Associate Consultant - K-12 Education

Associate Consultant - K-12 Education

Practice: Management Consulting Center of Excellence (CoE) | K-12 Education

FLSA Status: Exempt

Location: Remote-based; preferred New York City, Salt Lake City, Seattle, Dallas or Washington, D.C.

Cicero-MGT is a premier management consulting firm focused on implementing data-driven strategies for a broad mix of private, public, and social sector organizations. We use data and experience to generate insights, create actionable strategies, and drive transformation with an overarching purpose of helping people create and continuously deliver extraordinary results.

Our K-12 Education practice is dedicated to dramatically improving learning and life outcomes for all children. We believe that great public schools and high-quality education have the potential to be life-changing, especially for students in underserved communities. We partner with leaders in government, philanthropy, and other education organizations and draw on deep experience in the education space to solve complex problems facing public schools and communities. We deliver customized services and products — including data, finance, and instructional tools — from initial design through the last step of execution.

About This Role: A Career Pathway Model

This position is part of a pilot career pathway model designed to provide new Associate Consultants with a passion for education and eagerness to gain exposure to broader management consulting with focused, foundational training and broad exposure to multiple practice areas across the firm.

Year 1 - K-12 Foundation: In this role, you will be part of the Management Consulting Center of Excellence (CoE), Cicero-MGT's internal hub for developing consulting capabilities across practices. As a CoE member, you will receive the same training and professional development opportunities as other CoE consultants while specializing in K-12 projects. This will allow you to build deep expertise in education consulting while participating in CoE-wide training, professional development, and community. This foundational year is designed to develop your skills in a mission-driven, project-rich environment with strong coaching and mentorship.

Year 2+ - CoE Exposure & Specialization: In your second year, you will have the opportunity to cycle onto a wider set of projects across practice areas, helping you broaden your consulting experience, deepen your business acumen, and explore potential areas of specialization.

This structure is intended to give you the best of both worlds: the depth of focused, education-sector training and the breadth of a diversified management consulting career. The CoE model ensures efficient resource planning — the right people are staffed on the right projects at the right time — maximizing your potential and aligning work with your skills and interests.

What You'll Do

As an Associate Consultant, you will be deeply involved in every aspect of the consulting process — leading project teams, engaging directly with clients, and driving strategic recommendations. This is a great pathway for former educators and administrators looking to move into management consulting.

Responsibilities include:

• Lead small teams of consultants and analysts in research, analysis, and synthesis of findings that define our strategic recommendations
• Work closely with Engagement Managers and senior leaders to guide teams through complex projects such as organizational transformation, strategic development and implementation, market research and assessments, and education-sector engagements
• Plan, execute, and adapt projects in dynamic environments, incorporating input from multiple stakeholders and managing competing priorities
• Engage directly with clients and partners to understand their needs, build strong relationships, and implement original, creative solutions
• Conduct and oversee both qualitative and quantitative analyses, breaking down complex findings into actionable insights for variable audiences
• Communicate efficiently and effectively — both in writing and verbally — translating data and research into compelling narratives for clients and internal teams
• Manage and mentor consultants and analysts, leading their contributions to project deliverables and providing regular feedback on work quality and professional development
• Support and manage work plans, project timelines, budgets, and resource allocation across multiple concurrent engagements
• Develop knowledge of partner issues, needs, and context, and maintain awareness of market trends, competitive landscape, and education policy developments
• Manage diverse and impactful internal initiatives that contribute to firm-wide growth and culture
• Make frequent use of Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Google Sheets, and other project management tools

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required, with a strong academic background
• 3–7 years of full-time, post-graduate professional experience required (strong preference for education, management/strategy consulting, public sector, or similarly fast-paced, analytical environments)
• 2+ years of experience managing and leading people, including providing coaching, feedback, and professional development support
• Demonstrated track record of exceeding goals and delivering high-quality work in client-facing roles
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook)
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with an ability to share and synthesize knowledge for diverse audiences
• Ability to think independently while meaningfully collaborating with teams
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and priorities simultaneously
• Proven ability to build and maintain strong client relationships and manage stakeholder expectations
• Commitment to our organizational mission and fostering a culture of inclusion in the workplace
• An ability to navigate ambiguity comfortably, think strategically, and anticipate future opportunities and challenges
• An ability to connect with people both on an individual level and in groups
• A sense of humor and ability to work in a dynamic environment
• Ability to travel depending on client needs

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced graduate degree (MBA, MPA, MPP, etc.) preferred but not required
• Experience in management/strategy consulting, education, public sector, nonprofits, or similar environments
• Experience with data analysis, financial modeling, or market research
• Familiarity with data visualization and presentation best practices
• Experience with R, Python, or other data analysis tools/applications
• A passion for education and improving outcomes for students in underserved communities
• Exceptional ambition and leadership skills in academic, professional, or extracurricular settings

Skills That Will Help You Succeed

There is no single skill set that best prepares you for a fulfilling career at Cicero-MGT, but the following are incredibly useful in our work:

• Analytical thinking and structured problem-solving
• Data analysis, visualization, and interpretation
• Professional communication and storytelling
• Project planning and time management
• People management and team leadership
• Collaboration and cross-functional teamwork
• Attention to detail and quality control
• Focus group facilitation and in-depth interviews
• Survey creation, fielding, and analysis
• Secondary research
• Proposal writing

Additional Information

NOTE: We currently do not accept candidates that require sponsorship, nor are we able to provide sponsorship opportunities to candidates.