Did I Waste 2 Years in Management Consulting?
About this video
Jeff Su asks whether he wasted two years in management consulting after he was promoted to senior consultant, then joined a large tech company and had his job level bumped back down to that of an entry-level hire. Six years and three more promotions later, his answer is a resounding no. He argues title and pay are a one-dimensional view of growth and that consulting gave him a wide range of exit opportunities, a network of professionals across industries, and an arguably faster career path from skills learned — above all, effective problem solving. He traces that skill to case interviews, using the example of profits down 20% year on year: break the problem into parts (profits equals revenue minus costs), drill down each part with relevant questions about top revenue and cost drivers, and summarize with BLUF — bottom line up front. The general steps are define and break down the problem, gather relevant information for each part, and summarize with an actionable recommendation. He then applies Victor Cheng’s Business Case Framework — Customer, Product, Company, and Competition — to annual planning in product marketing, to starting a new job, and to starting his YouTube channel.
Key takeaways
- Jeff Su concludes his two years in management consulting were not wasted, despite returning to an entry-level level on joining a large tech company, because of exit opportunities, a cross-industry network, and skills learned.
- The most valuable skill he cites is effective problem solving learned through preparing for case interviews and working on consulting projects.
- Use the case approach: define and break a problem into component parts, gather relevant information for each part, and summarize with BLUF — bottom line up front — and an actionable recommendation.
- Apply Victor Cheng’s Business Case Framework — Customer, Product, Company, and Competition — to organize thoughts and identify next steps, as he did for a product marketing annual plan involving Google Ads and related products.
- You do not need to memorize many frameworks; with practice, this one framework mentality can be applied to most work problems, from ramping into a new team to starting a YouTube channel.
Episode details: published November 15, 2022 · 5:21 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Jeff Su’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.
← Previous: 6 Underrated Macbook Apps for Productivity! · Next: Write a PERFECT Interview Thank You Email! →
All Jeff Su videos · Jeff Su profile · Jeff Su (official site)
