Folder structure – keep it simple and consistent
One folder per project, and within it, a general outline that I keep more or less the same for every project and adapt it to the specific needs / complexities that come up:

In this folder I capture everything that relates to the project, the only other place where files will be stored is the Outlook Inbox (I keep separate .PST files for every major project, so I can clean my Outlook afterwards and archive both .PST and project folder together).

There will be cases where a file that was sent to me via email will be saved in the folder structure as well, which is in effect an unnecessary redundancy, but… a) it is often important to log who sent what when, thus deleting the mail does not do you any good, and b) it is always good to keep a second, clean copy of a file someone sent you, in case you tinker with it and forget to make a duplicate copy.

Don’t create too many sub-folders – just enough so that you can oversee the contents of a folder easily. When too many old versions of the same document pile up (I sometimes have over 50 versions of a file), they go into the “old versions” folder, and get deleted after the end of the project.

The folder “Meetings and Milestones” often helps because in creating documentation for steering committees etc., you normally have to take slides/information from all over the project.

The folder “Single tasks” comes in handy to just file away everything that you did on the fly, mostly quick slides for colleagues, a pivot table that the VP wanted to see, stuff like that.

BTW, the numbers in front of the folder name just keep things in the order I want them to be in, they have no other meaning.

File names – Consistent and self-sorting

I was taught a simple scheme after which to name my files, and it has proven very time saving again and again. It goes like this:

YearMonthDay_ClientName_ProjectName_
DocumentName_Version_Editor.XXX

• YearMonthDay: For example, 20100521 for May 21st 2010. 100521 works fine as well. Chose the date when the document will be presented / is due.
• ClientName: Self explaining. Make it short (“ACME” instead of “ACME Corporation”)
• ProjectName: Self explaining. Take the official one that the client also recognizes
• DocumentName: Must clearly state what is contained (“SalesForecastQ2″ is better than “Forecast”)
• Version: Count up from “_v01″. I do that in regular intervals when saving the document, and at least before sending it to someone else to indicate that there have been changes compared to the version before. When delivering the document to the client, either delete the version numer or replace it with “_final”
• Editor: Put your initials here when you save the document. “_JD” for Jane Doe. That way, everyone in the team knows who made the last edits on the file.
• XXX: The ending of the file type, e.g. “.ppt”

Thus, a file could be named 20100524_ACME_SalesUp_SalesForecastQ2_v04_JD.ppt. If you keep the file structure like that, the files automatically sort themselves if they are sorted by file name, giving you great oversight within the project folder structure.

What are your secrets in dealing with the masses of files that must be handled on a project? Share it in the comments!

Although everyone knows since grammar school that spelling is important, it still sometimes is underestimated – as you see with this lovely decorated cake.

For consultants, producing work that is free of spelling errors is critical. Why? Because we hardly ever have tangible products or results to show our clients. The closest they get to that during a project are the things we present to them. Thus, consulting clients tend to put a disproportionately high attention on even the smallest details when they receive a something from you – the latest PowerPoint deck, for example. In the worst case, you lose credibility and trust, because your client perceives you as working inaccurately. Even if that does not occur, you might still waste crucial face time with your client trying to gloss over a stupid mistake he noticed.

Spelling correctly whilst producing your deliverables quickly and often with many revisions is a challenge. Here’s 5 tips to help you out.

1. Use the automatic spell checker:
   Basic, you mean? No-brainer, you say? Hah! If it is already your habit to a) tell the application which language your document really is in (especially if you are not working in an English speaking country, which means that you will often be switching between at least two languages and confusing the heck out of MS Office) and b) engage the spell check every time before you send out a document – kudos! You are on the straight path to becoming a KillerConsultant. If not: Start now. Saves you a lot of effort.
2. Make a list of the abbreviations and conventions used on your project:
   Agreeing on how to write “as-is” (As-is? As-Is? As is? …) within the team saves you a lot of time – just make a simple table that gets updated whenever something new comes in. Send it around as a reminder when appropriate.
3. The clients’ spelling is almost always the way to go:
   When it comes to client specific words (products, departments, project names, abbreviations), make sure that you use them in exactly the way the client does – but do not copy spelling errors that your client made (don’t necessarily rub their nose in it, either – that often has a backlash)
4. Cross-check with colleagues:
   Flight attendants do trust each other – still they always “put the doors in flight and cross-check”. Because another pair of eyes spots your mistakes much easier than you do yourself. Same goes for proofreading.
   Whenever an important delivery comes up, agree beforehand with a colleague to take the time for a full read-through. It already helps when you print out the document and go over it with a red marker yourself (I tend to spot more errors on paper than on the screen), but the magic is in having someone do it who did not write the content.
5. ALL NAMES MUST BE CORRECT, NO EXCEPTION.
   This definitely is a “last but NOT least”. People are, naturally, very sensitive about their names – it is their identity. Come hell or high water, do never ever circulate a document without making sure that you have spelled all names correctly, especially looking at the names of your client contacts. I mean it.

