The 2023 Women Leaders in Consulting: Julia Hoina

Julia Hoina is an Associate Principal with a diverse background and particular expertise in commercial market access and government pricing and reimbursement strategy. She has worked across a breadth of indications, most notably oncology, ophthalmology and rare diseases, and is particularly knowledgeable about medical benefit products.

Prior to joining SciVida, Julia was a Consultant in the Life Sciences & health care division of Deloitte. There, she assisted numerous pharmaceutical clients with needs spanning product launch, market opportunity assessment, value-based payment model appraisal, commercial and government contracting, and modeling complex market and payer environments. Prior to Deloitte, Julia held roles at PRA Health Sciences, MATI and CapitalOne, largely focused on proposals and contracting, data visualization, and advanced modeling and analytics. Julia holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE) degree in mechanical engineering from Duke University and a Master of Science in Nutrition from Meredith College.

What do you consider your greatest personal or professional achievement?

My greatest achievement is quite personal. My brother, Colin, was an engineer by trade but an avid golfer by choice. He used to joke with my sister and me that one day he would save up enough money to quit his 9-to-5 and become a landscape maintenance manager for one of his favorite clubs because he would get as many free rounds as he could muster. He loved golf so much that even in the dead of winter in upstate New York, you could find him out on the course putting around in snow drifts, bundled up in just enough layers to keep warm but not so much that it would mess with his swing.

In 2019, Colin was in a fatal motorcycle accident. After his passing, my sister and I decided that the most appropriate way to honor his life would be through a golf tournament where individuals who knew of or went to the same club as Colin could come together, celebrate his life, and donate to The First Tee, an organization whose mission is not only to provide youth the opportunity to learn and play golf but also to develop traits such as honesty, integrity, courtesy, sportsmanship and respect. Honoring Colin by organizing this tournament has proven to be one of the most rewarding endeavors I have embarked on in my life thus far.

What's the best advice—consulting or otherwise—you've ever received?

A mentor early in my career once sat me down and said, "Julia, you're obviously very bright, but you need to move slower.

Why might this be important in consulting? First, moving slower allows you the mental bandwidth to think through and anticipate the next question your client will need answered. Slowing down allows us time to think about the problem at hand and to develop well-informed and comprehensive perspectives about the work you are performing. And second, being able to anticipate the needs of your clients will foster trust that can empower you to help them solve the most complex problems their business is facing. So often in consulting there is an urgency to execute quickly but this can come at the expense of quality. Ultimately, small mistakes can slowly erode professional credibility and lead to client dissatisfaction.

Slowing down also pays dividends outside of the workplace. As a new mom, I would be remiss if I didn't emphasize that taking the time to slow down and be present in my personal life makes me the best version of myself. I am fortunate to work with individuals that are invested in me professionally but also support me in taking time to be with my family.

What advice would you give to a female consultant just beginning her career?

Professionally, it is so easy to compare yourself to others; my advice would be "try not to." Management consulting is a field composed of high-performing individuals. Your path is going to be uniquely yours. Instead of focusing on the external, I would encourage you to focus on what you can do to reach your personal and professional goals. Do you want to learn a new skill? If so, what can you do to invest in your personal development? Are your goals contingent on increased variety in project work or does reaching your goals require bigger changes such as exploring opportunities outside of your firm? Once you have identified your professional goals, you will find that traveling the path to get there becomes easier, and comparing yourself to the progress that other individuals are making becomes less relevant.

Personally, it is incredibly important to set and maintain boundaries around work-life balance. Management consulting can be intense; it's imperative not to sacrifice your sanity for a client or project. Working at a firm that supports taking paid time off and encourages individuals to truly unplug during that time is critical. If your firm doesn't support your mental health, it will impact how engaged you are with colleagues and contribute to negative culture within the organization.

What does this recognition mean to you?

Management consulting is predominantly male, as such this recognition is a validation that opportunities exist for women in consulting to be highly successful in both work and life. Ultimately, I'm more than a management consultant at the end of the day; I'm a mom, a wife, a sister, a daughter, a book club member, a volunteer for my local government, an artist and a pickleball player (to name only a handful of my roles). This recognition underscores that my firm supports me both personally and professionally and has a vested interest in my success as well as the success of other women I have the pleasure to call my colleagues.