MBA Intern, Accenture Strategy

Accenture recruits for Accenture Strategy at our MBA program. They came to campus numerous times, and interviewed a few dozen people for 3-4 Strategy places. I made it to the final round, and did not receive an offer.

Pros: like many large organizations, "it is what you make it". Every Accenture consultant I spoke to emphasized that you'll need to take charge of your career and steer to the work that suits you best. As a matter of personal "fit", the MBB firms I interviewed with had a supportive atmosphere that could be suffocating to someone who has enjoyed the relative anonymity and autonomy working in large organizations.

People on WSO like to say Accenture doesn't have real strategy work, and that's not true. Some of the cases Accenture takes are every bit as stimulating and "strategic" as MBB cases. I'm certain most cases are nowhere near as interesting as the those I discussed with Accenture consultants about vaccinations in the developing world, turnaround for tech company, etc. Nonetheless, there is some interesting work to be had.

Cons: The offices I visited seemed very disorganized. No one knew what anyone else was doing, where they were, or even who they worked with. My interviewers had worked at Accenture for years, but it appeared this was either the first time that they conducted an interview, or Accenture had recently changed the interview process.

How to prepare better than I did: The offices in my region may be unique in their organization, but I would advise developing one or two strong internal references who you know will go to bat for you and try to see that your interviewers are influential with the firm, or that the hiring authority hears a good word about you. Also, (I consider this a positive, but most people probably consider this a con) be certain you don't mind working at an office where people may work in close physical proximity to one another, yet don't even know each other's names because they are staffed on different teams or projects.

I visited just two offices and went through 2 rounds (4 interviews) for an MBA internship. My experience was very neutral, and I ask that no one apply my conclusions to Accenture without researching their target offices for themselves. I am rating the interview 'easy' because the interviews were very casual and the cases relatively less complex than MBB.