There surely are a lot more tips and tricks when it comes to avoiding spelling horrors – which one has saved you from major disaster? Share it in the comments!

Onboard rollers (or trolleys, or the things with wheels to lug behind you)

• Size matters.
  Be sure to buy one that does comply both with your local and international carryon-luggage size standards. The “gold standard” of business travel is to not check in any luggage, which gets you more time before and after the flight, as well as the certainty that your luggage always is where you are – not a 100% sure thing if you check a bag in, especially when you are checking it in late. Thus: Be ready to take it on board, and have it at the size that allows it.
• Flexibility is good.
  Many soft-shell suitcases have an option to expand through a zipper that goes all the way round. That comes in extremely helpful when you find yourself lugging back more than you brought. Be aware, though, that you might not be able to take the suitcase as carry-on once it is expanded. For the same reason, hard-shell suitcases are as much a curse as they are a blessing for their sturdiness. Cramming in a bit more into them just does not work as well.
• Colors?
  All consultants’ suitcases are black, or so they say. I have seen the sporadic blue, silver, even red – and really, it does not matter that much, as long as the thing does not look like you are going on a band camp instead of a consulting project. Of course, you subject yourself to some sneers from colleagues when you go colorful – but there is one big benefit: Should you check in your luggage once in a while (which I, see above, don’t recommend as best option, but I do it, too, on occasion), it is way easier to spot and retrieve at the baggage claim.
• How much to spend?
  The sky is the limit when it comes to suitcases. The top-line brands I see lugged around airports the most are Rimowa (their aluminium suitcases, though they have started producing hard-shell plastic suitcases in recent years as well, which are still quite expensive) and Tumi. Now, my mum always said “we are not rich enough to buy cheap stuff”, meaning that there is no use in buying stuff that breaks in an instant and needs to be replaced often. On the other hand, one of those top-notch trolleys sets you back about EUR 500… here’s what I did: I got myself a simple black soft-shell trolley, the cheapest one that was expandable. It set me back EUR 30. After one year of heavy use, it is slowly starting to show signs of wear, but so far it is still going strong… at this rate, I could go for way over a decade before a Tumi would pay off. Go figure… bottom line: Of course you want your trolley to look good, but it gets thrown around all the time anyway, so don’t go too fancy, keep your eyes on the functional side. Don’t buy it in a supermarket but go to a shop that is specialized in suitcases, bags etc. – they will be able to tell you the difference between “cheap and rubbish” and “cheap but works for a good while”.

Laptop bags

• Company-issued laptops often come with very simple (read: useless) bags, though you might get lucky and fetch a bigger, sturdier and more useful specimen. If not: Store it in the attic so that you can give it back when leaving the company some time in the future.
• Wheels or no wheels, that is the question!
  There are split opinions about that one. Many consultants prefer the no-wheels briefcase look. If you do, too, be aware that those things get heavy – the regular firms’ laptops are not the slimmest models available, and you basically carry a whole office in that bag, which adds up quickly. That puts strain on arms and shoulders. If you go for a model with wheels, that problem almost disappears, but you’ll have to deal with a slightly less polished look.
• Fabric or leather?
  Here, looks actually count for more, and even fashion comes into play. Leather bags have a nicer look to them – IMHO – but are also more susceptible to scratches and stains (even water is kind of evil…). Plus, they cost a whole lot more (compare the prices of Tumi bags in nylon and leather, for example). Fabric (most often found: ballistic nylon) still looks good – when it is black. Did you hear me? BLACK. Brown leather might be acceptable, but nylon: BLACK! It is more scratch- and stain resistant, but wears out eventually, as well. Just make sure that the bag is really suitable for showing up at the client site with. Simple but elegant is what you should look for.
• How big should it be?
  Big enough to put your essentials in, and not bigger… but there are varying opinions on what “essentials” are. For me, that includes an umbrella, a book for leisure and my sunglasses, for example. The basic rule is: You will pack this thing until it is full. Thus, the bigger you go, the more stuff you carry. Of course, again, it should in no case go above carry-on regulations, but it is hard to find a laptop bag that is so huge. It makes sense to first determine what you want to carry on the road and then go find a bag where it all fits in comfortably. As with trolleys, some laptop bags come with an extension zipper – they come in handy.
• What should it have?
  A padded compartment for your laptop. Space enough for letter/A4-sized stacks of documents – if the bag has a frame that keeps itself in shape, that avoids crumpling. Apart from a space for documents, go for more smaller pockets to help you organize your stuff. In my bag (which is not optimal, but I had it when starting the job and it suits me reasonably well) there is a dedicated place for everything I carry, which makes a a quick check when packing on Sunday much easier. If it has no wheels, make sure it has a shoulder strap. They look stupid when worn over a suit, sure, and they crinkle it, sure, but at least you have a hand free when you need it. Plus, go for one that has a slip-through pouch/strap in the back, so you can attach it to the handle of your trolley. If it has wheels, make sure that the handle is long enough for you to walk upright with it.
• How much to spend?
  In contrast to trolleys, unfortunately, cheap laptop bags don’t do you no good. They tend to look as cheap as they are, lack intelligent compartment/pocket design and fall apart quickly. If you spend, spend on the laptop bag instead of the trolley first. Of course, you can go spend big money here – even a small Tumi sets you back around EUR 350 – but in the price range of about EUR 100, things start to make sense.

