My father was a truck driver. As a kid, I had no idea what work I would do when I became an adult. Starting around age 12, I decided I wanted more than my parents had, and I wanted out of the little farm town where I grew up. I decided then that I would go to college and started studying so that I could get accepted. At Michigan State, I majored in Economics with no idea of what I would do after graduation. I was hired by Detroit Bank & Trust (Comerica) into their Management Trainee program. I was immature, had poor work habits, and got fired after 1 year. Time to grow up. I got a job with an auto parts supplier doing very basic accounting and started night school to learn more accounting, which allowed me to get hired at Ex-Cell-O, a large industrial machinery company.
I decided I did not want to spend my whole career in accounting. Fortunately, I worked with the engineers and plant people, and they asked me to become a plant scheduler. I was so lucky. This was the beginning of computers in business and also the beginning of formal plant scheduling techniques. I learned how to schedule a plant with computer software and also became APICS-certified in inventory and production control (four 5-hour tests over a 2- year period with hundreds of hours of study at night). This is like an accounting CPA. I now had the skills to go anywhere. At age 33 I went to ITT as a Division Director responsible for scheduling 7 plants. After 5 years at ITT, I moved into consulting, helping companies to improve their scheduling processes and to implement new computer systems. I ultimately joined SAP, the largest business software company in the world, and often traveled to the headquarters in Germany to discuss new software development for U.S. companies.
People and places. After many years, what you remember most is all the different people and the experiences you had with them. This is especially true in the consulting business, because you are constantly meeting new people. Consultants not only work with customers but also get to know them socially (dinners, golf, games, etc.). Consultants also travel, and I have been to countless interesting place all over the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Germany.
All jobs teach you something. When I was in my teens and college years I was a paperboy, delivered milk, worked in a kitchen cabinet factory, and painted houses.
To learn more about what I do, visit: SAP software, SAP consulting partner, and American Production and Inventory Control Society.
In addition to the skills required to do a specific job, every person in the business world also needs to understand basic accounting. Whether you are in Sales, Engineering, or elsewhere, all must understand the company Profit and Loss statement and other basic financial statements. Public speaking skills and associated presentation development are also required by all who hope to advance. In most fields, you must be able to read large volumes of complex technical writing. To learn SAP software, I read user documentation for 3 months. Also, writing skills are critical. At SAP I often wrote articles and whitepapers on complex business and software topics.
Companies like SAP and Oracle and their consulting partners, like IBM and Accenture, are constantly developing new products and technology, and they operate globally. The best and brightest people work at these companies.
To become a developer at SAP, you would need a degree in Information Technology/Computer Science. Top managers have advanced degrees. Or to become a consultant, you could have a business degree (Accounting, Supply Chain Management, etc.). Consultants should first have 5+ years of hands-on experience at a large “Fortune 500” company or two. Supply Chain consultants should become APICS certified.
Presentation development and public speaking are valuable in every field. People skills involved in consulting are also valuable in every field.
When I first started consulting, the heavy travel was fun but hard on family life. Parents may want to wait until the kids are in Middle School before becoming a traveling consultant. When not with customers, consultants often work from home. You can make enough money to retire early. I now work part time and have flexibility with my time.
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