How do you coach consultants from different countries while accounting for differences cultures?
Cultural differences are significant. But fundamental skills like problem-solving are far more important. If you can work very well, you can figure out cultural issues much easier.
Consultants often ask me:
How do you coach consultants from different countries while accounting for cultural differences?
I get this question a lot.
In my coaching program, I have 58 consultants to date.
Here’s a breakdown by regions: North America 20, Asia 16, Middle East 12, Europe 7, LATAM 2.
Here’s a breakdown by firms: McKinsey 27, BCG 15, Bain 5, T2 10.
As you can see, the coaching group is quite diverse, coming from different countries and firms.
I have a philosophy on this topic.
But before we dive into it, here is a short story.
During my first five years at McKinsey, as a consultant and an EM, I was privileged to work in many countries across several continents.
Ten years ago, the times were different. The consulting industry was booming globally. But I was from the Kazakhstan office, which didn’t have many projects at that time.
I was an ‘internationally staffable’ consultant, so PDs would almost always push me to find projects outside my country.
I loved it.
I was thrilled to go to different places and gain these unique experiences. Here are just a few of the most memorable ones.
In Kenya, I worked on a transformation project for 4 months. That was an epic experience. Every week, we would go to amazing places like safaris, ocean beaches, volcanoes, jungles, and waterfalls.
In Australia, I worked on a project for 7 months. That was another impressive experience. Australia is just something different. Its nature, food, culture, and people are just amazing.
Overall, I worked on 4 continents in more than 10 countries. Just imagine, in 9 years at McKinsey, I accumulated more than 900 hotel nights in the SPG/Bonvoy loyalty program. 2.5 years I lived in hotels.
Why am I telling you all of this?
Well, in a moment of nostalgia for how great the consulting industry was, I wanted to make a point.
Working in different countries and offices, I was exposed to other cultures and ways of working, and the differences can be significant. Coming from Kazakhstan, I was too direct and abrupt in Southeast Asia, but I was too soft and diplomatic in Russia.
And here’s what I realised.
If you can work well, especially in problem-solving, you can deal with cultural differences more easily.
That’s what I coach consultants in my program.
I coach them to radically improve their problem-solving.
Here’s how it works.
Once you learn to produce outstanding outputs, partners get impressed by your work. Then, partners become more enthusiastic and excited about you. Building trusted relationships and sponsorships becomes much easier when people like how you work.
And consultants are smart people. If they perform well and partners like them, they can figure out the cultural layers in their organisations. I don’t need to teach them that part, especially since I focus on helping experienced hires. For them, these skills come naturally.
But learning to work well and achieving high performance is not a trivial problem. Most consultants, especially experienced hires, struggle with this.
That is why I developed a coaching program for MBB consultants designed to help them improve their problem-solving and achieve high performance.
If you are an MBB consultant and want to improve your performance, I want to speak with you.
Book a Free 1-1 Consultation to discuss whether I can help you through my coaching program. There is no commitment, and you can ask any burning questions in a risk-free environment.
Read this post to learn more about the Hero’s Journey coaching program.
Watch my YouTube video on how to improve your problem-solving