I have seen a ton of content on this site about Ibanking --> PE. Why can't management consultants in FS break in? Granted they have similar skillets, why is it so much more difficult? Would it only be possible for MBB? -Genuinely curious
Trending Content - Venture Capital Forum
| +27 | Getting the VP Promote at the "Wrong" Firm | 10 | 2d |
| +18 | Growth Equity Compensation | 2 | 1w |
| +14 | Biotech VC path from Patent Law | 3 | 4d |
| +9 | Anyone join a startup that actually paid a fat check at exit? | 3 | 3w |
| +3 | Hedosophia US | 3 | 14h |
| +3 | Insight Partners WLB and deal flow in 2026 | 3 | 1w |
| +2 | Classic Turnaround VC cases? | 3 | 1w |
Career Resources
Also interested in this question. I'm currently applying for Strategy&'s Deals Team and I think it would certainly be possible to exit into PE from this job (if I get it).
It's easiest for Bain and McKinsey to land PE. BCG also does okay, and apparently OW as well.
RX consulting firms like A&M and Alix who have strong PE practices also place quite well.
PE teams rely on their deals team and usually dont have an operational team. An IB background is much more suitable when working with financial models.
McK/Bain flow into PE pretty frequently like @redfishbluefish said, but Parthenon and LEK place into MM pretty well. Ive heard that OW is a mixed bag as a FS background doesnt translate to PE as well as other firms
Any other comments? What about IB people, do you think it is possible?
I think you need to differentiate between fs consulting and IB. In consulting, financial services can be the industry, but not necessarily the function. In IB, financial services is the function, but not necessarily the industry.
I.e. you could be working for OW on the behalf of a regional bank to help them dig into their growth strategy. The industry here is financial services, but the function is not financial services. That differs from IB in which you will be doing M&A/ECM/DCM (read: fs) for companies in a range of industries.
PE firms like to hire consultants generally who have worked on a lot of commercial due diligences, because this is similar work to what is done in the investment team at a PE fund (or they just hire from MBB for the smart people/name brand). That’s why you see firms like Bain/McK and then LEK/Parthenon/OW place into PE. These firms do a lot of PE CDDs, and there aren’t many (any?) other major players in the CDD consulting space.
Voluptas quae totam beatae numquam sit magnam corrupti. Praesentium dolor quidem repellat est rerum expedita vero.
Et ab consequuntur repudiandae nostrum. Dicta dicta qui facilis nihil voluptatum. Eaque voluptas molestiae atque quae iusto. Corporis et quisquam est tempora. Est ducimus neque voluptatem magni.
Quis voluptatem sit et. Nobis voluptas rerum voluptatibus excepturi laboriosam ut accusantium quod.
Sunt unde dolor illum voluptatibus dolorem id velit. Aut quia et et delectus ullam sed quia. Voluptatum quo impedit molestias eligendi. Rem omnis id et et. Aut sed temporibus enim et sit delectus odio.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...