Jon Caforio
National Leader, Consulting Strategic Enablement
McGladrey
Excellence in Technology
Jon Caforio went to college to be a teacher. Instead, he graduated with a degree in Mathematics and joined the Marketing Department of a midmarket manufacturing company doing market research and competitive assessment work. Soon after, he made the career switch to technology consulting. The rest, as they say, is history.
Today, he's the National Leader for McGladrey's Consulting Strategic Enablement where he's overseen a practice that's been incredibly successful with a 25 percent growth rate. And as an mathematician would attest, that's statistically significant. "That type of growth is an indicator of our value and relevance in marketplace," he says. "We can't grow when our services don't add value to our client's bottom line. I'm proud that our consultants have this enabling focus."
Growth aside, the Technology Consulting practice is now more connected internally by operating in a national capability and offering model with intentional strategic focus, he says. It's no wonder that co-workers describe him as ambassador between business, technology and vendor organizations, successfully identifying and translating business requirements into valuable technology investments.
"I feel the greatest satisfaction when I see our clients succeeding and our people developing into the leaders of tomorrow," he says. "In both cases, this requires active one-on-one relationship development and sometimes, some tough love."
Caforio says one of the keys to his success is his "expressive side" that has served him well in his career. "I enjoy creating a structure for success, communicating that vision and optimizing the operation."
Rather unusual for a former math major, he admits. "In the background is my incredibly strong and independent wife. She enables me to serve my clients, my team and my partners by taking care of everything on the home front, which includes our three children.
One 'not so secret' to success in this business is the strong support of your family."
It all adds up to an awful lot of success—and a new challenge for Caforio as he becomes National Leader, Consulting Strategic Enablement for McGladrey. "In this new role, I'll be spearheading our efforts to bring our over 1,000-person strong financial, risk, technology and management consulting expertise deeper into strategic industries, continuing to grow the McGladrey Delivery Center in India and managing our strategic partnerships."
Q&A: What motivates you to excel?
"This is a difficult question… I enjoy the act of helping others. There is an intrinsic motivation that is more than being a trusted advisor, it is also being a true resource for your client— enabling them to achieve their objectives. There is also the drive to make sure that the investments that were made in me throughout my life and career bear fruit. I have had family, teachers and mentors over the years that have invested valuable time and energy developing my skills and abilities. I owe them a debt of both gratitude and accomplishment."
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