I came across this book at the airport last week, and at the end of the day, I had finished it. The book is called
Folienkrieg und Bullshitbingo: Handbuch für Unternehmensberater, Opfer und Angehörige by Ewald F. Walden (Amazon.de link). It is the truth, and nothing but the truth, about working for a big consulting firm. There were tons of  “YES! THIS IS EXACTLY HOW IT IS!”  moments in there, and despite being quite factual and informative, the book is a good laugh (a deeply ironic laugh sometimes, but nonetheless).

If you are considering a job in consulting in Germany – buy the book. You’ll get a very realistic idea of what might be ahead of you, and it gives you the whole picture, with all pro’s and con’s.

If you are a consultant at a big firm – buy the book. See, you are not alone. They all are as crazy as you are. There’s even a list of books to read and movies to watch during the occasional lonesome evening at the hotel.

If your significant other, child, sibling, good friend, etc.  is a consultant at a big firm – buy the book. It will explain a lot, and you will be able to understand some of the strange behaviours that he/she has.

Bottom line: Just buy it. Here.

Disclaimer: I signed up for the Amazon Affiliate Program, so in theory, I’ll get a few cents when you buy the book through the links posted here. I mostly did it to see if my recommendation has any effect whatsoever.

Folder structure – keep it simple and consistent
One folder per project, and within it, a general outline that I keep more or less the same for every project and adapt it to the specific needs / complexities that come up:

In this folder I capture everything that relates to the project, the only other place where files will be stored is the Outlook Inbox (I keep separate .PST files for every major project, so I can clean my Outlook afterwards and archive both .PST and project folder together).

There will be cases where a file that was sent to me via email will be saved in the folder structure as well, which is in effect an unnecessary redundancy, but… a) it is often important to log who sent what when, thus deleting the mail does not do you any good, and b) it is always good to keep a second, clean copy of a file someone sent you, in case you tinker with it and forget to make a duplicate copy.

Don’t create too many sub-folders – just enough so that you can oversee the contents of a folder easily. When too many old versions of the same document pile up (I sometimes have over 50 versions of a file), they go into the “old versions” folder, and get deleted after the end of the project.

The folder “Meetings and Milestones” often helps because in creating documentation for steering committees etc., you normally have to take slides/information from all over the project.

The folder “Single tasks” comes in handy to just file away everything that you did on the fly, mostly quick slides for colleagues, a pivot table that the VP wanted to see, stuff like that.

BTW, the numbers in front of the folder name just keep things in the order I want them to be in, they have no other meaning.

File names – Consistent and self-sorting

I was taught a simple scheme after which to name my files, and it has proven very time saving again and again. It goes like this:

YearMonthDay_ClientName_ProjectName_
DocumentName_Version_Editor.XXX

• YearMonthDay: For example, 20100521 for May 21st 2010. 100521 works fine as well. Chose the date when the document will be presented / is due.
• ClientName: Self explaining. Make it short (“ACME” instead of “ACME Corporation”)
• ProjectName: Self explaining. Take the official one that the client also recognizes
• DocumentName: Must clearly state what is contained (“SalesForecastQ2″ is better than “Forecast”)
• Version: Count up from “_v01″. I do that in regular intervals when saving the document, and at least before sending it to someone else to indicate that there have been changes compared to the version before. When delivering the document to the client, either delete the version numer or replace it with “_final”
• Editor: Put your initials here when you save the document. “_JD” for Jane Doe. That way, everyone in the team knows who made the last edits on the file.
• XXX: The ending of the file type, e.g. “.ppt”

Thus, a file could be named 20100524_ACME_SalesUp_SalesForecastQ2_v04_JD.ppt. If you keep the file structure like that, the files automatically sort themselves if they are sorted by file name, giving you great oversight within the project folder structure.

What are your secrets in dealing with the masses of files that must be handled on a project? Share it in the comments!

I’ve been enjoying this book tremendously over the last days, thought I’d let you know about it.

The book is “Makers” by Cory Doctorow. The story plays in the near future, where some of the emerging trends of today are already steampunk, and the up-and coming gizmos of the science labs are found in the small store next door. The story makes you learn about important innovation trends, like 3D printing, open innovation, crowdsourcing, biotechnology body enhancing, etc. – and have the joy of reading a novel – two in one fun. There’s really a lot covered here, as was to be expected by one of the best novelists of the dotcom era.

If you want to give the KC a little love, use these links for your purchases on
amazon.de or amazon.com. (Disclaimer: Those are affiliate links and I get, like, bootloads of money if you click them, but it doesn’t cost you a dime.) Thanks, and enjoy the book!

