The Engagement Manager Milan → Remote
Former Strategy Consultant who realized the real work happens in the data room, not the boardroom. Now runs boutique advisory projects. Writes here about setting up client portals that look professional by Friday morning.
Note: “Paolo Pivot” is a pseudonym. We use pseudonyms so we can write honestly about real work without naming clients, employers, or teams.
Stop blaming the software for your version control issues. If you have two 'Final' files, you have failed. Establish a Single Source of Truth or prepare for the 'Which Version?' war.
You built the perfect room, but the client won't log in. Why? Because your invite email looks like spam. Here is the script that fixes it.
The cloud is great until you are in a factory basement with zero signal. If your team cannot work offline, you are not 'cloud-native', you are useless.
It is 5 minutes before close of business. The client dumps 20 new files and asks for them to be included. Don't panic. Triage.
A new advisor joins the project and demands 'Full Admin Access.' If you give it to them, you break the room. Give them the Advisor Package instead.
If your file is named 'Final_Final_v7_Jens_Edit', you look like an amateur. Naming conventions are not OCD; they are User Interface.
Your data is perfect, but your deliverable is unreadable. If the client has to squint to see the EBITDA bridge, you have already lost.
Sending a purple Google Form to a Fortune 500 client is not 'agile.' It is amateur. Secure your intake or lose the contract.
You design on a 27-inch monitor. Your client approves on a 6-inch screen. If your Deal Room doesn't work in a taxi, you are losing the deal.
Sending a ZIP file is the fastest way to say 'I don't care about your user experience.' It is time to kill the archive.
The Partner wants a portal. IT wants a 2-week lead time. Here is how we ship the Deal Room in 20 minutes.
Email attachments are the silent killer of deals. Move to a single source of truth or risk losing the signature.