Breaking Into
the Industry

What are you expected to know?

Consultants gain confidence by delivering on their projects. Therefore it is important to know the role that you are expected to provide on a project. Clearly everyone is not expected to know everything. However, it is important that you are clear as to your role on a particular project and the expertise you bring to the table.

• Will you serve as the project partner/director/sponsor? If so, lead discussions with your team and the client executives. Answers of your team regarding project budget, staffing decisions, and client expectations.
• Will you serve as a functional or 'Team Lead' on a project? If so, provide clear direction as to roles/responsibilities/timelines/deliverables for those reporting to you.
• Will you serve as a contributing staff member on a project? If so, understand your role, your deliverables, the timelines, the check-points, and your resources to get the job done.

The industry and functional knowledge that you gain as you build your expertise from project-to-project will serve to build your ‘famous factor’ as a consultant. It will likely affect the role you have on the project and the leadership opportunity that are available to you.

If you think that training is necessary to fulfill your role on a project, inquire what training opportunities are available. Clarify what experts, sample products, and resources are available (even without the training). Understand the project leadership’s expectation for you to get the job done so that you can ask questions if your expectation do not align.