Consulting Engagement Lead Defense

Consulting Engagement Lead -- Defense

Toffler Associates is a future-focused strategic advisory firm that works with both government and commercial clients. Our Future Proof® business consulting approach makes us unique in the industry, helping global leaders understand how future shifts impact current decisions and empowering them to take advantage of opportunities, manage risk, and create value.

Our firm is seeking a Consulting Engagement Lead to join our growing team. This person will be working on strategic client projects, including those across the Department of War. In this role, you will oversee project planning, resource management, stakeholder engagement, and ensure the successful delivery of complex solutions. Additionally, you provide strategic insights that will contribute to business development initiatives.

The expansion of client relationships and identification of new opportunities in your client mission area is critical to success in this role. With expertise in strategic analysis and risk planning, this person will manage project financials, budgeting, and forecasting, ensuring high-quality outputs that drive client success and organizational impact.

Your impact will include:

• Providing strategic insights that will contribute to business development initiatives
• Expanding client relationships and identifying new opportunities
• An expertise in analysis, strategy development and implementation, and risk planning
• Ensuring high-quality outputs that drive client success and organizational impact
• Experience developing robust project plans and continuously managing project financials, budgeting, and forecasting
• Strong acumen in scanning the broader organization, connecting dots across stakeholders, and identifying opportunities the client may not see

You'll arrive equipped with:

• 5+ years of management consulting experience, including executive-level client engagement and leadership of high-performing teams
• Competent in AI tools (Copilot, ChatGPT, Gemini) and able to use AI to accelerate analysis, workflows, prototypes, and deliverables
• Must reside in or be willing to commute regularly within the Washington, DC metropolitan area; hybrid work environment anticipated, to include on-site and virtual locations
• U.S. citizenship (the nature of our work with the federal government limits our hiring to U.S. citizens)
• Ability to obtain and maintain up to a top-secret security clearance
• Bachelor's degree

Preferred Qualifications:

• Deep knowledge of the Defense Industrial Base, actors, issues, and leading commercial perspective to drive a unique point of view
• Strategic thinker with strong systems thinking and first principles of reasoning
• Able to translate strategy to execution and own execution (work cross-functionally and across seniority levels within a client space to drive change, keeping relationships and culture in mind)
• Proven ability to bring structure to ambiguous and open-ended problems
• Strong executive presence with the ability to command a room and engage senior clients
• Confident facilitator able to guide discussions, manage conflict, and drive alignment
• Strong storyteller capable of creating compelling narratives, insights, and recommendations
• Relationship builder with strong client service orientation
• Strong analytical skills; comfortable with both quantitative and qualitative data
• Highly organized; able to manage multiple work streams, deliverables, and internal/external expectations; can manage up
• Experience with managing complex team structures and project budgets
• Knowledge of key consulting frameworks and concepts (Mento Pyramid, MECE, Choice Cascade, 7S, Growth Share)
• Previous experience in a defense or commercial consulting firm
• Experience serving or working in a large corporate environment, including familiarity with strategy development and execution, organizational change, and processes
• Experience conducting qualitative and quantitative data analytics

Technical

Skills:

• Strong PPT and Excel skills
• Skilled in Microsoft Power Platform (e.g., PowerBI, Power Automate, SharePoint)

Growth Expectations:

• Able to identify, frame, and scope problems across all consulting disciplines: strategy, operations, human capital, security and resilience, technology and innovation readiness
• Confident engaging new people and building relationships across all levels
• Creative in identifying pathways into organizations, buyers, and influencers
• Comfortable shaping solution options and articulating value drivers
• Understanding of the full sales lifecycle and able to assist in developing proposals, estimates, and statements of work

We'll equip you with:

• A flexible, agile, and employee-driven work place that will enable you to thrive as a well-balanced professional
• A fundamentally collaborative team that places a premium on transparent leadership and diversity of experience and thought
• A community of lifelong learners dedicated to engaging in rewarding and meaningful work
• A culture committed to interpersonal connection that will encourage you to leverage your…