How an EY Partner’s Question Changed My Career Mindset

“Have you considered becoming a Partner at the firm?”  Susan - a Senior Partner in the EY Atlanta office - asked me during our call to discuss my annual compensation adjustment.  I don’t recall if we discussed her question or how I responded.  I only remember her question - and it stayed with me. 

Susan planted an idea that changed how I approached my EY career and beyond.

Dress for success

I immediately reorganized my closet after my call with Susan.  I moved my suits from the back of my closet, so they would be front and center when I was getting dressed for work.  I usually wore suits for executive or board meetings, but primarily dressed business casual for day to day work. But now, I elevated my business casual to incorporate suit pieces.

The rise of casual dress at work - not even business casual - has been interpreted by many people - particularly early career professionals - as permission to be sloppy.  Consider every day an interview for your next position so dress accordingly.  

Build relationships

I started every morning at the client office with quick checkins.  With each conversation, I picked up bits of knowledge about the company, specific functions, or people resulting in a deeper and broader understanding of the current state and happenings within the company.  I provided context to EY teams prior to client meetings or proposals.  I sent EY thought leadership to client employees with my perspective on how it related to their function and current issues.  I developed relationships with Executive Assistants so they would hold meeting slots on executive calendars for me.

I became a trusted advisor to the client.  One client even added me to their succession plan.

Collect experiences

Consultants are often limited by the clients and projects available in their office or practice area.  In some cases, consultants may work on similar projects or the same client for a long period of time - while developing expertise in that particular skill or industry, they miss broader exposure to build new skills, learn other industries, or stumble through an unfamiliar subject matter.

I travelled to clients at least four days a week, so I was not limited by geography.  I had the flexibility to work on a broad range of projects - develop an enterprise risk management program at a hedge fund in Chicago, lead an outsourced internal audit project in San Francisco, and build the finance function for a retail company in Uruguay.  I leveraged subject matter experts in the firm to access their resources and ask for guidance throughout my projects.  It was a crash course in learning quickly, working in ambiguous scenarios, and trusting my instincts.

Susan taught me that I can - and should - aim higher.

I spent more than seven years at EY, but ultimately did not pursue the Partner track.