All,
I am currently a consultant at an MBB and am involved in recruiting. Thought I would offer you some off the cuff tips for recruiting season from someone who is on the other side of the table. Happy to take additional questions too, though I may not be able to respond right away.
Karl
On recruiting events:
-
Have insightful questions in your mind ahead of time.
This doesn't have to be an insanely complex, detailed question about the intricacies of my experience with M&A deals - have something that shows you have done your homework and can speak intelligently about the industry and the firm. Do NOT ask things like "So, what is it like to work at _____" -
Don't be Lurker Guy.
Lurker Guy is the 10th person to join the awkward circle of people surrounding one poor company rep who just stands there and doesn't say or ask anything. Find someone else to talk to. Get some punch. Come back later. Don't just lurk. -
There is no need to give me your resume.
Everyone has to apply electronically these days and unless you are very memorable (ie, hot), I won't look at it after the event is done. If you are memorable (ie, hot) I will probably just facebook-stalk you. Hey, just being honest. -
Talk to the recruiters.
Just because they aren't consultants doesn't mean they aren't armed with valuable insight. If you have specific areas of interest, they can often make an intro for you. -
Don't ask me about other firms.
Unless you are like redninja, most of us haven't worked at others. You won't get a good answer - this is something you need to figure out on your own or find someone (like redninja) who actually really knows. Instead, ask me about my firm. What do I like and what don't I like? I'll give you an honest answer.
On interviews:
-
Structured thinking is more than frameworks.
I can't stress this enough. What separates great candidates from good ones is their ability to present thoughts, options, and to weigh information in a structured way BEYOND the initial framing of the case. You can practice this thinking in your daily life, I kid you not. Who do you want to spend your Friday night with? What book should you read next? Should you buy that purple cardigan on eBay? -
Have a point of view in the case.
I don't want you to recite facts or just do a calc or two and play it all back to me. Tell me what you think of the situation. You calc'ed margin - does it seem high or low? We talked about the competition - are these guys fucked? Why or why not? I am not saying fly off with opinions. Take a point of view and back it up with facts. -
You should be more than just 3.8 from a target/M7 with XXX GMAT.
Most of the "rate my chances" threads here are based around those stats and facts. You will be much better served if you recognize that most firms look for leadership, actual accomplishments, influence on others, etc. Be prepared to talk about this and do not discount it's weight on your overall candidacy. -
Don't be arrogant.
No need to puff yourself up, talk down on your buddies, or the like. If you are too arrogant for me to stand in a brief convo, I sure as hell won't want to be stuck on a plane with you and I definitely wouldn't want to put you in front of a client. -
Relax
Seriously, have fun with it. If you can't enjoy doing a case, you won't like this job. I know it's stressful for you but I will make it as relaxing as I can. Help me out with that.
thanks for the tips
I'm attending a few recruiting events this week - the timing of your advice couldn't be better! Thanks.
Oh #4....
Interesting, thank you.
Question: how is transferring from non-IB finance roles to consulting?
UFO - Honestly, it depends. