Tamar Dor-Ner grew up across Jerusalem, Paris, and Boston. She studied European intellectual history at Northwestern and started a PhD on Kierkegaard before stumbling into consulting almost by accident. She expected to stay a year or two. That was 27 years ago.
In this episode, the first in our series exploring AI and talent, Tamar traces a career that went from aspiring academic to Americas Regional Managing Partner, with plenty of detours along the way. She shares what kept her at the firm decade after decade: hard problems, exceptional people, and an environment where she learned faster on the ground than she ever could have in a classroom.
She also makes a direct case for why this AI moment is unlike anything she has seen before. The work is getting more powerful. The tedious parts are shrinking. And the proportion of the job that is genuinely interesting has never been higher. What the firm needs now, she shares, is not a specific background. It is people who are curious, adaptable, and energized by constant change.