Ahithophel.
To this day, this word conveys negative connotations to me (apparently something actually did enter my head in the long elementary school Bible classes).
The Bible did poor public relations for the institution of the consultant
When we started Halo Team last year this was the direction we thought of going.
We are not simply advice people, but we are performers
It took us six months and three clients to realize that this wasn’t really the plan. We are not simply advice people, but we are performers; we are not built to sit in the stands and shout advice to the coach, but, instead, to be on the field (or at least on the sideline) and deliver results firsthand.
Seniority provides life experience and perspective
Seniority in the profession (or in our case and for the sake of politically correctness, experience) does not give anyone ultimate wisdom, nor does it make him more creative than others. However, it does provide three advantages, the first of which is life experience, acquired through the many cases during which we have seen what works better in different kinds of situations. The second is perspective – looking at issues from the outside allows us to have a clarity of thought that is not biased by emotions (any parent of adolescent youth will understand this immediately) – and the third is to be out of the race, whether technological or managerial, therefore possessing the ability and willingness to “dirty” one’s hands in urgent tasks, without worrying about how it will look in the resume, what our colleagues will think of what we do, or how it will advance us to the next position.
The benefits and the limitations of subcontractors
Over the years, in the various management positions I have held, I have operated subcontractors and consultants in a variety of fields and forms. Usually the division was clear: there were organizational consultants who came from the field of psychology, who knew how to analyze and improve organizational structures, build programs for the advancement of technology personnel to managerial positions, provide emotional support, and analyze social-organizational situations. On the other hand, there were the technologists. The subcontractors or consultants that we brought in to solve a technical problem, to develop software or hardware or to implement new tools.
Partners to "thoughts ping-pong game"
The need was clear to us; a group that could bridge the worlds, support the technological organization and its management layer in the organizational, personal sense, but also on the technological and business sides of things. To provide an attentive ear and a different perspective to the managers who need someone to bounce ideas like in “thoughts ping-pong game” (thanks to Eyal for taking this excellent example from the title he put in the invitation to our first meeting), and also to roll up our sleeves, detached from any personal identification with the challenges, and help. Whether it’s locating and interviewing key people, establishing an offshore development center, building an executive empowerment process, or helping and supporting the organization’s insane growth needs.
