How BWAccelerate Builds Better Managers

Philip

Welcome to Inside BWA — a short series taking you behind the scenes of the BW Accelerate program. I’m one of your hosts, Philip, and today Sonia and I are talking about the results of BWA. Not in theory, but in practice. We're pulling some quotes from conversations with leaders at Bates White about what it looks like to grow as a manager here, and why it matters now.

Sonia

And we’re going to let the people who’ve been through it answer that question. Because the best case for BWAccelerate isn't Philip or I making it, but your peers and colleagues.

Philip

Let’s start with context. There’s a well-known flaw in leadership in which someone masters the senior consultant skill set, gets promoted to manager, and — that’s it. They’re expected to figure out how to lead people on their own.

Sonia

Which doesn’t work. Because human's are messy sometimes.

Philip

Right. And a senior leader at Bates White put it well. He said: “We’ve been primarily promoting based on technical expertise. You’ve mastered the senior economist skill set, so you get promoted. But after that, you’re not always given the training and support to learn how to effectively manage people. You’re asked to figure it out.”

Sonia

This isn't a Bates White problem specifically — but it is a solvable one. Which is why we created B W Accelerate

Philip

So what does change? We asked that same senior leader what he observes in the managers he works with since they started the program. And what he said wasn’t abstract.

Sonia

What did he say?

Philip

He said he sees more self-reflection. Managers thinking through, on their own, how to position a strong performer. How to have a difficult conversation with someone who’s struggling. When to intervene and how. He called it “more awareness of how to make choices — and the impact of those choices on the team and the project work overall.”

Sonia

That's great, because that’s a meaningful shift. Not just someone reciting a framework. They're actually starting to think differently.

Philip

Yes, and he was direct about why. He said quote: “It’s important to remember that being a better leader is a process. You’re shaped by your experiences. But you also have to take the time to step back and reflect. And you have to learn from the experiences your peers have had — because your projects won’t give you every situation. Theirs might.”

Sonia

Ah okay so that’s the peer-learning piece. Which, if you’ve been in a session, you know is real.

Philip

Mhmm, so let’s go to the participants. These quotes come directly from a group of people talking about what the program has meant to them.

Sonia

Oh, good, can you start with the one that stuck with me?

Philip

Yes, here it is. “For me, the experiences I get — it almost feels like a work therapy session. This is one place I can come and talk about a common issue that most people face, and we talk amongst each other and figure a way out.”

Sonia

Work therapy. I love that. Because there’s no other place at work where that conversation is designed to happen.

Philip

Right. And that connects to something else people mentioned a lot: the cohort itself. One person said, “I feel pretty bonded with our cohort as a group. Even if it’s just once a month, having that time to share these experiences as managers is different from earlier in your career.” And someone else added: “We bonded as a cohort, but it also opened up a door with people I’d never worked with. If I’m in a situation now, I can reach out.”

Sonia

So it’s building cross-firm relationships that wouldn’t otherwise exist. That’s useful well beyond the program itself.

Philip

One more that really landed: Quote “The transition from senior consultant to manager has been the hardest one — but the program has been that support system that you need.” Full stop.

Sonia

Okay, but let’s talk about the practical side. Because at Bates White, we're analytical, practical. We want to know: is this actually useful, or is it just good feelings?

Philip

Fair. Here’s what people said about the frameworks and tools. Quote: “The frameworks have been the most helpful — here’s how I can think about this thing I either knew I was doing or didn’t know and should have. The difficult conversations one was really helpful. The feedback piece — give one piece of feedback at a time and make it actionable. I find myself referencing those things a lot. And sharing them with my own direct reports.”

Sonia

So they’re passing it on. That’s the multiplier effect.

Philip

Right, And this one speaks to why the content works here specifically: quote “What I’ve valued is how Bates White–specific the trainings have been. Even when we’re learning a framework, the language in the sessions is Bates White terminology, specific to our work. That makes it much easier to connect the concepts to what we do and actually implement them.”

Sonia

So, not a generic leadership program.

Philip

Not at all, and one more on that: “The timing of a lot of the sessions — they’re timed around things that are happening at Bates White. It does a really good job making things topical so you can put them into practice right away.”

Sonia

Thanks, Phillip. That's all really helpful. So let’s bring it home. Why does this matter enough to prioritize right now, when everyone is busy?

Philip

The senior leader we spoke with was pretty direct about it. He said: “Taking the time to step back, even when you’re busy — especially when you’re busy — gives you the space to grow. Your future self will recognize that these skills are important. More so than some of the things you’re perfecting today in your client work.”

Sonia

More of a marathon than a sprint.

Philip

Exactly. Someone said it simply: “There’s a lot of intentionality behind what we’re talking about, and the program can change and grow.”

Sonia

We’ll leave it there. If you’re in the program, you already know. And if you’re not yet — this is what you’re building toward.

Philip

Thanks for listening to Inside BWA. We’ll see you in the next one.