The question I’m asked most as a management consultant
“So what do you ACTUALLY do?”
Some of you may know that at the end of last year, I made a major shift—I left Big Four consulting and started my own practice.
Since then, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind. But instead of trying to explain everything, I thought I’d share one recent story that captures the work I do better than any fancy consultant-speak ever could…
A few months ago, I was brought into a small, but growing, organization to conduct a Work Activity Analysis (a deep dive into how each employee’s time, roles, and business processes actually work).
On the surface, the company’s issues seemed operational.
But within a few days, it was clear the real issue was far more…meta.
There was no day-to-day management.
Roles were loosely defined.
Morale was at an all-time low.
And the CEO was carrying far more than any one person should.
These operational issues were just symptoms of a much larger, structural, deficiency.
So while I continued my analysis, I also stepped in as the de facto Chief of Staff—addressing the immediate needs of the staff for leadership, alignment, and engagement, while continuing to stabilize operations and diagnose organizational issues in real time.
What my analysis ultimately revealed was this:
The organization hadn’t outgrown its people.
It had outgrown its structure.
So I worked to rebuild it.
I redesigned the operating model and organizational structure to clearly define roles, introduce management layers, and create accountability and support systems. Almost immediately, things began to shift—communication improved, bottlenecks eased, and the CEO finally had time to focus on what he does best: grow the business.
Structure isn’t sexy. But it is essential.
Structure is the skeleton of an organization, and it’s what makes scalable growth possible.
Without it, organizations are like Jenga towers missing pieces at the base: destined to teeter and more likely to topple the larger they grow.
I refer to the work I do as “People Operations.” Because my job doesn’t just improve the bottom line–it makes people’s lives better. I LOVE what I do because I get to see the immediate and measurable impact change makes on both the organization and its greatest asset: its people.
Here’s a little more about the work I do
For more than a decade, I’ve helped executives bring order to chaos. I’ve done everything from build a department from the ground up (that scaled to $10 million in annual revenue in just a few years) to help world-renowned organizations navigate change and growth.
Most often, I help organizations by:
Translating executive vision into clear, actionable roadmaps
Facilitating cross-functional leadership alignment
Designing organizational structures that support growth
Leading change management (communications, training, & implementation)
Developing risk mitigation strategies & business process optimization
In many cases, I step in as an embedded partner, because after many years leading change initiatives, I know the importance of being “in the trenches” with my teams and clients.
If your organization is changing, and things feel harder than they should, I can help.
If this sounds relevant to you (or someone you know), I’m concurrently taking on a limited number of new clients, and I truly appreciate your referrals.
Click here to schedule a call with me today. I’d love to help you and your team reach the next level.
