Senior Associate, Implementation

About McChrystal Group
McChrystal Group is a leadership and management consulting firm that partners with executive teams to solve their most complex performance and coordination challenges. Founded in 2011 by General (Ret.) Stanley McChrystal, we help organizations operate with the speed, alignment, and cohesion required to succeed in dynamic environments.

Our work is rooted in the Team of Teams framework - a leadership system developed from General McChrystal's transformation of the Joint Special Operations Command. We believe that enduring performance depends not just on strategy, but on how effectively leaders, teams, and systems work together under pressure.

McChrystal Group consultants work on small, high-impact teams tackling challenges that matter. You'll work shoulder to shoulder with senior executives, world-class advisors, and teammates who take pride in the quality, integrity, and purpose of their work. The pace is demanding, the problems are complex, and the impact is tangible. People join McChrystal Group because they want to grow as leaders and do work that makes a difference.

Role Overview
The Senior Associate is a core member of McChrystal Group's Implementation Practice, the team that partners with senior executives to lead long-term, transformational engagements that blend leadership advisory, process improvement, and the design of systems that enable coordinated performance at scale. Implementation teams help clients translate strategy into action by building the capabilities that sustain results long after our engagement ends.

As a Senior Associate, you will own full workstreams, guide clients through complex change, and ensure delivery excellence from diagnosis through execution. You'll operate in small, cross-functional teams alongside senior leaders (both within McChrystal Group and on the client side) giving you direct exposure to C-suite decision-making and an accelerated path to leadership growth.

Our work blends consulting discipline with operational execution. In one engagement, you might help a Fortune 100 company design and drive a global leadership and operating model transformation; in another, you might embed with a state government to rewire how critical services are delivered across a complex network of stakeholders. Every project is high-impact, hands-on, and built around measurable results.

Client Delivery and Execution

• Lead end-to-end workstreams, coordinating across functions and ensuring alignment with client strategy and objectives.
• Translate executive intent into practical operating models and decision systems that drive sustained performance.
• Manage complex, multi-phase programs that span leadership, process, and performance transformation.
• Build and manage detailed project plans, track progress against milestones, and identify and mitigate delivery risks early.

Client Engagement & Influence

• Deliver clear, actionable insights and recommendations that shape client decisions at the highest levels.
• Lead portions of client presentations and workshops, connecting analysis to outcomes through compelling, executive-ready storytelling and facilitation.
• Build trusted relationships with client stakeholders; support business development through opportunity identification and pursuit strategy.
• Represent McChrystal Group's value proposition with credibility and confidence to both client and firm leadership.

Leadership and Team Development

• Coach and mentor junior consultants; foster a culture of feedback, collaboration, and excellence.
• Model McChrystal Group's values, embedding Ship / Shipmate / Self and Client First principles into daily work.
• Contribute to internal innovation by codifying learnings and strengthening the firm's intellectual property.

Business Acumen & Strategic Insight

• Build ROI cases and quantify impact for client initiatives; incorporate market and competitive insights into recommendations.
• Manage engagement economics (staffing, utilization, and realization), balancing commercial health with client outcomes.
• Document and share best practices to continuously improve the effectiveness and consistency of delivery.

Firm Growth and Culture

• Contribute to firm growth through recruiting, industry engagement, and thought leadership.
• Pursue ongoing personal and professional development through mentorship, client exposure, and continuous learning.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; MBA or similar advanced degree preferred.
• 5+ years of professional experience, ideally including consulting or relevant private-sector experience.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex workstreams and deliver measurable results in fast-paced, client-facing environments.
• Exceptional analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills, with strong executive presence.
• Thrives in team-based, collaborative settings with proven leadership and coaching ability
• Advanced proficiency in MS Office and comfort with data-driven storytelling.
• Ability and desire to travel up to 75%.

McChrystal Group is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our goal is to embody and embrace a diverse workforce that is representative, at all levels, of the customers we serve. We are committed to cultivating an environment of mutual respect and all employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, and business need. We seek to recruit, develop, and retain the most talented people from a diverse candidate pool and encourage applications of all backgrounds without regard to race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, non-disqualifying physical disability, national origin, veteran status or any other basis covered by appropriate law.
If you are an individual with a disability and require a reasonable accommodation to complete any part of the application process, or need an alternative method for applying, you may contact [email protected] for assistance.
We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.