Embracing Transition

This fall is a time of transition for me. After working 15+ years for consulting firms and marketing agencies as a strategist, I am ready to do something different.

By this I mean being more focused on what I do and where I do it.

First, what I do. As a career strategist (primarily focusing on customer experience and go-to-market strategies), my work is often the beginning of a transitional period itself. For example, a company will ask for help with a digital transformation. This is often driven by a new product or marketing focus, a rebrand, or simply the need to upgrade an antiquated customer experience. It may be driven by competitive pressures or industry dynamics, but a decision has been made to move the business.

In doing this type of strategy work, I help set the foundation for what is trying to be accomplished, integrate the work into broader company goals, and set a plan for success, in the form a strategy and roadmap. It is more complicated than that, but the output is an actionable plan to achieve a set of goals. A blueprint for success.

In the past, I have done this for broad enterprise initiatives as well as more focused efforts within in a business unit or functional area.

Going forward, my intention is to focus on broader enterprise initiatives, where success is core to a company’s growth ambitions. Furthermore, I want to focus not only on growth, but the acceleration of growth.

Why… enterprises that can accelerate growth at the times they need to, enjoy favorable business outcomes and times of prosperity. It is hard work, but rewarding work. It often takes some degree of bold thinking and innovation, a degree of risk, and confidence that the risk is worth the reward.

This is the type of work that I want to spend my energy on.

Second, where I do it. My career has been doing this with established firms like Accenture and WPP. These are all great places to work and hire, but as a strategist you often need to work in large, slow moving teams, that are working together for the first time.

Going forward, I am choosing to find a home where fast and bold rule the day. Where teams are lean and capable, with a focus on helping enterprise outgrow their competitors. In situations where companies want to win, but simply need an outside push to get there. A place where team success is not winning a contract, but what the outcome of that contract did for the brand we are working with.

For me, this post is about the beginning of that journey and a note to myself on what I will value going forward — helping companies accelerate growth.

I plan to keep writing about what I learn. Follow along and always feel free to reach out if you want to learn more.

Posted here on medium.com

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