That’s it for travel gear – you should be all set and ready to hit the road now!

Are you interested in getting a full run-down of what I carry in my mobile office, aka my laptop bag? Let me know in the comments, and I’ll put together a tour for a future part of this series.

This is the third post in the “Consulting 101″ series, dedicated to give an overview of the first steps into consulting – from having scored an offer to the first time on the job. You can find the other articles, “You got the offer, now what?” here, and  “Shopping for the first day – clothing” here.

[UPDATE: There have been incredibly good and information-packed contributions in the comments to this post - go check them out!]

You signed your contract, you hopefully took a good vacation, maybe you even moved to a new town – now you are getting ready to become a consultant. Awesome!

Of course, by now, you have the consultants’ lifestyle all figured out… and you decide it’s time to go shopping to get the right gear for your newly found life on the road. This post and the next one should give you some input on what to get, what to spend money on, and what you can safely put on your “someday/maybe” list. Let’s start it off with clothing.

Clothing
I am so sorry, but this is written from a man’s perspective, so I’ll talk about ties and stuff… if any consultant girls are up to add some female touch here, let me know in the comments! Being dressed well is part of the job, so you should pay attention to your wardrobe. When starting out, it’s all about the basics - you can still go fancy later on. The general aim is to be well-dressed, but still blending in within all sorts of corporate environments.

• Suits:
  Go for darker colors, though it does not need to be all black. Dark grey works always, dark blue most of the time. Pinstripes? Might work. No patterned stuff, no shiny red-carpet tux… you get the idea? Plus, single colored dark suits work with the widest variety of shirts. Two suits are minimum, three are better. Don’t be guided by the brand – no one can see that, anyway – but rather look for the best fitting suits that you can find. Honestly: The most expensive suit is worth nothing if it does not sit on your shoulders right. Go for wool, avoid linen and synthetic fabrics like the plague. The former wrinkles like hell, the latter looks cheap and gets smelly faster than you can draw that last-minute waterfall chart.
• Shirts:
  Plain colors preferred. White is a no-brainer, light blues are a charm as well. Stripes are alright, but they narrow down your choice of Suit-Shirt-Tie combinations drastically. Go for collars that sit comfortably, especially if you are not used to wearing a shirt for extended periods of time. Those of you who had the pleasure of a “the collar is so tight I almost choke myself when swallowing” day at work know what I mean. Go for pure cotton. Iron-free shirts aren’t really, anyway, and most often you buy that label with a high percentage of synthetic fiber, which most of the time makes the fabric harsher against the skin. Again, brand names do not really matter, though shirts from H&M, Zara etc. tend to wear out rather quickly. But so does BOSS, for that matter… No button-downs, that might be too casual in a few places. When it comes to the cuffs, the opinions are split. Of course, the traditional cuff with cufflinks does look swell… but they always, always, always rattle on your laptop when you are chewing away on the PowerpExcel. Simple buttoned cuffs don’t. Your choice. Get at least 7 shirts, 10 are better, and chances are you already have a few that are suitable anyway.
• Shoes:
  Simple and black gets you the furthest. Leather, obviously. I do wear brown shoes at work, as well, but that doesn’t fly with some clients (or employers)… so black is your safest bet. Go for classic cuts – you’ll be wearing them a lot, and you don’t want to be known as “Mr. Fancyfeet”, right? Get some shoes that are comfortable to walk in. If possible, get two pairs and change them daily. It will make them last a lot longer. Plus, especially with shoes, learn to take good care of them (see also “treat your ties and shoes with respect”).
• Ties:
  Silk ties are the preferred option. For me personally, the tie is where I can get some color in the game, but you shouldn’t go too flashy. Simple stripes and patterns or plain colors – god forbid you wear that Micky-Mouse tie to work that you got as a christmas gift when you were 12! I know, you love it… but this is not the place. When you keep your suits and shirts in plain colors each, matching a tie to your outfit is really easy. My personal role is to have two parts striped, max – but it might be better to go with the “1 striped part max” rule. I mean… you know what they say about men in general and their sense for fashion? Just play it safe, that’s all I’m saying.
• Socks:
  Black black black black black black black. No patterns. Did I mention BLACK? OK, you got it. If you want to decrease stress, buy them in bulk, so that you can put together any two black socks you get out of the washing machine. Some might argue that only calf-high socks are the real deal…if you are comfortable in them, go ahead. They should, in any case, be long enough to avoid showing pale consultant-skin when the pants rise up.
• Belt:
  Matching the shoes. Simple buckle. This is not the time to wear a fashion statement around your waist (or slogans, for that matter. Which reminds me, I should wear my “use your brain” belt this weekend ). ‘Nuff said.
• Underwear:
  Are you kidding me? C’mon!

