Jedediah Seltzer is a former President of the GBCC and graduated from UNC in 2020 with a Ph.D. He was interviewed by Jane Lee in April 2022 when he was an Associate Consultant at ZS.
What are your main responsibilities as a Consultant at ZS?
As an Associate Consultant (AC) at ZS, responsibilities vary based on the structure of your team. At ZS, you have the following positions: Associate, AC, Consultant, Manager, Associate Partner, and Partner. A typical team may have a manager, an AC, and an associate. The team structures can be different, which will change your responsibilities. For the most part, my teams do not have consultant so I engage directly with the client (communications including weekly calls and all email communication).
Additionally, I build out analyses, co-create the slide decks, lead the presentations, reach out to vendors, develop storyboards (designing the project including coming up with ideas and trying to solve the problems), and manage associates (delegating, helping with tasks, and reviewing their work). The manager/partner team leads the overall client relationship. If your project only consists of your manager and you (AC), you get to build every aspect since you are the consultant, the AC, and the associate. Your responsibilities are really based on the team structure but overall, it generally involves a lot of project management.
What is the staffing model at ZS? How many projects are you typically on and how long does a typical project last?
ZS has a fractional staffing model where you split your hours between the various projects that you are on. For example, I would work 20 hours on one project, 10 hours on another, and 10 hours on another. You are typically on multiple teams (with overlapping team members) that are working on distinct projects. For example, I am currently staffed on three projects and one internal initiative (point of view, white papers, etc.).
The length of a typical project varies widely. To give an example, I have had projects that are 6 weeks long and some that went 8 months long. Additionally, I have friends who have been on shorter projects and others on year+ projects.
What should graduate students do to prepare for a consulting career?
Now that I am on the other side of the fence, I can say that we look for long-standing interest in consulting when we interview people. It is going to reflect positively if you can show that coming to consulting was a conscious choice over time, not a last minute, “I am graduating and need a job” approach.
The important thing is to show effort and how you show effort can vary. You can get an internship at a venture capital firm, do case competitions, take business classes participate in pitch competitions, etc. Any experience showing that you are interested in business helps whether it be case competitions, leadership in a consulting club, case practicing, internships, or taking courses. Networking is also very important.
What is the best way to network?
First, connect with people at consulting events (case practice, case competitions, and more). Talk to people, be engaging, have memorable conversations, and follow up on LinkedIn. But don’t just send an invite. One of my personal pet peeves is people who send an invite with no message attached. I might not remember who you are if we were at an event with 30 people.
Something that has worked really well for me is to send a personalized note highlighting the event. This also gives you a useful personal tracker. Second, having your connections introduce you to their connections is beneficial. This goes leaps and bounds above cold calling.
Lastly, network with your peers. Your peers who are ahead in their consulting careers will be easier to keep in your network if you have this shared experience.
What is one advice you would give to current GBCC members?
When it comes to what you want to pursue next in your career, there are many options out there. And graduate students can get narrowly focused on the specific job and the company. Try to step back and take a holistic picture. Consider the following factors: where you want to live, what type of working model would you like, who do you want to work with, what is the company culture like? By considering things like this you will much more likely to be happy when you land one of these opportunities.
Thanks to Jedediah for spending time with us to learn more about his experiences! If you’re interested in following his footsteps, you can visit the website of the GBCC. You could also reach out to him via LinkedIn, assuming you follow the tips and suggestions that he mentioned.