The 2022 Top Consultants: Rhonda Hiatt

Rhonda Hiatt has been at Clear M&C Saatchi for over seven years, where she was brought in to establish the retail and shopper offer delivering growth strategies for clients including Abbott, Ashley Furniture, Disney, Fruit of the Loom, Lexus & Toyota, Nautica, Oxo, Philips, Reckitt and SharkNinja. During her time at Clear, she expanded into the Chief Strategy Officer role responsible for the growth strategy and trajectory for Clear's six offices globally.

Before joining Clear, Rhonda was Head of Brand Strategy, Analytics, and Shopper Sciences for Interbrand Design Forum, where she focused specifically on retail and CPG clients.

Rhonda previously taught Consumer Behavior in the MBA program as an adjunct professor at the University of Dayton, and in 2018 she was recognized for the 40 Under 40 by Design Retail for her contributions to the retail industry.

What has motivated you to excel over the course of your career?

Three people have been the driving force behind my career: First, my Great Aunt Alice. She was born in the 1920s in a small town – the oldest of seven children – and she was determined to break the mold. She went on to do exactly that: she become the very first woman in management at Ohio Bell Company. As a single woman, she never let societal norms hold her back from traveling all over the world and creating her own destiny. Second, my dad. He grew up very poor and worked incredibly hard to make sure that our family had what we needed. He always encouraged me to pursue any path I wanted and instilled the confidence in me that hard work and commitment would help me along the way.

Finally, my daughter, Lauren Alice. While this recognition would be a true honor, the greatest honor as a parent is your child's recognition. At just 9 years old, I see the dreams in her eyes. I see the opportunity for her to achieve so much more than I have. And I see my own responsibility to continue being part of the community charting a path for our children without the inequities we have experienced in our careers. I feel the weight and importance of this responsibility to ensure they are passed a torch for a more prosperous road ahead; this lights a fire in me to keep building and pushing the boundaries that still exist for women in this industry.

What has been the biggest factor in your success so far?

Two things – hard work and being a good human. I always tell the students I speak to and the more junior members of our team to remember this: you never know who might be your client or your boss someday. I have certainly encountered people who did not recognize this – particularly earlier in my career. At the end of the day, we are paid to deliver amazing solutions that lead to growth, and there are a lot of smart people in consulting who can do that. I have many clients that I have been working with for over 15 years because aside from doing great work together, we also have a great relationship. I even have several clients who at one time worked in my team! It is so important to cultivate those relationships both internally and externally and to lead collaboratively, consistently, conscientiously and compassionately.

What do you enjoy most about your career in the consulting industry?

The most exciting thing about working in consulting in my opinion is the opportunity to work across so many different brands and businesses – all filled with incredible people.

I have been fortunate enough to travel the world consulting with some of the biggest global brands, from consumer goods to fashion to automotive to financial services. The "big picture" is infinitely bigger when you get to see so many different perspectives from the inside out. It is this front row seat view that brings the most value to my clients and has afforded me such rich experiences and broad perspectives.

There is no better feeling than seeing your work drive impact – be it a client getting that big promotion they wanted, an innovation you've helped steer through approval creating real change and ripple effects for a brand, or a consumer finally getting the product they needed.

Finally, all of this is elevated by getting to work with some of the most brilliant people in the business. I count myself incredibly lucky to work in this field.

What is your proudest achievement to date?

There are a lot of things I could say here – I have launched several brands at huge global events speaking in front of crowds of thousands. I have sat across the table from CEOs and Boards of Directors for behemoth brands that I first heard about or engaged with growing up and never dreamed of advising. But I have to say that my proudest career achievement to date is the team we have built over the last 7+ years at Clear M&C Saatchi. While we are a "smaller" consultancy, we go up against the biggest names in the space all the time – and we win. Why? We have a tenacious team of ambitious, super-smart, and wildly creative people who care deeply about our clients, our work and each other: an unstoppable blend that allows us to punch way above our weight. I could not be prouder of what we have created together or more grateful to work alongside them.

What's the best advice you've ever been given?

An old classic: "Where there's a will there's a way." I have encountered many obstacles in my career – including being told that I couldn't be promoted because I was pregnant and that my lack of an Ivy League education would prevent me from ever reaching the top ranks of an organization. I never let any of these things stand in my way. I have pushed forward with conviction and confidence, and this simple but powerful proverb has stuck with me and given me the will to succeed when I hit a roadblock.

What does this recognition mean to you?

For 16 years I have immersed myself in countless businesses, worked late nights and weekends, studied up on topics I had no idea even existed, been through days of travel delays, the works. Do I regret any of it? No. I absolutely love what I do. If I won the lottery tomorrow, I would still want to do this job.

Being recognized in this way would not only be a true honor, but it would also be a vote of confidence for fellow ambitious women who have pushed their way through this industry against the odds and delivered tangible value to clients, colleagues and consumers.

It would be a privilege to receive an accolade that sends such a powerful message about what it means to lead in client services and build working relationships that endure through years and career moves.