In the next post, I’ll cover some essential gear that will make your life on the road a whole lot easier.

This is the second post in the “Consulting 101″ series, dedicated to give an overview of the first steps into consulting – from having scored an offer to the first time on the job. You can find the first post, “You got the offer, now what?” here.

“I’m often asked what qualifications you need to work on Top Gear, and I’ve always given the same advice. Like cars by all means, but love writing. Love it so much that you do it to relax. See the new Alfa or whatever as nothing more than a tool on which your prose can be based.”

Let this sink in for a second. This is a guy who gets to drive the newest, fastest, most exciting cars in the world in the most exciting, remote, fun and crazy locations in the world, and is paid for it. But his message is not “boy, you got to be a complete petrolhead to be fit for this job” – he says that you really need to love writing, the journalists’ basic process, so much that you do it for relaxing, to be fit for that job.

With consultants, I think, it is a similar story.

There’s the consultant’s lifestyle. Although of course not as glamorous as often depicted, there is a lot to it, especially for the young and eager types out there. You travel a lot – in fact the airplane is your bus and the taxi is your bike. You sleep in fancy hotels. You wear a dark suit. You get to meet the top management of large corporations – and they even pay you really good money for all that exciting stuff.

If your motivation to be a consultant is to lead the lifestyle (of course, only thinking about the shiny advantages), then you might not make it far. Or become quite miserable fairly fast. Probably both.

Here’s the inside scoop: Consulting, at the entry level that I (can) talk about, is all about the basics. You don’t get paid for looking posh. You get paid for doing a lot of work, under often less-then-perfect constraints (like… time). This work entails hell of a lot of research, analysis and synthesis of data – what other people sometimes call “gruntwork”. I call it crunching. You’ll have to sift through thousands of pages in search of one key figure. You’ll need to take an unsorted mess of data, throw it up in the air, and catch it in wonderfully organized, storylined, factchecked, approved and finetuned Powerpoint charts.  There is nothing fancy about the work. It can be tedious. Yet, this is what you are mostly measured by. What you do to help a project succeed, your firm and your clients.

Jeremy has it right. He tells us that only when you are good at the basic tasks of your job, then you can hit it off. I, for myself, don’t love every data deep-dive that I have to make. I don’t love spending hour after hour in Powerpoint (though I trade Excel for Powerpoint at any time. I loathe Excel, powerful as it may be). So I don’t expect you to do it. But I do absolutely believe that you cannot be a good consultant (as I said, in the junior’s ranks) without being comfortable with it, and the more enjoyment you get out of it, the merrier.

For all of those contemplating the move into consulting, this means you should think about the actual WORK you’ll be doing at least as much and as seriously as you do think about the perks you’ll have.

As a closing remark, this posting has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I, after a year in consulting, find it almost comforting to work in Powerpoint. I sometimes get so much fun out of making good slides that I am scared of myself. That is a totally unrelated issue, and I am dealing well with it, thank you very much.

Now what?

First of all, let me put a disclaimer. I am not an expert on this stuff, I just have been there before. As they say in the sunscreen speech - my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience.

Alright, alright. Still – Now what?

