{"id":1721,"date":"2015-09-23T14:14:09","date_gmt":"2015-09-23T14:14:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/?page_id=1721"},"modified":"2023-05-12T06:20:06","modified_gmt":"2023-05-12T06:20:06","slug":"saumitra-sehgal","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/timelesslifeskills.org\/cttc\/saumitra-sehgal\/","title":{"rendered":"Saumitra Sehgal"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Saumitra Sehgal<\/h2>

Partner & Managing Director
\nAccenture<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>[\/vc_column][vc_column width=”3\/4″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

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As professionals get more and more leadership-related responsibilities, they should not confuse collaborative thinking with consensus-based decision making. While inputs are welcome from all \u2013 when it comes to decision-making, the buck stops at the leader.<\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]An IIM Calcutta alumnus,\u00a0Saumitra\u00a0dropped the \u201cfashionably right thing of becoming a chemical engineer\u201d and went on to accumulate experiences in management that included establishing a beverage distribution network in the slums of Mumbai at one end of the spectrum, to launching a lifestyle brand at the trendiest of venues, on the other.\u00a0<\/strong>In business consulting, he found his true calling and kicks \u2013 as a close associate once said, \u201cClients are his fans.\u201d He works at Accenture Mumbai and has been Partner since 2014. <\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443017962279{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What sort of <\/strong>formal education is an absolute essential for your profession? Also, could you share with us the kind of internship or experience that would be helpful for a young person considering this line of work?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Along with critical thinking, consulting involves a good understanding of business economics and business operations. Hence, a full-time post-graduate business degree is the de-facto educational requirement. However, anyone with a sound understanding of business and sharp analytical skills would fit the bill. Picking up experiences that test these skills would be important \u2013 e.g. stints\/internships as business analysts, strategic planners would fare quite well.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/4″]

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Always do what you love \u2013 but also realise that you don\u2019t have to enjoy it all the time. There are emotional crests and troughs in every career and both of them are transient.<\/span><\/h5>\n
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[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”3\/4″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018060433{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]If you had to draft an elevator pitch for your profession, what would you say?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]A consultant’s job is to catalyse change. This desired change is typically better business performance (e.g. profitability, market share), but in a lot of cases it is also helping firms get ready and resilient for a volatile future.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018132017{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What are the new trends you notice that are changing the complexion of your profession? Also, show me the money! How do you see this profession faring 20 years down the line?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Advice is increasingly becoming cheap. Clients are very well aware of happenings globally and hence the traditional advice-only models are no longer the raison d’\u00eatre for consulting engagements. While boardroom consulting exists, it is executional consulting that is gaining ground i.e. the ability to help convert ideas and analysis into pennies and pounds.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018206188{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What do you do when you are stuck with a problem?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]I use either one of two tools \u2013 a blank sheet of paper or a solitary run where I can debate the problem with myself. If I am still stuck at the end of one hour, I take a break and revisit the problem the next morning.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443105199971{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]\"SS1\"When we\u2019re in school, we\u2019re told cheating is bad \u2013 \u2018Don\u2019t talk to each other, don\u2019t discuss.\u2019 And then as we come out of it, we begin to realise that there\u2019s something called \u201ccollaborative thinking\u201d and it\u2019s not bad! What\u2019s your opinion?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Collaborative thinking is essential as it allows different perspectives, especially if the participants have diverse backgrounds and objectives. This kind of interaction can be facilitated through a strong enabling environment where dissenting opinions are welcome not only amongst peers, but across levels. However, as professionals get more and more leadership-related responsibilities, they should not confuse collaborative thinking with consensus-based decision making. While inputs are welcome from all \u2013 when it comes to decision-making, the buck stops at the leader.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018308791{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]How do you overcome roadblocks in your profession?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Consulting is a trust-based profession i.e. clients choose to work with consultants they find credible, reliable and likable. Building that kind of relationship is the toughest part of a consulting business as it takes significant time and effort, sometimes years. To build this image and relationship genuinely, one needs to keep an eye out for how your clients can be more successful. This requires solid investment in terms of understanding the client business model, challenges, culture and potential opportunities.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018425225{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]Describe a typical, business-as-usual day at work.<\/span> <\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]One of the reasons I like consulting as a profession, is there is<\/em> no typical day. The days are a fluid mix of client meetings, internal review sessions, lots of conference calls, mid-day networking pit-stops, and practice-building activities to boot.<\/p>\n

The principle of prioritisation amongst these myriad activities is \u2018client-first\u2019: when a client calls, drop all.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/3″]

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I would say the same thing to all my earlier avatars \u2013 Do more! \u2026 Work at a burger store, spend some time learning a second language, read different kinds of books, try entrepreneurship, travel to uncharted places \u2013make sure that your timeline is full of diverse experiences\u2026<\/span><\/h5>\n
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[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”2\/3″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018481120{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What would your advice be to a young person at the start of his or her career and confused about pursuing passion versus being pragmatic?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Based on my observation of my own and my friends\u2019 career choices, following a passion always helps in the long term, both at a personal level as well as financially. Always do what you love \u2013 but also realise that you don\u2019t have to enjoy it all the time. There are emotional crests and troughs in every career and both of them are transient.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018554715{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]If you could do some time-travelling and go back to meet yourself at 17, 25, 35, what would you say to your selves then?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]I would say the same thing to all my earlier avatars \u2013 Do more! By this I mean garner more experiences \u2013 work at a burger store, learn a second language, read different kinds of books, try entrepreneurship, travel to uncharted places \u2013 make sure that your timeline is full of diverse experiences. In the long run, I believe that a person\u2019s character is shaped by the sum total of our experiences and our ability to learn from them \u2013 so go ahead and accumulate them greedily![\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2\/3″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443104895333{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]Did you have any fears when you were starting out in this line of work, and were any of them justified?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]I had a perception that consulting demands a lot mentally and physically due to ambiguous mandates, travel schedules and impossible deadlines. After starting off as a consultant, I realised that it’s all true. It is a career choice that one makes when signing up and that is something that budding consultants should be conscious of while making a career decision.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

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Being challenged with the intractable problems or being called in to convert a futuristic idea into reality is what makes consulting exciting.<\/span><\/h5>\n
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[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443020586992{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]\"SS2\"What is the kind of supplementary informal learning that will give you that edge on this job? Is there any specific reading that you engage in \u2013 trade magazines, books, any online resources (blogs, courses, Facebook or Linkedin communities etc.)?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]All of the above and then some. Clients in today\u2019s world are extremely well read vis-\u00e0-vis global trends and there is an implicit expectation from consultants to keep abreast and in some cases, know more. Hence apart from the usual sources, as consultants we also look at adjacent sources of information for e.g. a study of ecommerce business models can reveal a second-order effect on the economics of a credit-card market.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018711348{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What is most rewarding about your job?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Being challenged with the intractable problems or being called in to convert a futuristic idea into reality is what makes consulting exciting. And nothing, and I repeat, nothing beats a high when a client achieves success on account of a consulting partnership.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018765974{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]Do you still have days when you think, \u2018What the hell am I doing with my life?\u2019 How do you get over that, if you do?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Days of introspection, contemplation and reflection are a reality for all of us and I think this is a good thing as long as it isn\u2019t debilitating. For me personally, having an action-bias helps pull me up from over-thinking these issues.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”no_bg” css=”.vc_custom_1443021807921{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”2\/3″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1443018816794{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”]What\u2019s your advice for a resume that\u2019s just about to enter circulation? What are the musts it should have that recruiters look for? And the absolute don\u2019ts, if any?<\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]A few commandments:<\/p>\n