We have all read lessons on marketing, attended sessions on business strategy, read up about the nuances of consulting and searched the internet for tips on how to sail through interviews, but rarely do we remember what we have read. Why? Because it was all theory —page after page of fine print that just stared at us, waiting for us to make some sense out of them and also register it all to be retrieved at a later stage. Unfortunately the registering part of the exercise remains weak and the retrieval almost never happens. Sandeep K Krishnan has changed all that. Here is a raconteur who teaches concepts, drives home valid points, explains important theories and drills in serious lessons through simple storytelling.
The Mind of A Consultant…does not overwhelm the reader with jargon or overload the student with technicalities, yet equips those interested in excelling in the consulting space with all the knowledge required to speak, sound and carry themselves like an expert.
And the best part is, from start to finish, Krishnan ensures that the book actually reads like a novel. There is a protagonist, who manages to excel at a career in consulting by relying on the three principles of thinking and delivering beyond, working on ensuring client success, building and leveraging her network and above all, being herself.
The book traces her journey as an MBA student, and introduces mentors at every stage of her life and path to being an extraordinary professional. Through these mentors, the readers gain valuable insights. The chapters indirectly hammer in the fact that in every consulting firm, although everyone follows the same methodologies, processes, and values, each one has an X factor that helps them stand out and become a successful partner.
This fact is driven home when the protagonist’s dream of becoming a partner is shattered because she does not appear to be natural and because she follows a set formula. With great skill, Krishnan manages to convey the significance of mentors in the lives of professional consultants, and the importance of professional commitment, hard work, a thorough understanding of business needs, knowledge of ways to build and support a team and above all, a willingness to learn.
It skilfully weaves in case studies from various sectors including aviation, banking and consulting.
Those who have yet not made up their mind to get into the consulting space may be enticed by the fact that working as a consultant “opens the doors to working with some of the sharpest minds in the industry and interacting with some of the biggest names in the business world.”
Without commanding the readers to do so, Krishnan very tactfully suggests the names of books that those interested in a consulting career should read at all costs.
So, if you are an MBA student looking to make it big in consulting, then this book is a must read. Are you trying to ace a case interview? Then this book will help you prepare, be smart and engaging, think in an integrated manner and display your eagerness to learn. Are you a professional consultant struggling to understand the way the consulting space works? This book has all the insights you need. Are you working in a consulting firm and wondering why that much sought after promotion remains elusive? Let this book be an eye opener. Have you been working hard and doing everything right, but still far from achieving professional success? This book will help you reinvent yourself and achieve your goal. If you think you have it all to become a partner in the consulting firm you are employed in, this book will tell you why you may still not be ready!