12. North Highland

Headquarters: Atlanta Number of Billable Consultants: 1,156 Client Industries Served: Financial Services, Public Sector, Media, Entertainment & Telecom, Healthcare, Retail/CPG, Transportation, Hospitality & Leisure, Energy & Utilities, Life Sciences  Consulting Service Lines: Strategy, Operations, HR, IT, Finance, Marketing 

Perennial powerhouse North Highland is back among the Best Firms to Work For this year, and CEO and Chairman of the Board Dan Reardon says it's not just about making the list but about gaining recognition for the firms' meaningful work and enviable culture. 

"Employees feel proud to work for a firm on Consulting magazine's list, and our clients notice too," Reardon says. "It's a testament to our values, reflects our commitment to earning our stripes every day, and to continuously evolve to deliver value." 

Over the past couple of years, Reardon says the firm has implemented a new operating model. "This was not easy, but our resilience helped push North Highland through the challenges and transform into a new firm—a firm that is recognized today as a Best Firm to Work For," he says. "But we're not stopping there. We're on a new course that we're excited about—we will continue to work hard to deliver business results that will create more short-term and long-term success. The firm is growing and uncovering new opportunities daily."

As a result, Reardon says North Highland's employees are engaged, passionate and excited about what's ahead. The firm recently had its highest engagement score to date on its employee survey, so he says he knows people are committed and invested in the future of the firm. "We still have areas for improvement, but we're valuing progress over perfection and together taking an agile approach to change," he says. "Employees are engaged in the process, and we're tapping that energy to create a culture where everyone can reach their full potential."

Ask Reardon about his goals and he'll reiterate that it's all about people. "Internally, we want to attract, retain, and challenge our wonderful employee-owners," he says. "For clients, it's to continue to exceed expectations and help them create positive change and transform their businesses. And, maintain our momentum—we've had a strong 2019 and we want to accelerate that even more heading into 2020." 

Reardon says whenever he travels to meet with the firm's teams (and with clients), he sees North Highlanders collaborating more effectively with each other, creating industry-leading solutions that drive results and action, and bringing their enthusiasm and passion to work every day. "We are harnessing the power of our leading industry recognitions in areas like change management, customer experience, and people-centric transformation, to drive forward and partner with clients in new and exciting ways," he says.  

What's unique about your firm?

Reardon: We have a people-first mentality. Everything we do begins and ends with people—we're building an enviable culture that celebrates personality and team spirit, allowing North Highlanders to grow through their choices and make their mark. We value different perspectives as opportunities to challenge convention, fostering a team that is powerfully connected by our shared vision and a maker's mentality. We bring together great minds to create positive changes and help transform business. It's why consultants stay at North Highland. It's also why our clients say that we're different to work with than other firms. We are true partners who care about becoming part of our clients' team, crafting unique actionable solutions, and seeing things through, helping clients build their capability and equipping them for sustainable success.

NOT FOR REPRINT

© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.