Accenture Consulting v Top Life Science Strategy (Clearview, Putnam, Health Advances)
Deciding between offers from Accenture consulting for the consulting analyst role (not tech consulting) and from life sciences boutique out of undergrad.
My main concern I guess is exit ops/valued skill set. For Accenture obviously would be working on more process improvement, implementation type projects but I guess would work across diverse set of industries potentially and would be working in large firm/more travel/traditional consulting role. I don't know how strong their exits are for MBA, curious to know if anyone has any insight. Obv not MBB quality but are they sending people to HWS or M7
Then compare that with life sciences firm which is, at least from what i think, more prestigious in that its strategy, but also limited to purely life sciences and I don't know if I want to do that long term (or at least don't want to commit to it right now). Does have better exits I feel to mba, but less travel, smaller
Minor things: Accenture is NY v. life sciences is Boston, pay I feel for accenture is higher but life sciences not far behind
Just interesting to know if anyone has any more insight into Accenture consulting as well as if life sciences firm is really more prestigious and if its worth it to take over Accenture
Accenture is good but generalist. If you plan on staying in LS long (ish) term, Putnam is considered an EB and is always a good option. The others are too but if you can get Putnam you are sorted.
not certain if i want to stay in lifesciences, my feeling rn is that i dont want to. obv that cud change but wud like to be in best position possible to change courses. are u saying putnam regardless wud be better even if i didnt want to stay in LS?
No no, Putnam is known to be an incredible firm only in LS. If you don't want LS then Accenture may be better.
They are both consulting roles, but the similarities largely stop there. I think it would be helpful to be clearer on your priorities, with respect to travel, progression, industry, functional area, culture, etc. That way, people can give you better answers.
Thinking about it simply from “prestige”/MBA standpoint is a bit limiting (and misses the broader question, which is what do you want to do long term), but to answer your question directly, those boutiques have higher representation %-wise at HSW, from what I know, vs Accenture MC. Additionally, some of those firms have a faster trajectory. Personally know of someone who went analyst->sr analyst->consultant ->sr consultant -manager-> principal in ~4.5 yr at ClearView due to the 6 month review interval and meritocratic structure.
certainly makes sense to better outline my priorities.
Industry/functional area: not really sure, have life sciences background, but working in pharma for me is not that interesting and kind of crappy. Like i cud do it for a year or two but wud like to explore other areas if possible to see if i like those any better
Travel: I feel it might be nice to travel at least when Im young, but not huge concern either way
Progression: I feel like regardless of the place, I'd want to leave after two years to maybe do MBA or leave consulting if I find i want to do something else. Hence my focus on exits. Like unless for some unexpected reason, I see myself leaving after two years, and then if anythign returning post MBA
Culture: Like the culture of both places/ Everyone very down to earth. Obv looking at very large place v small, but given I liked the people/vibe at both not huge factor either
Location: As I mentioned, Accenture in New York which I prefer to Boston, but not deal breaker
Pay: Accetnure slightly better but not huge factor there as well
To get to your broader point that I half addressed, I dont know wat i want to do long term, hence my interest in consulting in the first place. Whether it be in industry or something totally removed from consulting/business world/ or away from life sciences. The focus on exits was to give me the chance to maybe rebrand or head somewhere else and wanted the best choices possible.
And with regards to % representation at HSW, certainly that was my impression as well, but Accenture MC certainly possible, though maybe more difficult.
Appreciate your thots
My impression is that you should choose Accenture, given there’s not a material difference between the two in any other aspect except the work, and that you don’t want to be in life sciences. However, consider whether you want do tech implementation/staff augmentation work. As I understand it, Accenture MC doesn’t do strategy, if that’s what you’re looking for. Don’t leave the devil you know for the devil you don’t; make sure to speak to more people. You can ask HR for current consultants or poke around LinkedIn for ones who left.
Any up-to-date opinions on Putnam?
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