I’ve been getting that question quite often lately. Not surprising, because there are many conversations going on with potential new colleagues, people considering coming on board with us. But customers and partners ask us too: what actually is an S&L’er? What makes you different?
A few weeks ago I was having lunch in the kitchen with a few colleagues, and I put that question to them. Joos said that, just before he started at S&L, he had been to a career coach who told him: "Actually, there’s one thing that’s very important for you: surround yourself with excellence." A few months later, he started here.
Colleague Koenraad takes a different approach. When he meets a potential colleague, he sometimes asks: "We’re all a little bit strange. Are you strange too?" Or: "Actually, we’re all insanely good at our own thing. What are you insanely good at?"
I think that’s a nice starting point. So here’s an attempt to put it clearly into words: what we are and what we are not.
Subject-matter expert, but also a bit of a generalist
I think that everyone who is an S&L consultant is at least also a bit of a generalist. Everyone has their own area of expertise, but you also know enough about the rest. As an interim manager or in a strategy process, you need to be able to engage in discussion with all levels of the organization.
Daring to take your place and leave room
You have to dare to take up space and dare to leave room for someone else. If you don’t dare to stand up in front of a group of directors, that’s difficult. And not leaving room for your colleague who knows or can do something better doesn’t work well. Ultimately, it’s about a healthy dose of self-confidence. Speaking up, but not always wanting to have the last word.
“I can look myself in the mirror and see my own worth. But I also see your worth, and it is complementary.”
Flying solo is not always engaging, enjoyable, or efficient
We assign two people to every project, with the occasional exception. Even an interim manager is not left on their own: they have an internal sparring partner, with whom they meet once a month. If you do our kind of assignments solo, you sometimes get too deeply involved and lose the helicopter view. What are the logical next steps? Did I present that well? What is essential and what is secondary?
People who fit in with us also want to keep learning. Not: "I'm here, I put in my hours." There is a hunger in them. We are very good at what we do, but we also remain hungry and want to grow. If you work entirely on your own, you miss that cross-pollination, figuring things out together and lifting each other up.
What our consultants do appreciate is that in many areas they are supported. They do not have the feeling of: oh no, I need to understand HR matters, and financial matters, and every now and then I also have to do something legal. And then there is that deep team dynamic that I cannot quite get a handle on. With us, there is always a network of colleagues to spar with briefly or to pass things on to.
You may well be able to do it all on your own. I think everyone can. But it is not efficient, and it is certainly not always enjoyable.
A good crisis
Our interim managers love diving into something. I recently had a colleague on the phone who said: "If a client calls with a serious crisis, send them my way. Somewhere they really need me, something that keeps me awake at night." Figuring out which levers we can pull to get things right here, and then getting to work on that. And once things are more or less in order, they’re happy to hand it over to an operational manager who runs the day-to-day business.
Does someone simply want to have a clear set of tasks, do them well, and get better and better at them over the years? Incredibly valuable, but then S&L is probably not the right place.
World-changers united
What defines us is also so simple that I almost forget to mention it: we are all driven to make a difference. If you don’t have that gene, there’s little point. You’d be better off working at a large consultancy firm. And we don’t make that difference by converting the bad guys. That’s not where we focus our efforts. We work with civil society; we strengthen organizations that do good things.
That’s not always easy. Sometimes you look at the news and think: oh, how can I still hope to make a positive difference? Those moments happen, and then it’s good to be able to vent to colleagues, or to be concerned together, not alone. If you’re a world-changer today, you can use a little extra support.
Sales, but together
We can only make a difference for clients if we have clients. So you have to do marketing and sales. Not always the most enjoyable activity that makes you feel as a consultant: this is where I’m really making a difference.
With us, there is a content plan. Every now and then someone grabs you by the scruff of the neck: "You were going to give a webinar. Where is it?" Even when you’re busy with clients. You still have to write your blog yourself. We share that responsibility and you don’t have to come up with everything from scratch on your own. Because going solo from strategy to execution, that’s a heavy lift.
When things are going badly, you’d rather not bear that alone, and when things are going well, wouldn’t you rather celebrate together too? That’s our motto here: We fail and we rise together.
What I look for
When I talk to a potential colleague, I check a few things.
- Experience in our sectors: having worked in healthcare, the social economy, international solidarity, or the cultural sector.
- Experience with facilitation and standing in front of a group, preferably as a consultant, but it could also be as a director.
- Being able to sell: that does not necessarily mean being a LinkedIn show-off. Some people are very good at one-on-one follow-up or are very convincing in conversation. But the prototype of "someone else has to do the sales for me" does not work.
- And you have to be willing, under the S&L banner, to show your face to the world.
Such a conversation is always a two-way street. For us, the question is: is this a meaningful addition to the team? But it is just as much for you to find out: what is this organization like, how do things work here, and what else do I need to know to make a decision?
A high-performing beehive
At S&L, there is a lot of autonomy and the quality is high. People fly out to their own clients, are independent, and take responsibility. But there are also systems and moments that bring us together, where you can lean on one another, nourish yourself, and fly out again recharged. A beehive, really.
Do you recognize yourself in this? Then be sure to take a look at our jobs page or book a chat with me.