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.
(Robert Frost, “The Road Not Taken“)

A short while later today, Hugh McLeod published a drawing with the slogan “I don’t have a career. I have a blackberry.” – inspired by people like us, I guess, who stand around at airports and yack away at their BlackBerries. He wonders what work really gets done in those moments…

This is enough. Apparently, it needs to be said. Out loud.

YOUR BLACKBERRY IS NO EXCUSE FOR BAD EMAILS!

That means:

• Still, one-line emails are not considered polite
• Speling mistokes are still bad form
• The recipient should not notice a difference in the way you reply to his/her mails, regardless of what you typed them on
• Nobody cares that you are at the airport, in the taxi or on the loo
• There is no law that says that an email answered shoddily from the BlackBerry is always better than a delayed reply

So you should:

• Get rid of this stupid footer line – or do you think that people find it cool that you have a BlackBerry???
• Only reply to an email on the go when you have the required concentration and time to write it in correct grammar, in a polite and complete manner (if you would only write “Hi Jim! Yes, we got the deal. Regards, Peter” on your computer in the office, that is of course still fine!)
• Refrain from the “VP style” at all cost(not addressing the recipient, not saying thank you, not punctuating, not using UpperCase letters, etc.) – it really is just bad and unrespectful, I can’t say that often enough!
• Instead of writing a bad email, when under time pressure, CALL the recipient, or send a short message telling her that you will answer her request when you get to the office ->remember, there still are people out there who DO NOT get their mails on their mobile devices, and they somehow manage to survive!

That’s it. Easy, right?

Now go out there and be good!

US President Barack Obama in his first meeting with Indian PM Manmohan Singh remarked that India is a critical player on the world stage. Being an Indian, I take pride in knowing that to be true, however, a simple translation of what Mr. Obama meant is that India is poised to grow at a considerably faster rate as compared to the rate at which more developed nations would grow. The reasons for such an assumption are obvious, as companies strive to be more competitive, they are more likely to seek out newer markets, India with its over 1 billion population and an emerging middle class provides a perfect setting for prolonged periods of growth.

Phew! That sets the context for the main purpose of this article, as more Indian companies seek out unexplored global markets and as more global companies seek out Indian markets, one Industry that is likely to greatly benefit is the “Consulting Industry”. Yes you heard it right. Mr. Consultant in India does not have to worry about slowdown in the Consulting Industry for the next years.

So one question that comes to mind is how difficult is it for a prospective Indian candidate to break into consulting compared to his global counterpart? Answer is “considerably more difficult”. Reasons for such a contention are obvious; India probably churns out more graduates each year than any other country in the world. Strong emphasis on studies by parents plays a major role in more students pursuing studies diligently. So in the end, the applicant pool for Consulting Jobs in India is extremely competitive.

Thus the major proportion of the consulting job opportunities is grabbed by students graduating out of tier-1 schools and colleges, and even among those students graduating from tier-1 schools and colleges the competition is extremely high. Irony in all of this is that even if you do break into a consulting firm, life does not get easy. Any practicing consultant will tell you that the work pressure is tremendous, timelines are tight, there are always things pending and at the appraisal time, you are pitted against the same hard working, extremely bright and highly competitive peers.

Second question that comes to mind is what are the major differences between an Indian consultant and his global counterpart?

The answer in this case is “it depends”, if you manage to break into the top 3 consulting firms, i.e. McKinsey, Bain, BCG then the difference is marginal, the reason is that these firms tend to promote global engagement teams; each engagement you work on will include people from different geographic areas and skill set. Hence, over a period of time, an Indian consultant tends to pick up skills to match his global counterpart.

However, if you break into other big consulting firms i.e. the famous Big 4’s (I avoid calling them Big 4 Accounting firms because significant portion – 50 percent in some cases – of the revenue is now derived from advisory services and hence it would be unfair to tag them as purely accounting firms) or firms such as Capgemini, Diamond Consulting etc., the business model for these firms is very location focused. They tend to promote country specific knowledge as their USP and hence interaction with global peers tends to be limited. Thus this category of consultants tends to be a little different in their style of working and depth of knowledge from their global counterpart. However, such differences are often mitigated over a period of time due various in-firm measures such as secondments etc. This second category of consultants tends to have a much deeper knowledge of the local markets than the other category described above (or so is my opinion anyway).

Though I’ve tried to generalize the differences between Indian and global consultants, there are some other extremely relevant factors that can make a mockery out of my generalizations, these include adaptability, opportunity, Intent etc. How easily an individual can adapt to new working styles, whether the service he or she specializes thrives on expertise in local markets or demands a more global outlook, whether an individual wants to travel and explore new environments – These are some questions that need more probing before a more conclusive generalization can be developed.

