Name: Kathryn Davies
Employer: Towers Perrin
Job Title: Associate
University: Warwick
Subject: BA History
I graduated from Warwick University in
2002 with a BA in History. After graduating
I worked in a variety of generalist HR roles
in both the public and private sector which
enabled me to gain experience of operational
HR. I also chose to study part-time for an
MSc in HR Consultancy and gained my CIPD
qualification. Having gained this experience
I realised I wanted to move into a consulting
role that would build on my experience but
would enable me to gain exposure to wider
business issues at a more strategic level. I
was also attracted to working in a projectbased
environment and felt that at this stage
of my career consulting would provide me
with an invaluable opportunity to work with
a wide range of clients across many different
industries.
I started working at Towers Perrin in
March 2007 as an Associate in the Change
Implementation (CI) practice. The services
offered by CI are varied and range from largescale
global HR transformation projects to
developing communication and engagement
strategies to manage organisational change.
CI has a huge variety of clients including
many FTSE 100 companies and public
sector bodies which means there are lots of
opportunities to work on a real variety of
projects. Projects also tend to range in size
which increases the opportunity for learning
as Associates are often resourced to more
than one project at a time.
I've worked on many different projects since
joining Towers Perrin - most recently I've
helped both a global financial services firm
and a global FMCG company to develop
a business case for the transformation of
their European HR functions. This included
detailed current state data analysis, design
of the future service delivery model and
assistance with vendor selection for outsource
providers. Other projects I've worked on
have included designing a new organisational
structure in a public sector merger and
conducting a detailed process review for a
global pharmaceutical company as part of a
wider HR transformation. The work is really
varied and can range from financial analysis
to facilitating workshops to writing and
developing communications materials which
requires Associates to be both analytical and
creative.
One of the things that really differentiates
Towers Perrin is the opportunity for client
contact from day one. The types of projects
typically done by CI and the non-hierarchical
structure means that new Associates are
quickly integrated into project teams and set
to work alongside clients straight away. This
really helps with developing the skills required
to be a successful consultant and sets you on
a rapid learning curve. Towers Perrin also
places great importance on supporting worklife
balance - by its very nature, consulting
can be a demanding career but Towers
Perrin empowers each of its consultants to
balance work and personal commitments.
The CI practice is a great place to work for
graduates who want challenge, responsibility
and real client projects from day one within a
supportive team environment.
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