How does in house strategy within industry compare to strategy at a consultancy?
In terms of pay, hours, exit opps etc out of undergrad
Sep 02, 2014
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At the post-u/g or post-MBA level, total comp can be similar, but salaries will typically rise faster at consulting firms that in a corp. strat. or biz dev. role. This may be partially offset by stock option comp. Hours and travel on the corporate side will typically be far less taxing (40-50 hrs/wk vs. 55-75). I'm not sure about exit opps from u/g corp. strat, but it's tough to beat the exit opps from consulting, especially MBB. One more thing to consider: at a consulting firm, you're a billable asset. When you're working, you're making money for the firm. In corporate strategy, you're a cost center (use of cash). When things get tight, corp. strat. roles can a target for downsizing.
In-house corporate strategy teams are typically smaller than the strategy teams of consulting firms.
Also, at an increasing rate, the in-house teams take on other tasks for example: strategy and corporate development strategy and analytics etc.
BRJ is right on the money, except I think starting out (as an undergrad) in an internal consulting team has a lot of advantages too if you could land the right brand/program (which is tough b/c they are so few and you pretty much have to go to a target school). If you get MBB, take it and don't look back. Personally, I think though that undergrad corp strat > tier 2 consulting, especially with all the consolidation that's been happening in the consulting industry. PM me if you have more questions - I took an undergrad corp strat gig over two tier 2 consulting offers and would be happy to share my reasoning.
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