Lauren: from client to consultant
"I love helping our clients understand what they're buying"
My first experience of Oracle implementation came when a business I was working for moved from a single Oracle product to a cloud solution. I was enjoying the system elements of my role so I put myself forward to join the project team for the rollout. This meant I worked with the external team who came in to deliver the implementation.
I loved working on the implementation and alongside the consulting team that came in.
When COVID-19 led to redundancy, it gave me a chance to think about my next move and what I wanted from my career. That led me to Grant Thornton in 2020. I've since been promoted to manager and am now part way through my third implementation project.
For me, the main difference between being client-side and consulting is that, client-side, you’re very always learning as you don’t know the product you're implementing.
Now, having worked on multiple implementations of the same product, I'm an expert in those areas. No two implementations are ever the same so it keeps it interesting, but it also means you are building on your knowledge and able to take your learnings from one project to another.
I love having the chance to help our clients understand what they’re buying. Having had client-side experience helps in how I'm able to work alongside them.
I really like the culture within the firm and the values align to my own. It’s a great work environment and there's a real focus on learning and growing as individuals and also as a team. While my colleagues are based all over the UK, it still feels like we are one team and able to support each other and our clients.