Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does the fed need consultants?

To get work done?

What work?

A consultant is brought in to analyze a problem and recommend solutions. If they get the deal, they bring in their own people to implement solution, and frequently work with the in-house people who supposedly take it over once job is complete.

I'm not trying to be dense. I thought this is what SES and politicals are supposed to do. I can't see how this adds value. But then that's probably not the point. Is it just that the consultants are getting repaid for political contributions they made? I truly don't get the point of any of this. Just seems like more bureaucracy and waste.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a Fed and in my experience, Deloitte sells a good game and brings in all their top people to talk to senior Feds, but then brings in 22 year olds to do the work and the results are subpar.

This is exactly what they do at my agency. We might be able to retain senior talent if we ask them to propose specific “key personnel” on their proposal package. They are extremely skilled at taking a bullshit fed idea and packing it into something more digestible for upper SES management…all so Chad and Tommy can get to the 15 level.

As a former consultant (SME not career) the bolded is key. Partner qualifications are basically irrelevant, they won't be doing anything more than the occasional check in once they seal the deal. You need to look at resumes of Managers and Senior Managers/Directors as they will be the ones running the engagement and doing quality control of the 22 year olds. Ideally, I think a mix of longtime consultants who keep the wheels moving and do stuff like tracking budget and productivity and people with specific expertise in the subject matter works best. I'm on the client side now and that's what I look for. The 22 year olds will always be there, that's the whole model, but if you can control who manages them, do!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a Fed and in my experience, Deloitte sells a good game and brings in all their top people to talk to senior Feds, but then brings in 22 year olds to do the work and the results are subpar.

Fed (15) and bullseye what you wrote.

NP - The ones I've interacted with are glorified 22yo note-takers under the guise of "PMO." They mostly sit against the wall in meetings and then provide context-free notes (sometimes even asking those of us in the meeting to send them OUR notes so that they can reuse them).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmmm is this stemming from the post on Washingtonian probs this week?

https://www.instagram.com/p/C3d9GHFN2BZ/?hl=en

OP here: Yes! And also we acquired a Deloitte consultant but he is a 20 yr Navy veteran who spent 3 years in Deloitte. Trying to reconcile these stereotypes.

Someone who only spent 3 years there and had another career is unlikely to fit the stereotypes and likely didn't really fit in there. The SMEs are a different animal than the homegrowns who spend their whole careers being groomed for upper management. In terms of stereotypes, I'd also argue they differ on the government vs commercial side.

Our new hire is a ‘government’ type. Also in his 50s, not a SME but more of a generalist. Not your stretchy pant wearing bro but any chance lol

At his age and short tenure, plus being Fed I'd expect him to fit few Deloitte or consultant stereotypes. I bet it was pretty weird for him at Deloitte as a 50 year old who presumably was not a partner. He'd be an outlier for sure and I doubt he drunk the kool-aid. I'd expect him to be more like a typical Fed than a career consultant. 3 years is a blip on the resume for this guy.

Anonymous wrote:I'm a Fed and in my experience, Deloitte sells a good game and brings in all their top people to talk to senior Feds, but then brings in 22 year olds to do the work and the results are subpar.

This is exactly what they do at my agency. We might be able to retain senior talent if we ask them to propose specific “key personnel” on their proposal package. They are extremely skilled at taking a bullshit fed idea and packing it into something more digestible for upper SES management…all so Chad and Tommy can get to the 15 level.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does the fed need consultants?

To get work done?

What work?

A consultant is brought in to analyze a problem and recommend solutions. If they get the deal, they bring in their own people to implement solution, and frequently work with the in-house people who supposedly take it over once job is complete.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does the fed need consultants?

To get work done?

What work?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmmm is this stemming from the post on Washingtonian probs this week?

https://www.instagram.com/p/C3d9GHFN2BZ/?hl=en

OP here: Yes! And also we acquired a Deloitte consultant but he is a 20 yr Navy veteran who spent 3 years in Deloitte. Trying to reconcile these stereotypes.

Someone who only spent 3 years there and had another career is unlikely to fit the stereotypes and likely didn't really fit in there. The SMEs are a different animal than the homegrowns who spend their whole careers being groomed for upper management. In terms of stereotypes, I'd also argue they differ on the government vs commercial side.

Our new hire is a ‘government’ type. Also in his 50s, not a SME but more of a generalist. Not your stretchy pant wearing bro but any chance lol

Anonymous wrote:What does the fed need consultants?

To get work done?

What does the fed need consultants?

Anonymous wrote:I'm a Fed and in my experience, Deloitte sells a good game and brings in all their top people to talk to senior Feds, but then brings in 22 year olds to do the work and the results are subpar.

Fed (15) and bullseye what you wrote.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmmm is this stemming from the post on Washingtonian probs this week?

https://www.instagram.com/p/C3d9GHFN2BZ/?hl=en

OP here: Yes! And also we acquired a Deloitte consultant but he is a 20 yr Navy veteran who spent 3 years in Deloitte. Trying to reconcile these stereotypes.

Someone who only spent 3 years there and had another career is unlikely to fit the stereotypes and likely didn't really fit in there. The SMEs are a different animal than the homegrowns who spend their whole careers being groomed for upper management. In terms of stereotypes, I'd also argue they differ on the government vs commercial side.

Agree. Leaving after 3 years suggests lack of fit with the consulting culture. That is a neutral statement. Your new coworker may have been disillusioned with consulting and wanted to find a really meaningful client-side job. Plus last year was financially hard for a lot of the big consulting firms...see the thread on 3K employees being put on performance improvement plans at McKinsey.

Wall Street and consulting do like to hire ex-military MBAs because they rightly expect leadership skills plus ability to get along in male-dominated fields.

I still have no idea what a consultant does.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All management consultants are horrible people thst do horrible business they often ruins the country.

Oh……. I recommend a therapist and maybe medication.

NP - you had to go personal bc you can't refute what the pp said, although it was stated a bit bluntly. It's what many/most people think, sorry to tell you.

I'm a Fed and in my experience, Deloitte sells a good game and brings in all their top people to talk to senior Feds, but then brings in 22 year olds to do the work and the results are subpar.