Roopa Mehta

6.30 AM

I get up and spend half an hour organising my day. I ensure our internal Kearney working meetings with our partner and principal are set up and organise any client meetings for the week. I send emails to administrative assistants if meetings need to be made or re-organised. I quickly review any work from the previous day and make a plan for the day ahead.

7.30 AM

I go to exercise class at my local gym—a boot camp style of class with bursts of high-intensity training and targets to reach on the bike and the rower! Every class is different, so you never know what to expect!

8.30 AM

I return home and get ready for work. I am working for a client with their head office in Sydney. The team has decided to work 3 days a week at the client site, and 2 days a week in the Kearney offices or from home. Today, I am going to the client site.

9.30 AM

I arrive at the client site with a coffee in hand, book a desk and set up for the day at the client’s offices.

9.45 AM

I meet with my team for a 15-minute stand-up. I run through meetings and expectations for the day. I answer any questions from team members.

10.00 AM

I have a meeting via video conference with the client sponsor for the project to discuss and agree on assumptions made in developing a detailed cost model. I conduct this meeting with one of my team members who are responsible for building the cost model. We agree on the discussion points to raise with the CEO in the next meeting.

11.00 AM

The Kearney team has an in-person meeting with the CEO, CFO and business unit owners to present our update on client engagement. I present the key findings of our analysis, assumptions made, the size of the opportunity for the client and our proposed recommendations. Two of my team members present a couple of slides each on their streams of work. Once we have finished, the CEO encourages all the business unit owners to make comments. I listen, take notes, and support the excellent comments from the client team members. We agree on the format of the document for the CEO to take to the Board and agree on any changes required. The meeting has gone over time, so I quickly contact an applicant to Kearney who I am supposed to be interviewing to inform him that I am running late.

12.15 PM

We have a debrief with the Kearney partner on how the meeting went and the outcomes.

12.30 PM

I connect via video conference with the prospective applicant to Kearney for a screening interview. I ask several questions including why the applicant wishes to join Kearney and assess the suitability for this candidate to go through the formal interview process.

1.30 PM

I go downstairs to the food court with my team to have lunch. We can’t decide what we want to eat; we each end up having a burrito bowl as that has the shortest queue!

2.00 PM

We have a team meeting to discuss outcomes from the CEO meeting and assign tasks to each team member. We brainstorm ideas for how we wanted to present the material. I ensure everyone is clear on their tasks and the time frame for completing them. I also communicate the plan for the next day as I work part-time and won’t be available the following morning. I let the team know that I will check emails at 1 pm and will respond to any questions they have.

3.00 PM

We get back to our desks and start working on our tasks. While we are working, a client member of the finance team walks past, and we are introduced to him. We have a chat and find out when he would be available to meet with us to provide us with some relevant financial information. We are lucky to have met him as it will help us obtain important information that we have been looking for.

4.00 PM

We review the updated cost model with our client sponsor via video conference. He is happy with our progress.

5.00 PM

I leave the client site and let the team know I can review any updated material after 8 pm. I head home by train.

6.00 PM

I make dinner for my family, we eat dinner together between 7.00-7.30 PM and I clear up the kitchen.

8.00 PM

I check my phone for any messages and review any slides that have been updated. I make comments with suggestions on slides that need changing and send my team members a message to let them know. We discuss any changes if necessary.

9.30 PM

I plan for the next day and have some downtime before going to sleep at 10.30 PM.

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