Thomas, Senior Consultant

What educational/academic background do you have?
I have a varied academic background. I studied politics and economics for my undergraduate degree, then did a law conversion course. After 6 years working as a lawyer, I realized I wanted to spend more time in education, so I went to do my MBA in Barcelona.

Why did you decide to go into consulting?
I genuinely enjoyed my time in law, but I worked on transactions, so I was helping clients to structure and implement projects that they had already committed to. The reason I went to do my MBA and came into consulting is because I wanted to see the bigger picture and work closely with clients to help with the decisions and projects that shape their business or industry.

What is or has been the biggest challenge for you in consulting?
I'd never worked with Excel or PowerPoint – my slides looked like a child had done them. I also try not to focus on the fact that I am ten years older than many of my peers in the office who are much smarter than I am.

How can you use your skills at Roland Berger?
Managing project finance transactions over many years has allowed me to develop certain analytical, problem-solving and leadership skills that will hopefully set me up well. I am also probably one of the only people willing to read a contract and I can spot a typo from 100 meters away.

What did you learn that you will never need here?
Microsoft Word. I also learned how little sleep the human body actually needs.

Which of your skills from your background makes your consulting life easier?
In law, I worked very closely with our clients and developed good working relationships with them. I think the more people-focused elements (building rapport, interviewing, negotiating and presenting) are skills that take time to develop, so I am very grateful to have learned to be comfortable with these.

What did you want to be as a child and what would you love to be today if you weren't a consultant?
When I was a child, I wanted to be a professional rugby player. Thankfully my career finished before my face was rearranged. Now, I am working on my golf game instead. If I wasn't a consultant (or a lawyer), I would love to be on Dragon's Den/Shark Tank, or Ryan Reynolds. I would just be him.

How does your team benefit from your skills?
Law can be extremely stressful, but I like to think that I learned to handle stress and pressure quite well. If I can stay calm and positive on projects, then my team benefits, too. It is always much harder to do a job well when everyone around you is stressed and flapping.

What has been your favorite moment/project since you joined Roland Berger as a consultant?
My favorite project was a strategy project for Hammerforce, a company with a novel IP who we developed a go-to-market strategy for. Unfortunately, not many people want to listen to me talk to them about valves. The Roland Berger football world cup was also amazing (even though it was clearly rigged against the English).