A stranger is being shown around a village that he has just become a part of. He is shown a well and his guide says: "On any day except Monday, you can shout any question down that well and you'll be told an answer". The man seems pretty impressed, and so he shouts down: Why not on Monday? and the voice from in the well shouts back: Because on Monday its your day in the well.
Hi all! I am a corporate recruiter for one of the top management consulting firms. Besides standard tasks I am usually conducting behavioral interviews for top positions and managing tough candidates (and clients, yesss). So the conversation here can be useful for all of us no matter of your proficiency.
Feel free to ask me any question about whatever you like.
If I decide to answer your question I am giving honest answers so I'll need to stay incognito.
Also you can subscribe to my Twitter @BstardRecruiter. I am tough there...
Note: The following questions and answers are highlights from thread. Get engaged in the conversation below.
How strictly are GPA cutoff's enforced for consulting firms?
MBB really have very high GPA requirements for all of their openings, in other companies there are softer GPA requirements at least in some cases.
But in general I must admit that almost always a recruiter will pay attention to your GPA (again, we are speaking about graduates) and if it is below 3.5 (4.2-4.3 for Europe) - your chances are pretty low to pass screening.
How important is an MBA for management consulting?
Nowadays in most cases Real Experience beats MBA - not counting positions where MBA is an official requirement. Even in consulting.
So get the experience. And get an MBA only when your company pays for it.
If the position is not officially 'post-MBA only' then MBA still is a plus, but not a huge one. Again, this heavily depends on country/city/company.
What does the resume screening/ hiring process look like for management consulting?
Screening stage:
- Target (or similar to it) university and program
- Internships in large and/or consulting company
- References DO mean a lot. So if someone is able to supply you with recommendations - do not forget to mention it. It will serve as a background check for you too
- Never lie in your CV. This is easy to detect and if you are caught - welcome to the black list
Then testings:
- Math&analytical skills, English language (when it is not native), logics&reasoning skills
Then several interviews:
- Pretty much the same + case interviews where we are checking (besides all that we have already mentioned) business sense and, well, smartness
... and communication skills+motivation, of course
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I am not usually involved in specific MBA recruiting activities, so let me skip this. I just can confirm the evident: GPA and GMAT are different things, but high GMAT is a definite plus for junior roles.
Wow, this is a HUGE question. No way I can make a list of all mistakes. Few things I have in mind right now:
BR, Mark
If two candidates are roughly the same credential wise, but one is an average looking guy and one is a hot girl, are you more likely to hire the hot girl specifically because she's a hot girl? Be honest here, no one is judging.
Thanks in advance.
Love this question!
Usually this doesn't matter and I am not giving a person any credits just because she is hot. This is a part of my job - to be cold-minded and objective.
There are, however, some cases when hot girl can have more chances. Just an example: one of my clients once approached to me and said 'I need you to find me a very good analyst. And you know, we have a little team and only guys in it. So please, find me a good-looking girl, we need some diversity'. I would call this an exception, but as you see, it happens. But again, nothing personal here.
By the way, a girl can be hot just because she is smart, why no one thinks about it!?
Why is anyone taking advice from this Jackass. He is RECRUITER/HR PERSON. He is useless to the companies function. Probably studied literary french classics and got lucky landing an HR job at a company. Good for you dude. You have no real skills. Your job is to just screen resumes.