Leland+ Content Library

Forward-Deployed Engineers & AI Services-Led Growth

Explores the FDE role in detail: client-facing integration, technical implementation, rapid prototyping, and serving as a bridge between engineering and GTM, supported by insights from a16z and industry examples. Assignment encourages role research and personal reflection.

Which AI job is the right fit for me?

Reading to understand roles and impact on things like work-life balance, focus time vs. meetings, and more. Includes a research assignment and table laying out different aspects of each job.

Inside the Forward-Deployed Engineer Role

Interactive session dissecting the FDE role with real-world examples, skill mapping, and discussion on how FDEs accelerate AI adoption in enterprise environments.

Creating Impactful Pre-Job Projects

Walkthrough of building and presenting portfolio pieces that resonate with AI employers, featuring tips on storytelling, technical demonstration, and networking through project sharing.

Understanding the Formal PD Cycle

Decipher the annual review process, from goal-setting to calibration, to strategically position yourself for promotion and recognition.

Want MBB consultants to respond?

Write emails that people actually read. Learn to personalize messages, create subject lines that work, follow up without being annoying, and use your resume smartly.

Long-Term Career Paths

Explore the diverse range of successful post-consulting exit opportunities and begin planning your next career transition.

No one owes you a referral. Earn it

Learn the biggest networking mistakes and how to build trust with MBB consultants without seeming fake or desperate.

Here’s what really works in networking

Understand when location matters for referrals and when it doesn't. Learn to stay flexible and build connections across different offices.

Introduction to Roles in AI — How It Differs from Traditional Tech

This reading introduces you to key roles like research engineer, forward deployed engineers, and different GTM jobs at AI companies. It includes an assignment designed to teach you how to better understand these roles.

APM Success Stories

​Associate Product Manager (APM) programs have become one of the most sought-after pathways into tech, offering early-career professionals a structured way to break into product management. But what does it really take to land one of these coveted roles—and succeed once you’re in? ​In this panel, you’ll hear directly from Alec S. and Jess C., coaches who have navigated the competitive APM recruiting process and built impactful careers in product management. Panelists will share their personal journeys, lessons learned, and strategies that helped them stand out in applications and interviews. ​Whether you’re just starting to explore PM careers or actively applying to APM programs this year, this session will give you practical insights and inspiration to chart your own path to success.

Why does one referral change everything?

See what happens behind the scenes after someone refers you. Learn how to communicate with your referrer to help push your application forward.

Creating A Career Plan - Deck

This guide outlines how to build a career plan around 6 key elements, including target roles, companies, and weekly goals.

Key Skills to Master in Your First Year as an Associate or Consultant

Learn the specific problem-solving, analytical, and communication skills you must demonstrate to earn a top-tier performance rating.

AI and Your MBA Application Do's and Don'ts for Interview Practice

Ready to leverage AI tools to elevate your MBA interview preparation but want to ensure you're doing it strategically and authentically? Join me, M, for a practical and actionable session designed to help MBA applicants use AI as a powerful practice partner while maintaining genuine responses and natural delivery. This session will show you how to integrate AI into your interview prep routine to simulate real interview scenarios, generate tailored questions, and receive instant, impactful feedback. Learn how to craft prompts that help you practice behavioral and school-specific questions, refine your storytelling, and analyze your responses. We’ll discuss how to use AI for mock interviews and avoid common pitfalls that can make your responses sound robotic or inauthentic. We’ll also cover ethical considerations, best practices, and how to blend AI support with real-world input for maximum value.

Consulting referrals aren’t luck, they’re strategy

Learn how to find the right consultants, reach out to them personally, and build real relationships that lead to referrals and interviews.

Building Your AI Portfolio & Outside-In Projects

Detailed strategies for engineers, designers, marketers, and data scientists to craft projects showing value aligned with target companies. Includes best practices for packaging and sharing work and an action-oriented assignment.

Understanding AI Compensation Data 2025

Provides updated, accurate AI salary ranges across roles such as AI researcher, MLE, and FDE, based on Glassdoor, Levels.fyi, and recent industry reports including the NYT's superstar compensation story. Includes assignment to benchmark target roles against market pay.

Navigating AI Salary Data & Market Trends

Walkthrough of key salary datasets and trends, explaining what drives compensation differences and how candidates can evaluate offers and align career goals with compensation realities.

AI Job Market Noise, Networking Strategies & Referrals

Examines challenges posed by imprecise AI job listings and teaches targeted networking practices, referral system insights, and rapport-building with insiders, plus an assignment to initiate connections and refine messaging.