.

In hindsight, trying to be prepared really wouldn't have moved the needle in my POV. You'll learn what you need to learn on the job, and the job is a test of your ability to also adapt/learn things on the spot (you will always be stretched).

Answer 5

Hi there,

I suggest you use this time to make the most of your personal time (travel, family, friends, hobbies, sports). This will help you to charge your batteries for your new consulting job, plus you probably have little time for those things after your start.

Don't worry to much about consulting hard and soft skills. You'll receive trainings on all you need plus you'll learn on the ground with your peers support.

Good luck!

Alberto

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Answer 6

Hey,

Although I believe you just need to chill out for now and enjoy your last bits of freedom, if you really want to work on some areas in the meantime, you could try doing the following:

Ask your friends / colleagues who are good at the skills you want to improve in to coach you. I once struggled with a challenging ppt presentation for a personal project and asked my friend and a former colleague who was good at making slides for help. He gladly assisted.

Good luck in your new role!
Nick

Answer 7

There are some great trainings available for Thinkcell and for Consulting Storytelling - if you look for those you should find something adequate for the time effort you want to put in.

Answer 8

I'd say enjoy the time off, you'll be heads down once you start. Take the time to decompress do the things that will be harder once you are working full time.

No harm in getting comfortable with excel, thinkcell, powerpoint, alteryx. Maybe go read the Pyramid Principle.

Other than that, enjoy the time off