Entry-level Positions for Aspiring Senior Managers Organizational Development
Elizabeth, a Senior Manager in Organizational Development, describes two entry-level pathways to a similar career: starting in consulting, where "you are really thrown into it," gaining diverse experience before transitioning internally; or beginning in entry-level HR roles, such as learning and development or people analytics, then developing expertise to move into strategy.
Organizational Development, Human Resources, Consulting, Strategic Planning, People Analytics
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Elizabeth DeVeny
Sr Manager, Org. Development
Global Entertainment Company
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
Hult Intl Business School, Master's International Business
Communications
Arts, Entertainment & Media
Human Resources (HR)
Worked 20+ Hours in School, LGBTQ
Video Highlights
1. Two common career paths to becoming a Senior Manager of Organizational Development are: 1) starting in consulting (e.g., human capital or organizational transformation consulting) and transitioning internally, and 2) beginning in entry-level HR roles (e.g., HRBP, Learning & Development, or People Analytics) and developing expertise to move into strategy.
2. Consulting offers diverse project experience across industries and exposure to smart people, acting as a strong foundation for internal strategy roles.
3. Entry-level HR positions, such as analyst roles in HRBP, L&D, or People Analytics, provide a path to develop expertise and transition into internal strategy roles, although direct entry-level strategy roles are less common.
Transcript
What entry-level positions are there in this field that an undergraduate college student might consider?
I think there are really two pathways if you want to be where I am. The first is to do what I did: go to a consulting firm and find their human capital or org transformation department. They name it all sorts of ways.
Start with internships and become an analyst. Go through that path. With it, you get the amazing experience of consulting, which they say is like the best business school in the world. You're really thrown into it.
You have the opportunity to do many different projects in various industries. Normally, you can sample the buffet of companies out there and work with really smart people. That's a pretty standard path.
Eventually, if you want to transition to an internal team, you can find a company with internal strategic consulting roles and make the switch.
The other area I've seen people go through to do the HR strategy work that I do is to start with more entry-level HR positions. Then, during their time there, they find opportunities to move into the strategy space.
This could be by finding an HRBP team with entry-level analyst roles, or other parts of the HR function. For instance, learning and development teams often have training developer positions.
Sometimes, analytics teams, like people analytics teams, have analysts who analyze survey data and provide recommendations. These are great ways to find a company you love and start on the path into the strategy world.
Internal strategy roles don't tend to have immediate entry-level positions. You usually need to grow your expertise, either in consulting methods or the HR space, before you're ready to make the jump into an internal strategy team that does that high-level advisory work.