DO YOU THINK IT IS APPROPRIATE TO PUT SENIOR GM/EGM LEVEL STRATEGY CANDIDATES THROUGH CASE STUDY INTERVIEWS?
I guess I’m not too surprised by the latest poll results asking whether the consulting community (and alumni therefrom) think or feel it appropriate to be testing senior strategy talent at the GM or even EGM level with a case study style interview.
The results are almost split down the middle
✅ 37% of you said ABSOLUTELY, no questions asked!
✅ 36% of you completely disagreed and felt leadership skills and capabilities are much more important at that level. AND…
✅ 27% felt it depended on the role complexity.
Whilst the optimal answer isn’t apparent or clear, perhaps what we can take away from this poll result is as follows:
♠ Some form of assessment of problem solving ability and strategic toolkit is definitely needed. Perhaps what that looks like and how it’s applied is up for interpretation.
Whether it’s a typical consulting style case study, a presentation to a panel of interviewers on a business problem or a mere deep dive on past experience around the application of problem solving is clearly required.
♥ Demonstrated leadership skills and capability are just as important as the strategic skills and capabilities, so make sure you aren’t over-indexing on just the problem solving and toolkit parts in your career development plans.
As one progresses, its the leadership piece thats likely to trip you up OR be the differentiator between two similar candidates strong on the toolkit.
If you haven’t invested equally in this capability as you climb the corporate or consulting ladders, you might find it more difficult to land the bigger roles down the track.
♦ Many of you felt role complexity is a key determinant of whether a case style interview is required. The perception here is that if a role is really complex, then having the mental agility, horsepower and problem solving ability would be of paramount importance.
Well, in my experience, at this level, there are multi intelligences at play that ultimately lead to role success. Most roles in Enterprise clients (global multi-nationals and ASX) at this level are inherently complex at both the job and organisational level and problem solving isn’t merely applied to the business problem itself. It can oftentimes be more human centred and about aligning and influencing senior stakeholders which is a key skill within itself.
So, I can’t help but wonder if complexity is just a given at this level!
Feel free to post your thoughts in the comments section, I’d be keen to keep the dialogue going.
Our client is on the lookout for a dynamic Transformation Program Lead to join their forward-thinking, digitally focused Strategy & Transformation team. You will work closely with stakeholders enterprise-wide and at all levels of the organisation to achieve desired outcomes quickly and efficiently. Your strong business acumen and stakeholder influencing skills will be highly valued here.
In this position, you will work closely with the transformation & agile delivery teams to ensure successful enterprise wide execution. This entails overseeing portfolio management tasks, taking charge of key programs, and enacting strategic change initiatives to provide better business agility. You will be part of a team that encourages collaboration and celebrates diversity. You will be a key player in helping this sort after business reach their company goals.
Your key responsibilities include:
To maximise results, optimise the process of delivery, and improve the speed and quality of strategy delivery within the company.
Plan and implement portfolio delivery efforts across the company to include operating model and change projects, ensure they are delivered efficiently and effectively.
Ensure that everyone within the broader ecosystem is working collaboratively.
Partner with Platform leadership and strategy to build, oversee, and deliver an annual operating plan.
Embrace and drive agile ways of working across the business.
Work with leadership to reduce risks associated with the planned initiatives include mapping informed business decisions.
Work in tandem with the Senior Leadership Team, Platform Lead, and Strategy Business Partner to ensure they are delivering against the annual operating plans.
Be aware of changing competitor strategies as well as wider economic trends and adjust accordingly.
Key qualifications in this role include:
5+ years in senior transformation leadership role in a reputable organisation driving enterprise-wide transformation.
3+ years of experience in an agile environment, ideally in a large business
Relevant background in transformation, agile, organisational change, delivery
Successful record of accomplishment in delivering complex programs and/or transformations
B2C/ Consumer industry experience desired
Excellent organisation, planning and coordination skills
Exceptional stakeholder management skills, ability to build rapport and networks
Energetic, confident, and charismatic leader with the ability to inspire teams
If you are passionate about business operations and have a strong interest in agile ways of working, then you will enjoy partnering with this organisation. Be part of a strong, high performing team, known for having a fun and collaborative culture, and be part of a team that loves solving complex problems. Send your CV to us to be considered for the position.
We have been retained by a market-leading Entertainment business to identify a preeminent strategist to step into a newly created GM of Strategy position.
The General Manager Strategy in Melbourne will develop the long-term Strategy and Transformation agenda, managing the Planning process, monitoring near-term strategy execution, focusing on innovation and diversification, consulting on business unit strategies and initiatives and leading and developing a team of high performing strategists.
What you will be doing:
Creating a 5-year growth Strategy and Transformation agenda that will support the company’s global corporate strategy drive.
Working with senior local stakeholders, such as the CEO and CFO, as well as global counterparts to coordinate the execution of this strategy on an ongoing basis.
Guiding the entire strategy planning process from start to finish.
Developing, aligning, and implementing plans in collaboration with budgets and across functional leadership teams, while also tracking against delivery to ensure success.
Collaborating with and assisting key functional leaders make high-value decisions, such as responding to competitor innovation, shifts in the external environment, or benchmarking against global trends.
Following a hypothesis-driven project approach, including problem structuring, scoping of deliverables/milestones, collecting data, conducting deep analysis and providing recommendations for improved decision-making as well as developing an implementation plan where applicable.
