Creating Solutions Beyond the PhD: Building Consultancy Skills Through DInC
Working across multiple consultancy projects for startup businesses and established organisations, doctoral researcher Isaiah Nassiuma applied his research expertise to commercial challenges, developed confidence working with clients and stakeholders, and gained valuable experience that reinforced his ambition to pursue a career in consultancy.
Isaiah Nassiuma
PhD Discipline:
Robotics, Automation and human factors. Isaiah’s research investigates human-robot collaboration, drawing on behavioural science to guide user decisions without restricting autonomy.
Research Stage:
At the time of the programme, Isaiah was in the final year of his PhD.
Organisations Worked with Through DInC:
Snapshot Live LTD, Digital Planning Limited, Constructor.ai
Motivations for Joining the Programme
Isaiah joined the DInC programme to gain first-hand experience of consultancy and explore it as a potential career path.
Interested in technology and innovation consultancy, he was particularly attracted by the opportunity to work with multiple organisations simultaneously, gaining exposure to different industries, products and business challenges.
Beyond exploring future career options, Isaiah hoped to develop his ability to engage with stakeholders, understand client needs and gain experience balancing competing priorities across multiple projects. He also saw the programme as an opportunity to broaden his commercial knowledge in areas such as market research, marketing and sales, building on the foundations of his engineering management background.
Working as a Doctoral Innovation Consultant
During the 16-week programme, Isaiah worked across three consultancy projects, supporting organisations with a variety of business and innovation challenges. Managing multiple clients alongside the demands of completing his PhD created a fast-paced environment that required strong organisation, prioritisation and time management skills.
A key aspect of the experience was collaborating closely with fellow doctoral researchers and engaging regularly with founders, business leaders and other stakeholders. While PhD research often involves working independently, the consultancy projects required teams to work collectively towards shared objectives, rapidly evaluate options and make informed recommendations within tight timescales.
Isaiah also highlighted the value of seeing consultancy recommendations translate quickly into action. Working with startup businesses allowed him to witness organisations implementing project outputs and insights almost immediately, providing a direct sense of impact that is often less visible within academic research.
Key Learning Moments and Skills Developed
One of Isaiah's most significant learning experiences was developing the ability to communicate research findings in a commercial context. While doctoral research often focuses on highly specialised topics, the DInC programme challenged him to think more broadly about how evidence and analysis could be translated into practical business recommendations and organisational value.
The programme also strengthened a range of professional skills, including stakeholder communication, collaboration, decision-making and analytical thinking. Through regular engagement with business leaders and founders, Isaiah became more confident presenting ideas, explaining complex information and adapting communication to different audiences.
Knowing that I was able to work with three different companies on three different products… and still come out with information that can help organisations make an informed decision, it was quite motivating. It has increased my confidence in doing that and in moving into whichever space that I can find myself in and being able to deliver, even within tight deadlines.”
Outcomes and Reflections
The DInC programme strengthened Isaiah's confidence in his ability to apply research and analytical skills across a wide range of sectors and challenges. Working with multiple organisations demonstrated how transferable doctoral skills can be, regardless of industry or subject area.
The experience also reinforced his interest in consultancy as a long-term career pathway. Having gained practical experience of delivering recommendations, working directly with clients and contributing to real business decisions, Isaiah is now actively pursuing consultancy roles and views the profession as a natural extension of the skills developed throughout his academic journey.
Reflecting on the programme, Isaiah described it as a valuable opportunity to develop professionally, broaden his perspective and experience the direct impact of his work. He would strongly recommend the programme to other doctoral researchers, particularly those interested in building confidence, developing commercial awareness and exploring careers beyond academia.