What's your job about?
Nous Group is an Australian consulting firm that takes great pride in its ability to help the public sector in tackling complex challenges through rigorous, structured problem-solving. The firm's work spans a wide range of sectors including health, human services, energy, utilities, and beyond.
As a consultant, you will be responsible for diving into the details and working closely with the project team to communicate your findings so they can steer the project direction. Being a consultant, its like opening a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get. It could be developing a service blueprint, designing an organisational strategy, creating a program implementation roadmap, or evaluating a suite of health programs.
Right now, I'm working on a feasibility study for bringing services to a rural/remote location. The project involves investigating the market conditions, identifying critical stakeholders to interview, and scraping publicly available information. These activities all contribute to forming a view of what is happening in that region. In a typical day, I have a daily check-in with my project manager, communicating challenges and brainstorming solutions. The actions from that meeting could be anything from conducting more internet research, engaging in PowerPoint visual design or drafting paragraphs for a report. The sheer variety of tasks and clients means that you are never doing the exact same thing twice.
What's your background?
I was born in Brisbane and went to several schools on the south side of the river. I was unable to speak English at all until Grade 1 as I had no one to practice it with. Although it took time eventually through hard work, I was able to catch up, learning how to read, write and speak. At university, I studied a Bachelor of Pharmacy program at UQ with the goal of becoming a doctor. However, after three failed attempts to pass the GAMSAT, I decided to move on. I realized that an alternative career as a pharmacist was also not for me. The monotony of dispensing scripts did not align with my interests.
I decided to switch my focus to law and economics, which better suited my passions. My time at QUT was far more active than my experience at UQ, joining different clubs and generally being open to any opportunity. I was fortunate enough to be hired as a Student Success Adviser and it was one of the best experiences I ever had, calling students, and helping them in any way I could. As I entered my final year of law school, I realized that being a lawyer would not allow me to express my creativity. I had heard about consulting and having joined 180 Degrees QUT, I endeavoured to apply for consulting positions. I discovered Nous Group on GradAustralia and the rest is history.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
100%. Consulting is the ultimate generalist job, where what you know is not as important as how you think. While direct sector knowledge in law, health or even human services can be useful, the consulting industry places a higher value on your ability to reason and think critically. Anyone that can communicate complex information that is both highly engaging and digestible will excel in this field.
What's the coolest thing about your job?
Imagine going from being unaware of a subject to confidently discussing it with anyone for hours on end. This transformation happens every single time you are put on a project. Want to know more about the complexities of how medical care is delivered or if Australia is doing enough to tackle the ageing population, you will be a certified pseudo-expert by the time it all wraps up. It's not going to win any trivia tournaments but you can have deep meaningful conversations at the very least.
What are the limitations of your job?
Working long hours can be challenging, especially when the workload is demanding. Despite the interesting and exciting nature of the work, there may be times when it's necessary to put in extra hours to meet deadlines.
Effective communication is a crucial aspect of this job. Being able to translate complex and abstract ideas that is digestible for any audience is an art. If you cringe at the idea of having to simplify your language just so people can understand you, then you need to think twice about being a consultant.
3 pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...