Senior Consultant – Strategic Initiatives

About Cherry Bekaert
Cherry Bekaert is the fastest-growing accounting and advisory firm in the United States. We are evolving from a regional tax and audit services provider into a national firm that advises CFOs of mid-market organizations on how to modernize and operate their finance functions effectively. We have sharpened our enterprise strategy and are building strategy and change management capabilities to translate that strategy into measurable results.
Key Responsibilities
Lead Strategic Initiatives
Translate enterprise and business priorities into clearly defined initiatives, including objectives, scope, outcomes, success measures, workstreams, milestones, and governance.
Structure complex or ambiguous business questions, develop hypotheses, gather and synthesize information, and conduct qualitative and quantitative analysis.
Develop high-quality insights, recommendations, and executive-ready content for project teams, sponsors, steering committees, and senior leaders.
Identify gaps, challenge assumptions constructively, connect themes across workstreams, and recommend practical next steps.
Balance near-term execution with scalable and sustainable solutions that support long-term strategy.
Manage Projects and Drive Momentum
Create and manage integrated workplans, milestones, dependencies, risks, issues, decisions, and action items.
Prepare and facilitate working sessions, workstream meetings, steering committee meetings, and executive updates.
Drive follow-through and accountability across teams without relying on formal authority, escalating issues and decisions appropriately.
Maintain a clear fact base and concise project narrative covering progress, trade-offs, risks, decisions required, and recommended actions.
Coordinate cross-functional resources and help remove implementation barriers.
Support India and Global Strategy
Partner with India-based leaders and teams to adapt and implement strategic priorities while remaining aligned with enterprise direction.
Contribute analysis, perspectives, and recommendations to the development and evolution of Cherry Bekaert's global strategy.
Connect India-based stakeholders with the U.S.-based Strategy team to promote shared context, consistent standards, and effective two-way communication.
Build local credibility and relationships while operating as an integrated member of the broader Strategy function.
Remain flexible to support U.S.-based and other global projects as priorities and capacity needs change.
Enable Adoption and Sustainable Change
Identify stakeholders and end users whose input, sponsorship, or behavior change is critical to success.
Design engagement, communication, and change approaches that build understanding, ownership, and adoption.
Incorporate stakeholder feedback and user needs into solution design without losing strategic focus or momentum.
Help establish repeatable capabilities, operating practices, processes, and governance that endure beyond the project.
Required Qualifications and Experience
Master of Business Administration (MBA) from a recognized institution is mandatory.
Minimum of three years of relevant manager-level or equivalent experience.
Manager-level experience in at least two of the following areas: strategic initiative implementation; strategic consulting; merger or acquisition integration; corporate strategy and strategic planning; or complex cross-functional transformation.
Demonstrated experience working effectively with U.S.-based colleagues or stakeholders in a mid-sized or large organization.
Strong qualitative and quantitative analytical capabilities, including using data to define problems, design solutions, and support decisions.
Excellent written, verbal, and visual communication skills, including the ability to create executive-ready PowerPoint presentations.
Ability to work independently as the primary India-based member of the Strategy team while staying closely connected to the broader team.
Preferred Experience
Experience in professional services is strongly preferred.
Experience leading complex work in a matrixed, multi-geography organization.
Experience with stakeholder engagement, user-centered design, and change management.
Skills and Capabilities
Business acumen, intellectual curiosity, critical thinking, and structured problem-solving.
Strategic thinking combined with hands-on project and process management.
Executive communication, meeting facilitation, governance, risk management, and decision management.
Ability to influence and drive accountability across functions, levels, cultures, and geographies.
High emotional intelligence and the ability to earn trust and collaborate effectively.
Ability to use Microsoft Copilot, Claude, and other approved AI tools creatively and responsibly, with strong judgment and quality control.

Work arrangement
No