Monday

It's 7am and I'm on the train to visit one of the biggest utilities companies in the UK. We are running a project to improve their supply chain and project management. I have been working on the project for the last 3 weeks and this week the first workshops are taking place. When I arrive at the site I quickly get settled and make sure nothing important has cropped up over the weekend, before heading straight into a team meeting to go through the activities we need to complete to remain on schedule and any issues that could arise.

I then have a meeting with the client to discuss the final details of tomorrow's workshop. They want to make some minor changes which will not be a problem, but I now need to make sure the rest of the team have their content ready and will be able to make any adjustments to the client's needs.

Heading off to the hotel at 4:30 to get checked in and do final preparation for the workshop tomorrow, before hitting the gym and having a meal with the guys from the team. When I get back up to my room I make a few calls to make sure everything is OK at home.

Tuesday

I’m in early at 7:30am to prepare the room so that when the client and participants arrive we
can get straight into business. There are a few extra things I need to do, so I am making sure I
fire off a couple of emails, copying in my Project Manager so he can chase them for me while I
am in the workshop.

The workshop went well, the first one is always tricky as it’s unchartered water, but the
feedback at the end of the session was good and we have a few ways to make the next one
better. It finished at 5.30pm, so it’s been a long day and I have a lot of notes that I will have to
write up in time for the next session.

Heading back to the hotel to meet the rest of the team and have a chat about how it went, but
it’s better to leave work in the office and have a drink and meal to relax.

Wednesday

First normal start of the week today and we are halfway through. I had a few hours planned
this morning to make sure I can catch up with my emails and voicemails from yesterday,
and I am then straight into writing up the flipchart notes of the session so I can get all the
information in context while it’s fresh in my head.

Today will be a quick lunch while I work, as I need to get hold of the technical experts and run
through the output document so I can have it issued this afternoon. We agreed a really tight
schedule with the client so everyone is pulling together to make sure we hit the deadlines!
It’s 4pm, and with the documents completed, I get to have a chat with the Project Manager and
he is happy to send it out. He also wanted to chat to me about the finances of the project. He’s
happy with how we are going, but wants a quick slide for when he goes to the Governance
board this week.

5pm. It’s football day, so I’m heading back this evening to play 5-a-side with the guys from CSC
and the client. It’s pretty competitive, but we all have a laugh and we work better in the day for it.

Thursday

It’s got to the time in the week where I have worn all my ironed shirts, so I start the day off with
a more menial task before meeting everyone in the lobby.

The Project Manager is driving me in today and has let us know that the client is really happy
but they have some unexpected absences, so we will have to brief a new member on the
client’s team today ready for the workshop tomorrow!

The first part of my day is a couple of grad conference calls, getting a general update on what
the other guys are up to and what clients they are working with. We have been working on our
project together as we have a week till completion so things are getting a bit busy!
I‘ve had to rearrange my diary, but that’s nothing new – everyone is always shifting timeslots
around to make sure we can fit in with the client’s day. We have to make it as easy as possible
for them, as they are really busy too and if we can help to make their lives easier they will make
time for us if we need it.

I spent the afternoon getting a new team member up to date (funnily enough it’s one of the
guys I play football with, so it was a good meeting about how he managed to score one past
me last night!).

Friday

Last day and a final early start today (workshop again). A bit more of a tricky session today,
as we moved into a little more detail and encountered some issues that the client needs to
make a decision on. It’s never a problem, but it might be a chance for them to make some extra
savings if it doesn’t affect other parts of the business.

I’m having a quick lunch at my desk while checking I have responded to all of my emails, then
into a quick review meeting with the client’s project manager to see how she thought the week
had gone and get the workshop feedback from the attendees. She’s happy and is kicking me
out of the office because it’s Friday and has been a long week! On the 3:30 train to meet up
with my friends in London who are finishing at 6!