CONSULTANTS WHO LOVE CONSULTING – MAGGIE CHEN, CMC, CM&AP
Q1 In brief, describe how you entered the profession of management consulting, or when did you decide that management consulting was a profession that you wanted to enter?
With over 15 years of entrepreneur and business management experience, I decided that Management Consulting would be my career.
My time in and around the business world dates back to my youth. When I was 18 years old, I would organize social events and sell tickets to classmates and friends. They were humble beginnings, but it was exciting, and I was inspired by the success I was achieving. This inspiration led to an interest in expanding my skills into the world of business, and so the next step in my growth was getting some real world experience – selling products door to door – and then entering university. University was where I needed to be at the time, but not where I wanted this journey to end. Upon completion of my post-secondary studies in Accounting & Statistics, I worked for an engineering company, as well as IBM, for a few years, honing my skills.
Eventually, I took all that I learned to open a language school – The Jordan Language School in 1993. Everything that I had done up to this point had prepared me for where I needed to be mentally. Using the skills and focus that I had honed over many years, we ended our first year with 75 students. By the end of the second year, we had more than doubled that total, with 200 students. After three years, our total revenue was $3.5 million dollars. We knew this was the right time to acquire one or two more language schools in strategic locations.
The knowledge gained from my previous work experiences is a major asset I bring to my clients. A seemingly unresolvable issue in one industry may have a solution discovered in another. I get to apply my knowledge from several industries to problems in completely different ones. I can apply solutions from mines to offices or hospitals to manufacturing. By coming in with a different outlook, I can suggest an alternative not previously considered.
Q2 What do you love most about consulting?
What I love most about consulting is the exposure to a wide range of industries and working environments that a majority of the population will never have the opportunity to experience. Most people will never step foot in an underground gold mine, a recycling factory, fashion design, or education technology, let alone work in all of those places in a given year. I am not most people, and I work in all types of places with all types of clients. It’s the variety of situations that draws us in and the need to improve those situations that brings success to my clients.
Q3 What do you like the least?
What I like the least about consulting is traveling long hours frequently. It forces me into a fast-paced rhythm (I think the stereotypical "work hard, play hard" is actually quite a good description) in which I am not at home a lot, and therefore need to maximize the quality of the time I actually can spend with family and friends, which can be tiring.
Q4 What has been your most satisfying engagement and why?
In one of my favourite projects, we helped our client 'John' merge Recycle Manufactures in USA, Canada, Taiwan and China. From this global project, I used my international business experience and financial background to collaborate and communicate overseas. When John prepared his retirement in 2016, he acquired our services to sell his business. In this trust business relationship, we sold John’s Plastic Recycling business for 35 million to a USA client in one year. Two buyers asked for lower prices but didn’t meet our expectations. We waited until the best deals came to us. I'm proud to help businesses in different stages. John has been a loyal client for the past 20 years. He is living in California recently. When I traveled to California, I didn’t forget to visit him.
Q5 What personality trait has helped you the most in your career?
I am driven to improve upon the status quo. I don’t like living with things that are good enough; I want them to be the best. I know that processes can always be improved and small changes can make a huge difference. It’s this need to constantly evolve the way we do things that gives our clients the results they desire. I am able to bring my ideas to the table, work to implement those ideas in the real world, and see the results. Every client is different, but the desire to succeed at each project is always there.
Q6 Finally, if you were stranded on a desert island - What is one book and one luxury item you would take with you?
Nothing! If I was on an island already, there would have been no way to bring things. I would need to find a way to survive on the desert island. This is a luxury to me. Being able to find solutions and adapt the new environment for myself.
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Visit Maggie's LinkedIn Page to learn more.
