I, Brandon Milton, am a Senior Consultant in BerryDunn's Government Consulting Group. What on earth does that mean? The biggest learning curve when I joined the firm was how exactly to explain what I do at a dinner party, holiday party, or family reunion. It's a pretty normal question and most people have normal answers: lawyer, teacher, banker. No one is looking for a long-winded answer or a mouth full of acronyms. Below are some real examples of conversations that I've had after being asked the question: "What do you do?"

Answer 1:

Me: "I work at BerryDunn in Portland."

Guest: "Oh!" They exclaim with delight, "I know them! So you are what, a CPA or something?"

Me: "No, it is an accounting firm but they also have a Government Consulting Group, which is where I work." I can see how this could happen. BerryDunn started as an accounting firm back in the 70s, and even though the consulting group within BerryDunn is growing at an impressive rate, most people still know us as a tax and audit firm.

Answer 2:

Me: "I'm an IT consultant." This is a red herring. I do not recommend using the letters "I-T" unless you actually develop software or fix computer hardware.

Guest: "So you're the guy I call when my computer crashes or I accidentally delete an email from my boss?"

Me: "Not even close."

Answer 3:

Me: "I'm a government consultant."

Guest: "So you work on political campaigns?"

Me: "No. I'm a government consultant, not a political consultant."

Guest: "You work for the government?"

Me: "Not exactly. Well, sort of. We have three teams: Medicaid, State, and Local. I work on the Medicaid team."

Guest: "Oh, MaineCare! So you work in Augusta?"

Me: "No, my project is in West Virginia."

Guest: "West Virginia?!?!?! Why West Virginia?"

Me: "Because West Virginia is home to a relatively new office for BerryDunn."

Answer 4:

Me: "I'm a project manager."

Guest: "What kind of projects?"

Me: "Right now, I'm overseeing the design, development, and implementation of a data warehouse and decision support system for the State of West Virginia's Medicaid program." Unless they have experience with Medicaid or work for a vendor who develops data warehouses, the conversation quickly shifts back to sports or the weather.

The bottom line is that although it is difficult to explain what I do, I love my job. Even if I didn't grow up saying that I want to be an IT/Management/Government consultant when I get out of school, this line of work is a perfect fit for me. I came to BerryDunn after earning an MBA from the University of New Hampshire. Before that I worked for U.S. Senator Susan Collins in Washington, D.C. I have found that my experience in government and my education in business set me up well for this job. My favorite answer when I get asked the age old question, "What do you do?" is...

Answer 5:

Me: "I help government offices run more efficiently."

Guest: "Well, good. We all know they need that!"

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.