In 1998, I was working in the W2 position I’d been in since graduating from college. Feeling underappreciated and underpaid, I started checking out other opportunities, and I even got hooked up with a recruiter. Before long, I was hired for my first consulting gig as a project manager at a major engineering and aviation firm at an hourly rate that doubled my take home pay.
My first request was to go onsite prior to my start date and meet the team. This took the hiring manager by surprise, but I think he was impressed that I wanted to come in on my own time and talk to the team before actually working with them. That first gig was intended to be a six-month stopover, but it lasted three years.
I think that my request to go onsite definitely helped set a good first impression, which is crucial because external IT consultants are often looked at as gurus, untouchables, or aliens, depending on the organization. When I go to client sites, there are several ways that I go about making it clear that I’m genuinely interested in the gig. Here are my suggestions for how to make yourself indispensable to clients. Read it all here
No comments:
Post a Comment