The job market is a nightmare

Looking at recent news headlines, you'd be forgiven for thinking things don't look so great in the IT services industry and beyond.

And I think you'd be right.

➡️ Industry growth is down significantly and profit is also down significantly.

➡️ And inevitably that means layoffs are up.

➡️ Meanwhile, the disruption from AI and automation continues to increase redundancies.

➡️ And the average back to work period has climbed to six months.

➡️ Adjusted for inflation, salaries have almost flatlined over the last 20 years.

All of this uncertainty is leading to a crowded jobs market, but with fewer real opportunities,

On top of all of this, the current climate of geo-political and economic stress may well trigger a global recession

So what can you do to protect yourself against this?

A financial advisor might suggest that you minimise risk by investing your money in multiple places, such as stocks, real estate, or maybe even crypto.

Similarly I'm suggesting that you invest in consulting skills to extend your value proposition to employers and reduce risk. Let me explain further.

CONSULTING SKILLS ARE THE LIFEBLOOD OF IT SERVICES

The consulting value chain is a series of activities starting with the initial customer engagement in which we seek to understand the customer's business context, objectives and requirements. This is where we win the business and then go on to deliver the transformation needed by the customer.

Most IT tech professionals operate in the delivery and support stages. But the value chain starts much earlier and it's in those earlier stages where we must build credibility and trust in order to win the work.

So you can see that those consulting skills, customer collaboration, business acumen and solution sales, are really critical. For that reason, the more you can be involved throughout the value chain, the broader and deeper your proposition will be to employers, whether you're looking for promotion or a new job.

Let's review the three pillars of consulting skills:

➡️ Customer collaboration is about building trust and credibility.

➡️ Business acumen is about speaking a common language, the language of business.

➡️ And solution sales is about crafting a compelling proposition for your company's solutions and services.

💡In summary, IT tech pros depending entirely on tech skills may find that's a risky bet. My recommendation would be to future-proof their careers by gaining broader and deeper expertise across the consulting value chain. Employers need this, and they'll pay for it.

DEEP DIVE: CONSULTING VALUE CHAIN

IT tech pros depending entirely on tech skills may find that's a risky bet. My recommendation would be to future-proof their careers by gaining broader expertise across the consulting value chain. Employers need this, and they'll pay for it.

On the other hand, depending entirely on your tech skills may be a risky bet.

There's a lot to learn, so I'm running a deep dive workshop in which we'll go through the entire consulting value chain and see how it's supported by 30+ consulting skills, from initial engagement to delivery, handover, and ongoing support.

➡️From this workshop, you’ll get a clear understanding of the entire consulting value chain and how these skills will drive success for customers, your company, and you.

➡️Most IT pros have to piece this puzzle together over several years, losing tens of thousands of dollars in missed potential earnings.

➡️With your understanding of the consulting value chain end-to-end you'll have a head start in the competition for promotion and job applications.

👉 What are your thoughts? How do you feel about the "work climate" and how important (or not) do you think it is to future-proof your career?