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If you want to be a consultant to break the bonds of permanent "employee" status, rush hour misery, and b.s. office politics, it all starts with that key conversation to convince the decision-maker they need you more than you need them #washington #consulting, #business, #politics #campaigns

GETTING TO KNOW... We’re giving a warm Professionally Speaking welcome to Matthias Belz, our Managing Director of Switzerland and Regional Head of Continental Europe. Matthias joined JTC back in 2019 as Head of JTC Private Office, before making the move this year to the dual role of Managing Director of Switzerland and Regional Head of Continental Europe. In his time with the company, he has seen the Geneva office grow in scale and impact. Last month, the team even relocated to a larger office to accommodate this increase in headcount, marking an important next step in their success. ✅ What short sentence would best describe your approach to your role? Leading and supporting with commercial awareness. ✅ What was your very first job? When I was 14, I worked in the fields, propagating roses alongside my friend. It was literally a back-breaking job, and we were so slow that the owner didn’t want to pay us at all for that first day! We both quit on day three… ✅ When have you got it wrong in your career? I’d like to say never, really. It was meant to end up this way, otherwise I wouldn’t be where I am now. ✅ Have you had a mentor at any point in your career and why were they inspiring? I learn from people around me every day and have never really had a formal mentor. I know a lot of interesting, smart, and influential personalities, and I’m not shy about asking for advice in their fields of expertise. Their ability to open up new views, worlds, doors, and opportunities is very inspiring to me. Obviously, I do require input, information, and opinions to eventually form my own view. ✅ What would your retirement years see you doing? Frankly, I don’t really plan to retire completely, but rather reduce and find a new balance. Find Matthias on our website here: https://lnkd.in/exsuPKcX #People #Gettingtoknow #StrongerTogether

On YouTube: Candid Conversations: Is This the End of Corporate DEI? After having recently shared my written pieces on whether we are seeing the end of Corporate DE&I, here's a nicely produced video of a conversation the CDO at GM, Kristen Puchek, and I had at the annual Jobs for the Future (JFF) conference in Washington DC earlier this summer. We set the big picture plus we make it very pragmatic. https://lnkd.in/gVChivWv #DEI #DE&I #candidconversation #businessstrategy

I learned at Procter & Gamble never to knock a competitor. But since we founded the New England Consulting Group to be unlike legacy consulting firms, I am more than happy to share the attached from the Economist written by a past consultant who was/is revered in the industry; and as such, he knows the good, the bad and the ugly, and has shared some, but not all, of that, in the attached. If there is one thing not addressed in the attached that I know from a half-century of experience, it is high fees in advance of results. Trust I don’t have to provide examples. It is why we opened our doors in 1981 with a disruptive pay for performance model that results in our clients covering our costs for a low fee in return for a performance based bonus if business objectives are exceeded, not merely achieved, and paid long after the work is done. And, if there was another, even though it is addressed in the attached, it is exclusive retainers and chinese walls. True, most consultants, but not us, want exclusive retainer relationships with clients because they don’t want clients to experience superior consulting services. In return, they offer chinese walls which are about as secure as the one Humpty Dumpty fell from. Beyond that, they will tell you that you are getting the A-team, which leaves one to question what team the client(s) on the other side of the chinese walls are getting. It’s the principal reason we don’t accept retainers or build chinese walls, and turn down engagements where we can’t exceed client business objectives or field the A-team, because we don’t want our clients receiving counsel from the B-team or, as often is the case, the rookie team. Our competitors are much bigger than us, so they’re doing something right (for them). I just wonder if stamping out boiler plate presentations for direct competitors, premium prices, is in the best interest of their clients. What do you think? #economist #consultant #pay #retainers #chinesewalls #ateam

Resignation of Peter Costello: Fallout and Lessons for Board Directors - The shocking incident at the Canberra airport and subsequent resignation of Peter Costello as chairman of Nine has highlighted the importance of board directors' actions. Learn about the impact of personal conduct and the responsibility to uphold corporate values. #BoardDirectors #CorporateGovernance #ProfessionalConduct #MediaEthics #LeadershipLessons #BusinessAccountability #TrustandConfidence #BoardResponsibilities #CorporateValues #CorporateTransparency

Talking politics at work can be tricky, but with the right approach, it’s possible to maintain professionalism. Whether you’re thinking about engaging in these conversations or avoiding them altogether, this new Monster article provides valuable insights and tips to help you handle political discussions in the workplace. Check out the guide and see the results from #Monster's recent poll here! #Monster #WorkplaceCulture #CareerAdvice #Politics

Talking politics at work can be tricky, but with the right approach, it’s possible to maintain professionalism. Whether you’re thinking about engaging in these conversations or avoiding them altogether, this new Monster article provides valuable insights and tips to help you handle political discussions in the workplace. Check out the guide and see the results from #Monster's recent poll here! #Monster #WorkplaceCulture #CareerAdvice #Politics

Talking politics at work can be tricky, but with the right approach, it’s possible to maintain professionalism. Whether you’re thinking about engaging in these conversations or avoiding them altogether, this new Monster article provides valuable insights and tips to help you handle political discussions in the workplace. Check out the guide and see the results from #Monster's recent poll here! #Monster #WorkplaceCulture #CareerAdvice #Politics

FOOD for THOUGHT> This is essential content for those of us in the now-controversial space of equity-building in agriculture where we've basically been told we need to watch our language. What's the purpose of DE&I, by whatever name you might call it? For many of us, like Andres, the purpose is rooted in social justice. But diversity, equity and inclusion practices have benefits beyond the justice imperative - benefits that have to do with markets, talent and bottom lines. This conversation is ostensibly about big biz and car manufacturing, but the same truths apply to agriculture (which, of course, is also big biz and manufacturing). Shall we stay the course and be quiet? Jump ship? Or lean in to the ideas that everyone deserves a fair shot to reach their full potential AND that diversity BY THE DATA leads to more innovation, opens new markets, enhances engagement and optimizes talent. Listen through to the questions. Proud of the work of my friend Andrés T. Tapia - follow him and look up his books for more good stuff.