AT Kearney vs PWC

Close friend received post MBA internship offers, and it's coming down to AT Kearney vs PWC (NOT S&, PWC MC/Advisory). I was MBB and didnt' recruit any of these firms back when I did my MBA, so I fear I'm a bit out of touch.

I think the answer is ATK, but wanted to get a pulse check. What do you monkeys think? Specifically thinking about exit opportunities; seems pretty clear that ATK is more lucrative (2018 managementconsulted salary info).

17 Comments
 

Thanks for the response. Also what I assumed, but wanted to double check.

You say not even close...does that mean you'd say ATK over even S&? If so, I think that would be a powerful signal.

I also don't have an effective response to the fact that PWC is signifcantly higher than ATK in the Vault prestige rankings (cue eye roll). It's certainly an imperfect measure meant to be taken with a grain of salt....but still.

 

I'd take ATK over S& as well. PwC's Audit business takes priority which means it will always impact the potential growth and effectiveness of its consulting arm. That's demonstrated in the way things are currently run and decisions that are made.

Prime example: PwC is selling its Public Sector consulting practice. That unit hasn't been able to compete against Deloitte Federal, Accenture Federal, BAH. PwC will be doing the Audit of the DoD and since they can't provide both types of services, Audit won out.

(FWIW - I used to work at PwC)

 

I think ATK is a lot better experience than PWC Advisory. Deloitte S&O in the USA seems to be nearly on the same level as ATK or Oliver Wyman. I would actually prefer S& over ATK in the European market and flip a coin on the US market. Accenture seems to be a pretty shitty employer. The profiles of the people I know there aren't very impressive.

Disclaimer: I work at an MBB and have only experience from Recruiting with these firms and discussions on r/consulting and wallstreetjournal.

 

Different caliber offers. ATK is a top t2 that has similar structure, hours, clients, exit ops and compensation (at least at early levels) to MBB.

All of the good strategy work at PWC is now sold by Strategy&, they've segregated the business lines. The only upside to PWC MC over ATK is potentially much better hours depending on the group.

To touch on the commentary around PWC vs Strat& (a much different conversation) - the firms are much more similar and it comes down to personal fit or a preference for a certain practice area.

 
Best Response

I would chime in that while indeed ATK has a better brand and is a true consulting firm rather than the consulting arm of a Big 4, I have heard - from a couple of totally unrelated sources (both of whom I find credible) - that they are having some trouble (which can definitely impact the quality of your friend's career experience).

Conclusion: first order analysis, ATK for sure, but your friend needs to do some actual due diligence and find out more about how healthy the pipeline is and how staffings are going.

The truth is you're the weak. And I'm the tyranny of evil men. But I'm tryin', Ringo. I'm tryin' real hard to be the shepherd.
 

That's sensible, but most post UG careers in consulting are 1-2 years in length, and the resume impact won't disappear if the firm does. Big 4 can be very volatile when they do big layoffs just due to size. This is a risk, but not one I'd put any weight on. It's like factoring tail risk to investment scenarios. Yes it's there, no you can't account for it, that's why it's tail risk.

 

Question is though - if this is happening, I don't know, wouldn't be surprised - does it matter? I don't think so.

With ATK you have a more attractive brand and experience than PwC MC imho. If ATK is not extending return offers because of their pipeline, recruiters probably know this and will be forgiving. The ATK brand is still there.

The only question is how your risk-profile looks like. If you're willing to gable you can land PwC or better when recruiting for full-time, I think it should still be ATK. If not, go for PwC.

 

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