Consulting to Start-up

Hey all,
I am a sophomore working for a very early stage start-up which has received about 100k in seed funding. I am an entrepreneurial person at heart, but I am not extremely interested in the sector in which my start-up is focused. I would like to intern at a consulting firm(potentially FT if I receive an offer), and I believe I have a shot at tier-2 firms. I was interested to hear how many analysts/consultants leave MC after 2-3 years to work for a startup?

I was thinking MC for a few years, move to a start-up, and if it fails go to B-School. My ultimate goal is to work in VC, and everyone I have spoken to in VC has told me I need to have start-up experience to even attempt to break into VC. Is this true?

Any responses would be greatly appreciated! Thank you

 

I'm at a tier 2 firm and not really learning anything translatable to a startup (project experience has been in finance operations so far). If you have weak Excel/analytical skills then you would be able to learn that, but you can also learn those skills by doing one of the ~20hr online Excel courses (e.g., BIWS).

You could end up doing strategy work or an operations project related to your startup (e.g., optimization of a manufacturing line and your product will require manufacturing), but you could also spend 2 years dealing with problems only applicable to large organizations (e.g., M&A integration, finance operations, etc.).

The main reasons I would do consulting for a year as opposed to going directly to a startup are: 1. you have a safety net in case things don't pan out 2. having consulting on your resume could help you find partners and funding

If you have an idea you are passionate about and a team you want to work with I would skip tier 2 consulting, but ultimately it's up to you on how risky you are.

 

Having consulting on your resume (if from a top firm) is very valuable. It lends credibility. Relevance of experience will vary depending on what projects you're on during your time there. Also, I've known colleagues who went from consulting to VC w/o any startup experience. But you do have to be really passionate abt whatever VC industry you're thinking of entering (follow all the industry trends, read all the news, attend conferences, etc.). They can really tell if you actually know what you're talking about.

 
Best Response
Anonymous.:

Having consulting on your resume (if from a top firm) is very valuable. It lends credibility. Relevance of experience will vary depending on what projects you're on during your time there.
Also, I've known colleagues who went from consulting to VC w/o any startup experience. But you do have to be really passionate abt whatever VC industry you're thinking of entering (follow all the industry trends, read all the news, attend conferences, etc.). They can really tell if you actually know what you're talking about.

That is great to hear! From what I have read on WSO and other consulting websites is that it is extremely difficult to leave from consulting to VC/PE unless you are MBB. I would love to work at MBB, but I feel that it is more realistic I shoot for a Tier 2 shop. I think consulting would be great for me to find an industry I am really passionate about. Currently, I am following the tech industry closely, as the start-up I am working for falls in that industry, but I feel like it may be more useful to work at multiple start-ups prior to VC to find the industry I am truly passionate about.

 

It's not the comp difference that should concern you, it's the benefits. Working for Big 4, BB, F100, etc, etc comes with a lot of benefits that a startup really can't even come close to matching.

 

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