I always thought that working for several years at MBB puts you on the fast track to the C-Suite. Based on my experience that doesn't seem to be the case.
I work for a hedge fund and research companies and management teams all day, every day. I can count on my two hands the number of times I've come across a C-level exec with MBB experience. I will admit that given my fund's size and strategy I don't focus my time on F100 companies. But still, I would have expected MBB grads to pop up much more often than they do.
Where do MBB grads end up? Is it a recipe for a mediocre mid-level management position? If you want to eventually make it to the top, is it better to get a ton of experience in industry? I have a feeling that specific industry experience means much more than MBB (based solely on the backgrounds of most C-level execs bios I look at).
Note - I'm not saying they don't exist, I'm just saying they don't show up NEARLY as often as I expected.
You ever hear of Mike Pearson?
Like I said, I know they exist.
I’m sure someone will come along with more concrete statistics, but looking at the Wikipedia links below, there are dozens of former and current CEO’s from MBB.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McKinsey_%26_Company#Notable_alumni http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bain_%26_Company#Industry_and_finance http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notable_employees_of_Boston_Consulting_Gro…
And from the McK wiki page: "McKinsey has produced more CEOs than any other company and is referred to by Fortune magazine as "the best CEO launch pad". More than 70 past and present CEOs at Fortune 500 companies are former McKinsey employees. "
Not too bad considering that collectivity the three firms employee fewer than 20k consultants (and yes, I realize there is a high churn rate).
Meg Whitman - HP
No man you cracked the code, MBB is just one big conspiracy to funnel HYPS Summas into "mediocre mid-level management"
Not sure if serious...
"A few years ago, more than 70 past and present CEOs of Fortune 500 companies were McKinsey alumni, and in 2011 more than 150 McKinsey alumni were running companies with more than $1 billion in annual sales. A 2008 study by USA Today calculated that the odds of a McKinsey consultant becoming CEO of a public company were the best in the world, at 1 in 690. The closest rival was Deloitte & Touche, at 1 in 2,150."
Read more at http://observer.com/2013/09/the-ceo-factory-ex-McKinsey-consultants-get-hired-to-run-the-biggest-companies/#ixzz2pvCT1G50
Like BGP2587 said...........McKinsey gives best odds in the world. I can name five off the top of my head:
John Malone Lou Gerstner Pearson Sharrer McNerney
Um, simple math, dude.
(1) There are MILLIONs of F500 employees (2) There are a few thousand MBB employees (maybe 20k?)
Even if (2) has a MUCH higher % of C-levels, they'll still just be a fraction of C-levels from group (1)
This sounds like a market sizing case...
1) Strategy is not the same as executing in a P&L capacity 2) Most consultants move into "internal" consulting type roles, not P&L, and need to prove themselves before they get P&L, which is where power is in a company.
Just my $0.02
TT
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