McKinsey London'ers - is it really that bad?
This may be aimed for the US, but what is it like on the ground at McKinsey London? Are a lot of people on the bench? What has undergraduate looked like and what will the 2025 intern class / grad class look like? A bainie said that 2024 starting hires was 40% lower than normal :(
Ah, the jungle drums of consulting gossip! Based on the most helpful WSO content, it's not uncommon to hear about fluctuations in hiring across different offices of the same firm, like McKinsey. However, the specifics about the London office and the exact numbers for the 2025 intern class or grad class aren't detailed in the provided context.
But here's a bunch of bananas for thought:
If you're looking to get the inside scoop on McKinsey London, networking with current employees or recent hires could give you a clearer picture. And remember, the consulting world is as dynamic as a barrel of monkeys – things can change faster than you can peel a banana!
Sources: Q&A: Former undergrad MBB Intern starting full time in the fall, McKinsey vs Bain London for post MBA? (2019), What should I do as an undergrad if I want to work for Mckinsey?, How many undergraduates does MBB hire each year?, McKinsey (London) Vs BCG (London)
We don't have surprise concerns ratings like in the US and even people who do get bad reviews get a good deal (9 months of full pay if you decide to leave instead of trying to improve). Beach is worse than in Europe but plenty of people who are staffed without any beach time so depends on your networking skills (and luck)
London office is one of the worst performing ones in the region with rampant over hiring driven by partner greed and bad execution leading to even good people being on the bench for long time periods. They’ve also offered 9 month packages to people who are well performing and many have taken it as it’s quite a sweet deal.
Morale is low across the firm and there will be long term damage for sure. I suspect once the external job market improves, there will be an exodus. Just speculation though and not that I care.
What is this 9 month package? Is this being CTL'ed? And what is usually included in this package (e.g. would the firm help you with your job search?)
It’s not being CTL’d. Basically, almost anyone could get 9 months of salary (or until the day they start in a new job) without having to do anything. It’s a very sweet deal if you’re already looking to leave. They also provide individual support for recruiting for a new job. Just alludes to how desperate they are.
I wish my ex offered a same deal when I left her
Not CTL'd?? DAMN THATS GOOD
Uh oh
How is UG recruitment like currently then? I'm guessing its been a shitshow so far? An exodus can only be good for us who are recruiting. Saying that, what's sentiment like with clients on when the market will improve? 2023 sounds like it was a bad year, have we reached the other side of the storm then?
Recruiting is a shit show for sure. But honestly, I don’t see the value proposition working here anymore over Tech, IB, PE, HF. Why would you want to join if you have any of the former already lined up? Like honestly. I’ve been here for a few years now, and the experience of working here has got progressively worse. Shitty uninteresting transformation projects, digital transformations, and whatever snake oil the partners get to sell to whoever’s paying. A lot of the best people have gotten frustrated and have already left making the apprenticeship worse. The quality of the people we hire has got much worse as well.
Am in the London office and I think it's actually pretty good.
- London at McKinsey grew from a revenue POV last year, although costs grew by more due to higher headcount.
- Number of studies grew by a double digit %.
- This year so far has been quite hot and few people on the beach
The flipside is getting studies last year was quite competitive; if you didn't crush what you got you struggle to get staffed again. Definitely some people who have mediocre reps and will be asked to leave soon.
Happy to answer specific questions
Am in the London office and I think it's actually pretty good.
- London at McKinsey grew from a revenue POV last year, although costs grew by more due to higher headcount.
- Number of studies grew by a double digit %.
- This year so far has been quite hot and few people on the beach
The flipside is getting studies last year was quite competitive; if you didn't crush what you got you struggle to get staffed again. Definitely some people who have mediocre reps and will be asked to leave soon.
Happy to answer specific questions
Elaborating on this a bit further, since I've joined I've done a random walk of sectors, been consistently staffed and have done just 1 transformation.
It is harder to get onto strategy pieces because teams are smaller, but very possible if you have a good rep.
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