Providing oversight and guidance with the implementation of strategy, monitoring execution against the near-term (1 year) plan, and updating local teams on financial performance and benchmarking.
Ensuring that company goals and objectives are met in a timely manner while ensuring progress is tracked, measured and adjusted where appropriate.
Experience and qualifications include:
5+ years Strategy consulting within a top-tier strategy house.
5+ years corporate experience leading an in-house Corporate Strategy team
Proven ability of leading and developing high-performing teams of up to 8 people.
B2C/Consumer experience highly regarded.
Strong academics in relevant undergraduate degree -Commerce, Engineering, Law, Science. MBA advantageous.
Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.
Highly proficiency at analysing data, extracting key insights and having a propensity for finding the real commercial value.
Solid financial & commercial acumen.
If you’d like to develop your career with a market leader in the Entertainment industry and are seeking to make a significant and positive impact in a business, then this is the right role for you! Please send your CV to Ilan Leshetz (ilan@oaktreetalent.com) or Anika Stokes (anika@oaktreetalent.com).
Are you a Customer Experience guru who is looking for a new challenge?
This Australian ASX Company that serves millions of customers, has exclusively engaged Oaktree Talent to find a preeminent new Head of Customer Experience Strategy to be based in Sydney. This is a perfect opportunity to take your career to new heights as you will play a key role in shaping the strategic direction or their customers’ journey for this top iconic brand.
As Head of Customer Experience Strategy in Sydney, you are charged with crafting and delivering effective customer experience strategies for the company. Your role will involve designing a plan that elevates their company’s customer retention program whilst ensuring that the customer journey is seamless and enjoyable. Your efforts will help to ensure that customers receive an outstanding experience.
Your key responsibilities for this role are:
Ensure that our customer experience goals are in line with the overall business strategy. You will be responsible for planning and executing plans to achieve these goals.
Lead analyses of segmented engagement models for our members and iterate on definitions for customer segmentation. All of this needs to be done while staying aligned with the overarching strategy.
Collaborate with the User Experience team to ensure all aspects of customer-centric design are met – from identifying customer needs throughout their lifecycle to developing strategy focused on growth.
Use human-centered design and innovation frameworks to uncover new opportunities.
Provide the business with the necessary strategic customer insights, customer complaint analysis, and any other important information required to make informed decisions and recommendations.
Work in close collaboration with the partners to drive forward customer experience initiatives and lead the delivery of ongoing transformation and change programs.
Foster cross-functional collaboration that improves the customer experience overall.
The following qualifications are the following:
9+ years relevant experience to the field and with preferably 4 to 6 years experience in a top tier consulting firm
Has led Customer experience and CX experience teams in a major organisation
Has a graduate degree in relevant discipline and/or post graduate degree
Strong experience leading teams in a changing environment.
Highly experienced with external stakeholder management.
Exceptional understanding of business processes and extensive experience in commercial and /or operational business functions.
Thorough understanding of strategic evaluation and financial evaluation techniques.
Proven ability to quickly identify issues, structure project plans and develop strategic options.
Customer oriented approach with an ability to question and challenge effectively whilst maintaining strong relationships.
If you want to manage a high-performance team and make an impact in customer experience and taking the company to the next level, then this role is for you! Reach out to Anika Stokes at anika@oaktreetalent.com to be considered for the position.
Our client is a bona fide exciting Technology company providing small businesses with an unprecedented level of efficiency and connectivity. Through their solutions, they are not only helping these businesses but also building a stronger economy. If this type of business is what excites you, then this role is for you!
We are on the lookout for an Executive General Manager for Program and Delivery in Sydney or Melbourne (Preference). The position will be responsible for driving business success through delivering projects that support innovative products and services. You will have the opportunity to collaborate with product leaders, product engineering teams, and other cross-functional senior business and technology stakeholders to ensure projects and programs are completed on time and within budget.
Your experience in managing complex projects, collaborating across teams, utilising planning/delivery frameworks/methodologies, uplifting capability and improving service delivery within a B2C or B2B2C environment makes make you an integral part of the leadership team – ensuring successful outcomes for their products and services. With your expert knowledge and skillset, you can help take the company’s vision from concept to reality.
Your responsibilities for this role are the following:
Ensuring the right capability is in place, processes are optimaised, and priorities are clear.
Coordinating with different teams to ensure the most important business programs are executed properly.
Boosting customer relationships and increasing the pace of delivering value to the company through the use of topnotch delivery and program practices.
Supporting the team of project and program managers and ensuring their development.
Ensuring the team has the right internal practices in place to prioritize strategic objectives and track progress.
Continuing to develop and incrementally improve processes to best practice so as to remain competitive and up-to-date with industry trends.
Solidifying global identity by improving transparency and dependency management across all teams.
Your qualifications include:
Experience leading large, complex projects across multiple functional areas and geographies within a B2C or B2B2C technology product environment.
Experience in a management consulting firm desirable.
Experience working in a Saas environment highly desirable.
Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication skills, including the ability to communicate effectively with executives, cross-functional teams, and external stakeholders to build rapport, trust and buy-in quickly.
Experience in transforming organisations to operate in an agile environment at scale.
Proven experience improving business processes across complex teams and organisations.
Strong demonstrable commercial experience
Experience establishing and leading high performing teams
If this sounds like you, then we want to hear from you. Please send in your CV to Ilan Leshetz for a confidential chat.
