Paul Millerd – Think Like A Strategy Consultant 2022
An Online Course To Teach You The Tools, Mindsets, & Principles of Top-Tier Strategy Consultants
Here’s a secret no one will tell you:
It’s easier to hire former strategy consultants to run your company than promote from within
Why?
Consulting firms train people to think like CEOs. Every piece of information is tested against the question, “why does this matter for the company?”
So What?
When former consultants join companies in various industries they are playing a different game than everyone else. They understand the bigger picture and don’t get stuck in their careers.
I want to teach you the tools, frameworks and secrets of strategy consulting so you can:
Escape Middle Management
Don’t get lost staying busy instead of getting promoted. I want to help you learn the skills to stand out as the go-to person on the team
Influence & Persuade Senior Leaders
The highest levels of the organization need to know what they are looking at, why it matters, and what to do next. I’ll help you learn this language.
Develop A Process For Doing Great Work
Companies prioritize getting things done, not your growth. I will teach you a “process” for approaching your work so that you are always getting better.
I Built This Course To Help People Learn These Skills & Apply Them Immediately
(and so you don’t need to go work 80-hour weeks in the industry)
This Course Is For:
Strategy, Financial & Analytics Leaders: Who work with data are actively helping to shape the direction of their company, solving complex problems and giving executive-level presentations
Senior Executives: Who want to learn how to develop a strategy, communicate to senior leaders & Boards, and want to have more confidence in developing a vision
Freelance Consultants: Who never worked at a top consulting firm but do data-intensive or information-heavy work with clients.
Students or New Grads: Who want to improve their corporate communications and problem solving (this is not a good fit for case practice)
“This course helped me get promoted! It provides a framework to communicate complex business problems in a clear and concise manner. I wish I knew about MECE sooner.”
Andrew K., Sales Strategy Consultant
How Do Consulting Firms Charge $500k+ A Month?
It starts with simple (but hard to master) principles…
Pyramid Principle
Learn how to structure your thinking to make compelling arguments
MECE
Learn how to simplify ideas to make them more memorable & persuasive
PowerPoint Storytelling
Learn how to make PowerPoints that don’t put people to sleep
Indra Nooyi On How Consulting Helped Her Become CEO of Pepsi
“I don’t think I could have gotten here without a strategy consultant background because it taught me inductive thinking. It taught me how to think of the problem in micro terms but also to zoom out and put the problem in the context of its broader environment and then zoom back in to solve the problem”
Course Structure
A Four-Week Learning Journey With Challenging Weekly Assignments
Week 1 – Introduction & Mindset
🧠 Module #1 – Consulting Mindset: Introduction to the basic consulting mindsets, mental models & consulting process
Week 2 – Synthesize & Structure
🎯 Module #2 – MECE Mind: The powerful framework to help you sharpen your thinking
💡 Module #3 – From Information To Insight: Introduction to the pyramid principle and synthesizing & organizing complex information
📝 Assignment: Consulting services MECE assignment & mock chief of staff research assignment
Week 3 – Real-World Problem Solving
🔬Module #4 – Real World Problem Solving: Using MECE, Pyramid Principle and hypothesis tools to break down real-world problems into problems that can be solved
📝 Assignment: Using SCQA & issue tress in a real-life Facebook strategy case study
Week 4 – Kick-Ass Presentations & Storytelling
📊 Module #5 – Kick-Ass Presentations: Learn the PowerPoint secrets of strategy consultants, master flow & understand how to craft your message to different audiences
🔥 Module #6 – Beyond Consulting Presentations: Creating Memorable & Persuasive Content: Implement tools from cognitive neuroscience and other disciplines to create memorable messages
📝 Assignment: You’ll be given an incomplete 19-page presentation which will have missing information. Fill in the information, titles and other missing content and develop a clear storyline based on the lessons
Four Challenging Assignments
With each week you will receive an assignment as well as suggested answers. These will take you 1-2 hours or more each week and you’ll get the most out of the course if you take these seriously. (Personalized feedback available, see below)
MECE Assignment: Redesign a consulting firms service offerings to ensure that they are using the MECE principle
CEO Pitch Exercise: Synthesize interviews, research, and survey findings in your role as Chief of Staff for an upcoming meeting with your CEO
Facebook Case Problem Statement & Issue Tree: Develop a hypothesis Issue Tree for a Facebook case study
PowerPoint Pitch: Complete an unfinished PowerPoint presentation for a business case competition
Course Content:
Meet Paul & The Core Concepts!
