Pros/Cons of Boutique Consulting

Does anyone here have experience working for small boutique consulting firms? Interested in pros and cons of working for a small shop vs. major player. (long-term comp trajectory, exit ops, lifestyle, engagements, etc.)

I'm interested specifically in RX/Turnarounds which after you get past the big 3 seems like a highly fragmented space. I am not talking about accounting firms with RX arms but pure RX/Turnaround shops with >10-50 employees. I'm currently interviewing with several firms of this size, and it seems like an optimal way to enter the space given there would be high client/Partner exposure, more churn in engagements and allows you to develop more of an RX generalist skillset since your engagements potentially range across all of the firms service offerings (could include but not limited to CRO/Ch 7/11, debt advisory, ODD/FDD, M&A advisory, and profit improvement). Also seems like this is a great way to build a network and ultimately get into distressed PE long-term.

Is my thinking off-base? Would love to hear from someone who's been in the trenches.

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