About the Author:
Mohit is a consultant at a leading big 4 firm, he specializes in advising clients on mitigating non financial risks during investments and business dealings. Mohit is also the founder of Consulting Network, a leading portal for aspiring consultants, Consulting Network focuses on providing in depth knowledge and mentoring services to aspiring and practicing consultants and promoting networking and job opportunities. Visit http://www.consultingnetwork.co.in/ for more on Consulting Network.

Disclaimer: Views expressed by the author on this article are completely his personal views and in no way reflect the views of his employer or any other parties mentioned in this article.

Although everyone knows since grammar school that spelling is important, it still sometimes is underestimated – as you see with this lovely decorated cake.

For consultants, producing work that is free of spelling errors is critical. Why? Because we hardly ever have tangible products or results to show our clients. The closest they get to that during a project are the things we present to them. Thus, consulting clients tend to put a disproportionately high attention on even the smallest details when they receive a something from you – the latest PowerPoint deck, for example. In the worst case, you lose credibility and trust, because your client perceives you as working inaccurately. Even if that does not occur, you might still waste crucial face time with your client trying to gloss over a stupid mistake he noticed.

Spelling correctly whilst producing your deliverables quickly and often with many revisions is a challenge. Here’s 5 tips to help you out.

1. Use the automatic spell checker:
   Basic, you mean? No-brainer, you say? Hah! If it is already your habit to a) tell the application which language your document really is in (especially if you are not working in an English speaking country, which means that you will often be switching between at least two languages and confusing the heck out of MS Office) and b) engage the spell check every time before you send out a document – kudos! You are on the straight path to becoming a KillerConsultant. If not: Start now. Saves you a lot of effort.
2. Make a list of the abbreviations and conventions used on your project:
   Agreeing on how to write “as-is” (As-is? As-Is? As is? …) within the team saves you a lot of time – just make a simple table that gets updated whenever something new comes in. Send it around as a reminder when appropriate.
3. The clients’ spelling is almost always the way to go:
   When it comes to client specific words (products, departments, project names, abbreviations), make sure that you use them in exactly the way the client does – but do not copy spelling errors that your client made (don’t necessarily rub their nose in it, either – that often has a backlash)
4. Cross-check with colleagues:
   Flight attendants do trust each other – still they always “put the doors in flight and cross-check”. Because another pair of eyes spots your mistakes much easier than you do yourself. Same goes for proofreading.
   Whenever an important delivery comes up, agree beforehand with a colleague to take the time for a full read-through. It already helps when you print out the document and go over it with a red marker yourself (I tend to spot more errors on paper than on the screen), but the magic is in having someone do it who did not write the content.
5. ALL NAMES MUST BE CORRECT, NO EXCEPTION.
   This definitely is a “last but NOT least”. People are, naturally, very sensitive about their names – it is their identity. Come hell or high water, do never ever circulate a document without making sure that you have spelled all names correctly, especially looking at the names of your client contacts. I mean it.

There surely are a lot more tips and tricks when it comes to avoiding spelling horrors – which one has saved you from major disaster? Share it in the comments!

after I got a great email today from Martin from Germany, and from  Akarsh from India earlier last week, it is time to put a big thank you note up here. It gives me a lot of joy to see that I what I write for the KillerConsultant really is of value for some people out there, and the occasional email that I get with positive feedback and further questions on the subject are invaluable.

Let me tell you, it is absolutely awesome to reply to a sceptic friend who asks me why the heck I run this website something along the lines of “you know, there’s Pete, a student from the US, and he just told me that the things I put online really helped him in making the decision to go into consulting – I helped someone in real life. So, you know, it’s kinda worth it.”

Thus: Thanks everybody, really. You make this a worthwhile thing to do, and I do appreciate every piece of feedback I get.

Enter my newest discovery: STAIRS! (*gasp*)

No-seriously! Try it out!
I am on a mission to avoid elevators and escalators at all cost for two weeks now, and it starts to pay off. The rule is strict – no exceptions for “but I am carrying my briefcase AND my suitcase!”. No exception for “but the office is on the 6th floor!”. No excuse for “But there are only fire stairs in the hotel!”. No excuse for “my colleagues are looking at me funny!”. I am just taking the stairs. Of course this is no complete workout yet – but lifting my luggage all over the place sure feels like on, it costs close to no extra time and serves as an instant feel-good moment.

Maybe their is a staircase just waiting for you?

To make life easier for me and you, I have created a Q&A page here on the KC, where I will be collecting the questions and answers that come in. Have a look – so far questions range from “what business car do you drive” to “what business schools in Europe to consulting firms recruit from preferably?”. And, of course – keep ‘em coming!