They want you, so they made you an offer. Realize that this is the point where you have the most power in the whole process, but you need to play your cards wisely. Once you signed the contract, you can of course try to further negotiate and do stuff – it might just not lead so much more than some very confused and borderline angry people on the other side. Including your future boss.
As is described wonderfully in the book “What color is my parachute” (a great what-am-I-good-at and how-do-I-search-for-a-job-that-fits-me-right book), you can/should only try to wiggle the posts that make up the contract before they are hammered into the ground.

• The cash
  You were waiting for this the whole time, right?
  For a junior consulting job, normally there is not that much room to negotiate in the first place: Many firms have tight ranges that they pay for entry positions. Still, they are ranges. If you are so lucky to know what the range is, and you feel that your double MBA and PhD in theoretical maths are not priced into the contract well enough – you COULD ask for more money. I did not do this, as I was content with what I was offered, so for tactics and stuff you’ll need to ask elsewhere. Take this thought with you, though: They are constantly hiring people as smart and as well educated as you are. Heck, they have even seen better ones. You should make sure to know exactly what your leverage is before you ask for more money.
• The benefits
  If you think everyone gets a car and it is not in the contract? Well, then you might not get one. Ask for such stuff once you got the contract in your hands and once you talk to HR. DO NOT ask for goodies in the interview rounds – that’s a killer, and not a good one. So – when the time has come, and you think something is missing to make this package real gold for you, ask for it, politely. Be reasonable and as humble as you can manage to be. Chances are that they ramp up a bit. For Germany for example, one thing is moving assistance. Often, a company does not include it in the first offer, but when you ask for it, they are happy (more or less) to help you out with some cash to get your stuff to the city where your “point of affiliation” (=home office) will be.
• The home office
  When working for a bigger company, they have many offices, and you might have only interviewed at corporate headquarters. Check if you are assigned to an office in the contract, and if it is the one you want. If not, call them up and have it changed. Basically, this is a thing you should have talked about in the final interview, at least briefly – but who knows, maybe you were thinking about the (for sure!) upcoming Porsche too hard.

If you got that all settled, had a nice chit-chat with HR or the hiring Partner, the offer is final, and you should have a pretty good idea if you want to take it or not. But if….

You got other irons in the fire?
It was probably a good idea to not bet on one horse only in search for your first gig. Now you got an offer – or more – and maybe some applications are still in the process.
Most offers have an expiry date. It is reasonable to ask for an extension for one or two weeks, to be able to see how other things turn out – but much more, without a very good reason, just makes it obvious that you are waiting for something better to come around the corner before you take the offer they made you. This is not the perception you want to create, right?
If you have multiple offers on your desk at the same time – make the decision led by your heart and gut feeling (how did I feel around those people? Am I looking forward to working with them? etc.), and supported by facts. DO NOT BASE YOUR DECISION ON SALARY ALONE! Money can buy a lot of things, but not job satisfaction (ok, there might be people in iBanking who are an exception, but still). The money has to cover your basic living expenses, and more is better than less for sure – but really, I can’t stress this enough. It must not be all about cash.
If you are still in the process with other companies and you want to take the offer you got – play it fair, tell them that you took up a different opportunity (no details needed), and that you’d like to talk to them another time around. Be friendly, be polity – remember that people always meet at least twice, and maybe next time, they are your must-have-oh-my-god-I-want-to-work-there choice. Don’t burn bridges.
Some people might still go to an interview after signing a contract… make up your mind if you want to steal those people’s time, and if it really gives you anything to do so.
Avoid at all costs to sign a contract “just for safety, in case I find nothing better”. Many contracts contain a fine for not showing up, and although this can be settled in a talk in many cases, it certainly does not make the other side happy, because they just have to start all over again. If you are unfortunate, word gets around… especially if you are joining straight from university and the company’s HR talks to your school’s placement people. Seen it happen, wasn’t pretty, ’nuff said.

Now celebrate!
Hey, you just signed up for a challenging and exciting career, and maybe even your first real job. Celebrate! Invite your friends, have a blast… and use the time before you start. Travel, move if you need/want to, get settled… and maybe even prepare a little bit.

This post is part of Consulting 101, a series all about starting out as a consultant.
I’ll cover the preparation in the next installment – stay tuned!
As always, your feedback is most welcome.

Consulting 101 is laid out to be a helpful guide at the very beginning of your consulting career – from preparation to the first days. I’ve already outlined a number of topics for this, and the series will probably start in the next week.

In the meantime, please let me know in the comments what content you’d wish to have covered in the series, I’ll be likely to include it.