Episode 105: Global Expansion, Building a Culture & Climbing to the Top in One Consultancy

In the latest episode of Climb in Consulting, Nick is joined by Remco op den Kelder, CEO at Putnam Associates. Remco’s journey in consulting started with a temporary relocation to America, with a view to staying for 3 or 4 years, and over 20 years later, he’s still there, now as CEO of the firm he joined as a graduate. In a world where people move firm every few years, Remco’s story is something of a rarity. Even though he’s stayed at one firm his whole career, his journey from Analyst to CEO has been a rich, rewarding, and varied one. And proof that there’s many different ways to climb to the top in our industry. Over the time Remco’s been at Putnam, it’s seen significant growth, particularly over the few years, scaling from just over 100 consultants to over 400, in less than 36 months. During this conversation, Nick and Remco discuss his fascinating career journey, and talk about many of the challenges that come with scaling a rapidly growing consultancy including: - How to manage growth at the Partner level, and the important change to their leadership approach that has helped Putnam scale as fast as they have. - The challenges of recruiting into a growing business, and why growing talent within your firm is crucial to your success. - And the role of the office in the post-Covid world, how Putnam are changing their physical environment to respond, and what you should be thinking about for your own consultancy to ensure your office gives your team what they need to be effective. When you’re mapping out your career in consulting, the idea of staying with one organisation doesn’t always appeal to many. But Remco is proof that you don’t need to hop from one firm to another to achieve career success. Whether you’re on the path to CEO and what to learn the secrets to reaching the top, or you’re already there and want to hear the advice of a peer who’s achieved the growth that many firms are looking for, this conversation is going to be one that you’ll really enjoy. We hope you enjoy the show! Find out more about Remco here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/remco-op-den-kelder-a7341b/ And discover more about Putnam Associates here: https://www.putassoc.com Specific things discussed in the show: Gorillas Can Dance by Shameen Prashantham: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gorillas-Can-Dance-Corporations-Partnering/dp/1119823587