Building empowerment to bring real value to the client
By Megan
What connected the dots for me most was meeting with the leaders themselves. After speaking with them, I felt like I could truly bring something to the table to make a difference for the organization.
I was excited for the opportunity to travel to another country and work with professionals to help them with challenges they were experiencing with their organization. Though no longer possible due to COVID-19, I was very pleased that BU still provided the opportunity to work with individuals from countries like Brazil, even if only remotely. Still, I was a little apprehensive about applying my experience and knowledge to help others as a consultant with their work. I was worried that I would not be able to fully understand the nuances to the problem within their business due to cultural differences, language barriers, or personal lack of experience. Happily, after only our first meeting with the client, I felt empowered to help and excited by the opportunity to learn and contribute to their growth.
The meetings with the class, my teammate, and the professor have helped me be more prepared throughout the process thus far. In class we were provided with the opportunity to share best practices, contacts, and ideas with classmates and make asks of them. I appreciate this approach as it serves as good practice for us to learn how we can collaborate and network with peers and future leaders, alongside of the direct help it provides us with our client projects. It mimics a real-life situation where one would leverage their resources to achieve a business goal. My teammate and I have met weekly and talked through our notes, ideas, and prepared our agenda, questions, and scope for the client. I feel as though our respectful, open, and inquisitive report provides us with a unique opportunity to learn from one another. Working with another on a business objective stresses the importance of learning about each other’s strengths and experiences, and what can and should be brought to the table to offer the best experience and end deliverable for the client.
What connected the dots for me most was meeting with the leaders themselves. After speaking with them, I felt like I could truly bring something to the table to make a difference for the organization. They were genuine, flexible, and eager to work with us and listen to our questions. Being able to hear their story, challenges, and aspirations gave me a new perspective on non-profits in general. The growth they have experienced in a short time to date was fostered by their dedication, leveraging of expertise, and motivation for the good of the community. To be able to learn not only about how the business works, but how their environment operates, is what I am most excited about. I am ready to dive in and learn more about the innerworkings of their organization and get more acquainted to the culture that surrounds it to hopefully identify opportunities for process improvements.