Today: Turkey's Undersecretary for Defense Industries. In this role, Murad is the highest-level civilian in the Turkish defense ministry. In 2004, he was handpicked by Turkey's Prime Minster to assume his current position. His previous experience with the Turkish defense industry, MBA, and work for a world-class consulting company were all decisive factors in his selection. He was 39 at the time of his appointment, making him the youngest undersecretary in the Turkish government. Murad is the chief of defense procurement for Turkey, managing a budget of $2 billion a year, a staff of about 250, and from 80 to 100 ongoing projects annually. He oversees procurement programs for everything from aircraft to ships to tanks to electronics and software, while also monitoring R&D activities.

Murad Bayar

At Booz Allen & Before: Murad worked for Booz Allen from 2000 to 2004 as a senior associate, focusing primarily on product development for the aerospace, automotive and consumer industries. After receiving his degree in electronics, Murad began his career in 1987 with Aselan, Turkey's military-owned electronics company and the country's largest defense firm. In 1989, he joined Turkey's defense ministry, where he managed several high-profile projects over a 10-year period. Murad then received his MBA from Yale.

Did your experience at Booz Allen give you a strong foundation for your current position? Definitely! It was a fantastic experience. Product development was one of the biggest areas I worked on for automotive, aerospace, and consumer goods companies. Booz Allen really broadened my vision and understanding of the multiple industries I worked in. Earlier in my career, I worked for the Turkish government, on the "buy side." My time at Booz Allen gave me a complete picture of the other side of the table: how a product is developed, financed, and marketed — the whole value stream of activities in the private sector. Gaining this perspective was very significant for me.

The Booz Allen experience also gave me self-confidence in approaching new problems, whatever the challenges they posed. As a result, I developed a framework for approaching problems that really won the respect of my clients. Whatever the issue was I felt confident that I could resolve it. I would say that's the number one contribution Booz Allen made in helping me in my current position. I'm heading a big organization with major responsibilities, spending a huge amount of money, and overseeing very complex programs — including multiple contractors from Turkey and abroad. Managing all this complexity requires a high degree of preparedness, but also a high level of confidence.

What sort of skills and strengths did you acquire at Booz Allen? To me, the most important skill I gained is the one I just mentioned: the ability to apply a conceptual framework to understanding and attacking almost any new problem. Actually, I've gotten feedback on this from a few of my more junior colleagues here. They say with some amazement, "You are very quick on your feet. When we describe something, it takes you a few seconds to ask a couple of questions, and then put a picture on paper of the whole deal." I think this comes directly from my Booz Allen experience. That's how we worked with clients: speaking to them, trying to understand how the world affected their company and their issues.

Data analysis is also another big capability I gained from my work at Booz Allen. Once you've worked as a consultant, the ability to understand data, use it, and also question it, becomes embedded in you. When you see a piece of data, you just dive into it and immediately figure out what it says, what it doesn't say, what's wrong with it. And once you understand data and build a framework around it, you need to get it all down on paper, in a very clear and concise manner.

I think the writing skills I acquired while at Booz Allen are very significant. Connected with this is story telling — not just framing an issue, but the ability to communicate your views to others. The ability to communicate what your vision is, how you see the problem, and how you see the solution. I've used these techniques in my current work with the different audiences I need to convince, including civilian officials, officers from the military, or high-level executives from different companies.

Would you say there's a particular consulting style at Booz Allen? When I was consulting, we placed a lot of importance in understanding our clients, working together with them, and bringing them along with us to whatever conclusion we arrived at. We were in continuous touch with clients, sometimes on a daily basis, to make sure that we were all on the same page. Again, this is something I'm using in my current job. When I work with officials in other government organizations, I find it a very effective approach to stay in touch with them in a continuous manner as we move in new directions.

The other element in Booz Allen's style that impressed me was the strong emphasis on making sure that we would deliver. The team would do whatever it took to deliver whatever we promised, on time, on budget. In a government organization, it's not quite as easy to apply this kind of standard; you face a different set of challenges. Still, once you seen that level of performance, you come to understand that it's doable. There's a cost attached to it, but it is doable.

Would you recommend working at Booz Allen, and if so, why? For me, it was my greatest professional experience. There's no question about that. I would definitely recommend it for anyone who has aspirations in life, management, and pursuing a successful professional career. I think that Booz Allen is a very enriching place to work. The projects are really satisfying and the environment is very collegial.

The apprenticeship program at Booz Allen is also very strong. You work with mentors who are appointed for you, but you also find mentors through the assignments you work on. Over time they really start helping you out and counseling you on your career. This was very powerful for me; I benefited greatly from the mentors I met.

Also, Booz Allen offers really rich opportunities and, I don't think you can find the same professional growth opportunity in any other type of organization. If you manage your career at Booz Allen, you will experience a big boost in your power base in a very short amount of time through the different clients you have, and the different challenges you see and face. You go from one major challenge to another — it never gets boring and there's never a dull moment. It's a powerful professional experience to have and in my case, it was really worth it.

Is there any favorite Booz Allen moment you would enjoy sharing? I think my favorite moments came in presentations at the end of big projects. You work hard on an assignment, do your analysis, come to really understand your client's issues, finally crack the code, and then suddenly, you have an audience. The executives of world-class companies are listening to you and you find yourself convincing them that the solution you've arrived at is the right thing to do. This is the climax of all the work you've done.

Would you have any advice or counsel for newcomers to the firm? I would tell them that the biggest source of professional growth at Booz Allen is the people you work with and your ability to stay proactive and make full use of all the opportunities that come your way. Don't just sit in your cubicle; manage your career and your opportunities.

profile posted February 21, 2005