Sarah Hardy, Gate One

Young Consultant of the Year Finalist 2019

I decided to become a management consultant whilst studying for my History degree. History is about the theory of why change happens, and I was excited to see change up close in the very future-looking world of business. I joined the graduate scheme of a global consultancy before moving to a smaller, challenger consultancy, where I have begun to learn what it means to deliver ‘change that counts’ for my colleagues, my clients, and their customers.

For me, ‘change that counts’ is any change that is grounded in complete integrity to a company’s people and purpose. The role of a management consultant is therefore to take an entirely people-centric approach, and to work with, not for, the client to deliver results that stick. I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside some very senior people at global, billion-dollar organisations on their visions for the future, which has involved complete collaboration and co-creation to make sure that what is delivered really counts for the client.

Internally, I have taken on leadership roles in people development, which has included running a two-week graduate induction programme, winning funding for a global wellbeing initiative, and, most recently, becoming Continuous Personal Development Lead at my current company.

I feel incredibly honoured to be nominated for this award so early on in my consulting career, and hope to justify my Gate One colleagues’ trust in my abilities by winning the MCA Young Consultant of the Year Award 2019.

View the Gate One profile in the MCA Members Directory.