Strategy & Operations Senior Consultant

ZS is a place where passion changes lives. As a management consulting and technology firm focused on improving life and how we live it, we transform ideas into impact by bringing together data, science, technology and human ingenuity to deliver better outcomes for all. Here you'll work side-by-side with a powerful collective of thinkers and experts shaping life-changing solutions for patients, caregivers and consumers, worldwide. ZSers drive impact by bringing a client-first mentality to each and every engagement. We partner collaboratively with our clients to develop custom solutions and technology products that create value and deliver company results across critical areas of their business. Bring your curiosity for learning, bold ideas, courage and passion to drive life-changing impact to ZS.
Strategy & Operations Senior Consultant
The S&O Senior Consultant will support either a large client account team, practice area, or industry vertical (collectively referred to as "spaces"). In this role, you will be a critical member of the space. You will be a thought partner to the lead Principal(s), prioritize and drive key space initiatives, and create the structure and processes that enable the space to achieve its vision, strategy, and key milestones.
S&O professionals are key connectors with broad visibility across the space, building collaborative relationships within the space and across ZS to enhance efficiency. This involves providing strategic and operational support across 8 dimensions: 1) Space Management & Operations, 2) Strategic Planning & Enablement, 3) Investment Budget Planning & Optimization, 4) ZS-Client Working Model Strategy and Management, 5) External Engagement & Thought Leadership, 6) People Development & Engagement, 7) Business Development/ Pipeline Strategy & Management, 8) Capability Building & Dissemination.
As an S&O Senior Consultant you will have the unique opportunity to work at the intersection of strategy, leadership, and innovation, collaborating with senior executives and cross-functional teams to drive significant impact. You will help shape the future of the space you support, identifying and implementing solutions that streamline operations, foster growth, and maximize space success. This role offers exposure to a wide range of business functions and allows you to build and expand your expertise while contributing to the continued success of the organization.
Through your work, you will foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement, ensuring that each space operates at its highest potential while delivering measurable results to both clients and ZS.
This role requires a high degree of emotional intelligence (EQ) to manage relationships and navigate complex team dynamics, along with a passion for continuous learning and improvement.
What You Will Do
Space Management & Operations

• Optimize space operations to minimize leadership's time spent on operational tasks
• Ensure leadership time on space operations is used to make decisions and drive influence
• Ensure timely and accurate responses to firm requests from ZS governing bodies and leadership

Strategic Planning & Enablement

• Manage strategic planning process (annual and ongoing)
• Drive business performance by guiding space-level strategy (or intersecting spaces), and facilitate change enablement and pull-through of strategy
• Develop impact measurement and impact communication strategies
• Support the development and maintenance of key client relationships by leveraging client power maps to create and execute engagement plans

Investment Budget Planning and Optimization

• Increase value/ROI of investment spend by working with leadership to make strategic investment decisions and develop effective allocation / release processes
• Optimize space management / flex spend to ensure appropriate balance of space management vs. commissioned investments
• Optimize business development / account management spend for Client Teams to enable insights-driven decision-making (e.g., maximizing ROI) and focused BD efforts
• Manage total annual spend to come in at or below budget (in partnership with Finance team)

ZS-Client Working Model Strategy and Management

• Improve business performance by fostering relationships with relevant client procurement stakeholders
• Enhance ZS working model and compliance with client requirements through strong client partnerships
• Maintain compliance with client legal requirements (including initiation of agreements, data storage/management, etc.) (in partnership with Legal team)

External Engagement and Thought Leadership

• Enhance ZS or space awareness, credibility, or reputation through supporting the creation or synthesis of thought leadership materials, preparing executive-level presentations and talks, etc.
• Bring external/industry perspectives into the space by coordinating and managing external advisor relationships
• Drive lead generation, conference strategy, and execution (in partnership with Marketing team)

People Development and Engagement

• Drive space-level people strategy by keeping a pulse of team and providing ongoing insight to leadership
• Execute HealthCheck-related initiatives to improve space engagement (in partnership with HR teams)
• Improve skillsets of space members by identifying opportunities to develop coaching, mentorship, onboarding, or training programs
• Drive business impact and engagement through planning and running effective workshops, events, summits, client visits, etc. (virtual and in-person)
• Raise team performance by identifying performance themes and intervention approaches (in partnership with HR teams)

Business Development/ Pipeline Strategy and Management

• Improve BD win rates by: managing account/practice-level BD strategy, supporting large RFP response efforts, creating/synthesizing capability/sales collateral to be used in BD pursuits, collecting feedback from won/lost opportunities, proactively tracking and managing the pipeline(in partnership with Learning team), etc.
• Ensure opportunities are tagged, tracked, and actioned on appropriately through proactive pipeline management

Capability Building and Dissemination

• Develop new programs, processes, or ways of working for the space that can be leveraged across teams (including BD and delivery excellence processes to improve performance)
• Identify opportunities to drive organization-wide impact by scaling capabilities and offerings across the firm
• Collaborate with adjacent/intersecting spaces to achieve business objectives

What You Will Bring

• BS required, MBA or other advanced degree preferred
• 6-10+ years in professional services firm, consulting or strategy/operations experience preferred
• Strong consultative skills and comfort with unstructured problems-solving
• Experience collaborating effectively with multiple stakeholders across multiple projects
• Familiarity with consulting environment
• Ability to quickly internalize a large volume of information, prioritize, and make timely decisions
• Strong business and financial acumen
• Effective oral and written communication skills that enable personal impact with senior-level decision makers
• Experience creating or administering organizational policy, measures, and metrics
• Strong understanding of systems and processes - both overall purpose and landscape, as well as how to navigate and affect change
• Mastery of productivity and collaboration tools, including MS Office (PowerPoint, Outlook, Excel, Teams)
• High motivation, good work ethic, maturity and personal initiative

Perks & Benefits:
ZS offers a comprehensive total rewards package including health and well-being, financial planning, annual leave, personal growth and professional development. Our robust skills development programs, multiple career progression options and internal mobility paths and collaborative culture empowers you to thrive as an individual and global team member.
We are committed to giving our employees a flexible and connected way of working. A flexible and connected ZS allows us to combine work from home and on-site presence at clients/ZS offices for the majority of our week. The magic of ZS culture and innovation thrives in both planned and spontaneous face-to-face connections.
Travel:
Travel is a requirement at ZS for client facing ZSers; business needs of your project and client are the priority. While some projects may be local, all client-facing ZSers should be prepared to travel as needed. Travel provides opportunities to strengthen client relationships, gain diverse experiences, and enhance professional growth by working in different environments and cultures.
Considering applying?
At ZS, we honor the visible and invisible elements of our identities, personal experiences, and belief systems-the ones that comprise us as individuals, shape who we are, and make us unique. We believe your personal interests, identities, and desire to learn are integral to your success here. We are committed to building a team that reflects a broad variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences. Learn more about our inclusion and belonging efforts and the networks ZS supports to assist our ZSers in cultivating community spaces and obtaining the resources they need to thrive.
If you're eager to grow, contribute, and bring your unique self to our work, we encourage you to apply.
ZS is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal employment and advancement opportunities without regard to any class protected by applicable law.
To complete your application:
Candidates must possess or be able to obtain work authorization for their intended country of employment.An on-line application, including a full set of transcripts (official or unofficial), is required to be considered.
NO AGENCY CALLS, PLEASE.
Find Out More At:
www.zs.com