Reflections on the week just past
This past week has been an interesting one. I’m at a client for the third year now. This is the first time that’s happened, which makes sense since I just began the third year of work after graduating. Some reflections on the milestone:
- The first year I was green. I had about a week of client-site audit experience to that point, so I did very low-level work. But it was interesting, because the client is a very large owner-managed firm and the engagement is complex.
- The second year was shortened, since I went to the SOA during the final three weeks of June and after that I was put on another engagement. That engagement is also coming up soon, and will be the second client with whom I’ve hit the third year.
- This year, thanks to a colleague’s promotion and another’s vacation, I’ve inherited the “In-Charge” mantle and taken the reins of this beast. I find that I really excel in situations where I have greater responsibility, so I’m pretty psyched about the next couple weeks!
As challenging as new engagements are, it’s nice to be able to always spend the same time of the year at the same place.
Having “continuity” is awesome. I’ve enjoyed a bit of that, but I’ve also been going through a whirlwind of various brand new experiences too — I’m not sure if I’ll have any ‘three-peat’ jobs this year, unless my schedule changes drastically.
Dear Neil,
Congratulations at achieving longevity and increased responsibility at more than one client. As a partner, I was always asked by staff, “Do I have to sell? How can I help develop business?” Some staff chomp at the bit to develop client relationships and think that the sooner they can say they “sold” a piece of work, the faster they’ll get promoted. However, the best business developer is the one that knows what he or she is talking about and has credibilty with and the respect of their clients and colleagues. The easiet sell is the one the client sells you on. So the best way a staff member can support the business developement effort is to do a good job on what they’re assigned, learn everything they can and please the client. You’ll be staying at your clients longer, growing the depth and breadth of your participation at the client (which raises your billable hours and billing rate) and become a valuable member of the team that the client wants to have around. It doesn’t get any better than that!