Some observations about management consulting...

Background  
I'm at a well-known strategy firm that's not MBB. I've worked at more than one firm, have contacts across firms, and have interviewed far and wide. I've spent a few years in the industry and wanted to share some observations/trends that might 1. be helpful for those considering consulting as a career and 2. prompt some discussion/thoughts from those at a similar level or who are more senior.

The landscape has been changing, and this has accelerated in the past 5 years...

1. An increasing amount of work is trending towards technology and transformation. Clients are increasingly looking for support beyond just their phase 0/1 exploratory work. While I have the option of hopping across 1-3 month strategy projects, there's increasing flexibility to sit on phase 2/3 transformations that are longer-term. There are pros and cons to this - longer projects tend to have better WLB and better certainty around what I'm doing next week. More ambiguity is your enemy. We're also often pricing the discovery phase into the next phases or discounting heavily with the expectation of winning the $XM or $XXM follow-on work. I recognize that non-MBB firms are more likely to index heavier in this transformation / implementation space, but the growth of MBB in recent years is also driven by expanding beyond just high-level strategy work. Also, much of this work is technology-related or touches on technology. In the tough economy of the last few years, companies are trying to figure out how to save money, operate more efficiently, automate things with AI, and make better decisions using analytics. Blue sky strategy work is definitely a bit more scarce than it was some years ago.

2. There's less travel than there was pre-COVID, but only for some industry / functional areas. Some clients in certain industries don't really care for constant face-to-face meetings, given that those companies themselves have moved more remote. However, if you work in functional areas like supply chain, manufacturing, operations, etc., expect to have frequent travel for things like site visits and stakeholder interviews. For those that travel less, it's definitely led to better work-life balance. I personally average 45-50 hours a week, largely remote with some occasional colocation. Remote work can be a bit drab, but all things considered, it's been super sustainable, especially for a $200k-$225k income range with ~4 yoe.

3. Progression is slowing down, and there's more bloat at the top at firms that aren't managing their "up or out" as stringently. A caveat here is that firms have approached this differently. Some firms continue to aggressively cut/manage out (and are fine with the use-and-discard approach, essentially). At my firm, it looks like after the over-hiring spree of 2022, attrition is at an all-time low. Most of the people who weren't cutting it have already left, and demand has leveled out such that there isn't a huge need for new hires. This leaves us in an interesting place where it doesn't make sense to needlessly manage people out (since they're performing well), and we're almost completely sold out, so everyone is staffed. This inevitably means that progression is slowing down since our pyramid has been a bit askew since 2021 or so. Making new partners, APs, managers, etc., is dependent on constant growth. When things stall or grow slowly, and people aren't leaving, progression stalls. People also aren't leaving because there haven't been as many lucrative exits as there were a few years ago—much less PE and tech hiring, and companies recognize they can get the same talent while spending less.

4. It's more lucrative than ever—pay has gone up significantly. Post-MBA base salaries have increased 20-30% over the last 5 years, outpacing inflation, with total compensation in the $225k-$250k range.The post-MBA pay is what the managers used to make just some years ago. I've seen my total compensation double in 2-3 years (and base comp over double), which has been a great personal story. However, there's definitely some luck involved in not getting cut, fired, or getting on repeated burner projects and burning out.

5. Specialization is expected earlier—firms are pushing people to specialize earlier. Outside of MBB, most firms will typically encourage you to specialize in an industry or functional area early or slot you in right when you join. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it's hard to switch out and try something else in many places.

What that might mean for junior talent...

1. Play your cards right from the start. Make sure you make a good impression on everyone you work with early. This is evergreen advice, but in an environment where you might be specializing more early, you might see the same faces more often. If you join a generalist firm, do your due diligence and find the right people, industries, and functional areas that pertain to both your interests and also won't grind you into dust. If you're going into a specialized firm, find the right partners/pyramids that will support your growth. Bad culture isn't always people yelling and screaming—apathy can be just as destructive. Ultimately, there's definitely a balance between interesting work and work-life balance, which I personally value and think you should too. There's more to life than PowerPoint decks and models.

2. Be ready to put in the time/hours. With how pay has risen in the last few years, my advice is to stick it out. It's worth sticking around for more than just 2 years because you'll make a ton of money, if that's something you value. But if you want to explore other industries, consulting is still a great career launchpad. I will say many exits will make you work just as much anyway, if you want to have similar to consulting comp. But ultimately, it's nowhere near as bad as some of the other careers covered in this forum (especially IB and PE). Especially if you can get away with less travel.

3. Don't be afraid of specializing early. I always get on the phone with younger people who want to come to consulting to be the generalist who spends 2 months in payments, 3 months in pharmaceuticals, and then 3 months in automotive. If you can get that experience, do it. One part of me is definitely jealous of those who got the true generalist experience, but if you find something you like early, specialize. Don't wait too long or you won't really have any real value over a specialized consultant who has reps. Specialization will help you articulate your value (which means earlier promotions, people trusting you with more responsibilities, and ultimately more money) and even set you up for exits nicely. It seems a jack of all trades isn't as attractive as the seasoned expert these days for most exits. The world is full of jack of all trades strategists. And there’s a reason why many of your rainmaker partners are not only industry-specialized but also functional experts, too.

Hope these insights were helpful.