Meet Paul: My Story & Why I Spent 250+ Hours Creating This Course (2:27)
Overview of The Five Modules (1:06)
Bonus Content! (1:03)
Getting Started – Resources & Suggested Schedule For The Course
Welcome To Course & Suggested Course Schedule
🆓 Bonus Content
100+ Consulting Slide Templates
14 PowerPoint Hacks
🆕 Downloadable & Printable Checklist: Apply The Concepts In This Course
Welcome To Week 1
Mission For The Week
🧠 Consulting Mindset – How To Think Like A Strategy Consultant
Module #1 Introduction (0:27)
Mindset Shift #1 The “How” vs. The What (2:04)
Mindset Shift #2 Learning Mindset & Avoiding “Modishness” (3:58)
Mindset Shift #3 Rule Of Three: Why Do Consultants Always Offer Lists Of Three? (3:09)
Mindset Shift #4 Deeper Thinking: Separate The Thinking & Writing (2:50)
Mindset Shift #5: Elements Of Great Teams (3:12)
Bringing It Alive – Mini Case Study – University Budget Cuts (6:08)
BONUS: Overview Of Strategy Consulting (10:33)
Welcome To Week 2: Synthesis & Structuring
Mission For Week 2
Week 2 Assignments & Example Answers
Assignment #1: MECE & Synthesizing Key Themes
Assignment #1: FEEDBACK for PARTNER students
Assignment #1: Suggested Answers (Don’t Peek!)
🎯 MECE Mind – How To Think Clearly
Module #2 Introduction (0:31)
🆕 Intro To MECE: Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive (3:58)
🆕 Are we all saying “MECE” wrong? A word from Barabara Minto (2:01)
Understanding MECE & Examples (8:09)
MECE Example: Social Media Platforms (4:26)
🆕 MECE FAQ: What happens if you are using “other” too much? (3:16)
💡 From Information To Insight: How To Use The Pyramid Principle To Synthesize & Structure
Module #3 Introduction (1:17)
Intro To The Pyramid Principle (3:57)
How The Pyramid Principle Fits In The Consulting Process (2:43)
Pyramid Principle Part 1: Synthesize & Structure (5:19)
Mini-Assignment: Synthesizing & Structuring Information Synthesis Exercise: Answers Pyramid Principle Synthesis Walkthrough #1 (4:41)
Pyramid Principle Synthesis Walkthrough #2 (6:43)
Preview: Pyramid Principle Part 2 (1:04)
Bonus: Mapping The Pyramid Principle To A Real PowerPoint Deck (3:19)
Welcome To Week 3
Mission For Week 3
Week 3 Assignment – Facebook Case
Assignment #2: Facebook Case: Build The Issue Tree (2:40)
Assignment #2: Feedback – PARTNER Students
Assignment #2: Answers – Don’t Peak 🙂
🛠 Real World Problem Solving: Using SCQA & Issue Trees To Help Facebook Shift To Mobile
Module #4 Introduction (0:18)
Facebook Case Kick-Off Materials (Case Worksheet & Article) (3:26)
More Frameworks? Introducing SCQA! (4:32)
Facebook Case: Define The Problem (2:18)
Problem Statement Feedback From Paul Issue Tree: The Final Framework! (6:23)
Q&A – Student Questions on SCQA & Problem Solving (2:14)
Welcome To Week 4
Week 4 Mission
Week 4 Assignment
Assignment #3: Presentation Storytelling
Assignment #3: Feedback – PARTNER
Assignment #3: Example Solution – Don’t Peak 😀
💭 Storytelling & Kick-Ass Presentations: Convince CEOs to change their mind
Module #5 Introduction (0:46)
Quick Recap: MECE + Pyramid Principle (1:18)
Pyramid Principle Part 2: Communicate Top-Down (8:12)
Structure Your Arguments: Inductive vs. Deductive Reasoning (6:34)
Sequence The Story: Direct & Indirect Methods (3:06)
3 Types Of Presentations & Sample Deliverables (2:53)
🆕 PowerPoint Storytelling: Slide Design & Flow (7:56)
🆕 Three Types Of Frameworks & How To Build Your Own (6:36)
📊 Slide Critiques = Paul Reviews + Improves Real Slides
Send Me Your Slides Or Presentations! (0:35)
Critiques & Examples Of Real Slides From McKinsey, BCG & More… (6:15)
🔥 Beyond Consulting Presentations: Creating Memorable & Persuasive Content
Impossible To Ignore: 7 Tips For Memorable Presentations (5:18)
Impossible To Ignore: Perceptive, Cognitive & Affective Persuasion (0:51)
Beyond Facts – Using Sensory Details & Timelines (2:19)
Ignite The Brain – Give Words & Pictures A Deeper Meaning (5:41)
Emotions: Moving Towards or Away From Reward & Punishment (4:50)
Article: 20 Tips On Creating Amazing Presentations
Interviews With Former Strategy Consultants
Andrei Lenard – Corporate Strategy Director + 8 Years @ BCG + Roland Berger (58:13)
🆕 Davis Nguyen – Former Bain Consultant & Founder of MyConsultingOffer.com (34:28)
🆕 Hakan Unsal – Former BCG Principal & Founder (31:50)
✅ Course Wrap Up
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