Lucia is a Business Consultant within the People Strategy team at BearingPoint Ireland. Discover how Lucia's creative background in marketing and service design came to spark a curiosity in consulting.
Learn more about Lucia's role, and check out our Open Roles section for current consulting positions at BearingPoint.
What motivated you to make a career change?
Throughout my professional career, I have had the opportunity to work in various sectors, including aviation, NGOs, floristry, logistics, and telecommunications. I have worn different hats in each of these roles, from design-focused positions to marketing and project management. My diverse experience sparked my curiosity about consultancy. What motivated me to make the change was the desire to continue learning about different industries while being able to perform various roles within the same organisation.
Why did you choose consulting?
For me, consulting represents an endless source of knowledge and opportunities and the ideal environment for growth. Although it was always on my mind, I knew the transition would happen eventually. The opportunity arose through a friend who had been with BearingPoint for a year. Every time we caught up, she was enthusiastic and excited about her role, the various projects, and her colleagues.
What skills or experiences from your previous career have been most valuable in your new role?
As a business consultant in service design, the most valuable skills and experiences I bring from my previous career include design thinking, UX/UI and prototyping, problem-solving, business management, and storytelling.
What’s the most surprising skill you’ve discovered in your new role?
After spending two years away from interface design and not considering it my strength, I was pleasantly surprised by how smoothly and successfully this has gone for me. Using Figma again felt as if I had never stopped, and the results exceeded my expectations, surpassing what I remembered being capable of.
What’s the best part about your new job?
The best part of my new role is being able to focus more on design in my day-to-day work. In my previous experiences, design was part of the role but not the central focus, and as a designer, I found myself missing that aspect.
Was there anything daunting about making the switch?
The daunting part was contemplating the future if I stayed versus a future in consulting. It was both intimidating and encouraging. The first option was broad but confined to one sector, while the second was clear: becoming an expert in my skills and helping others succeed.
Are there any preconceptions of consulting that have proved to be true/false?
One preconception that turned out to be false was that consulting has a very formal dress code, and I would never be able to wear sneakers to work! I was pleasantly surprised to learn that this has changed in the last few years, and we now follow a "dress for your day" code, allowing me to wear my sneakers some days.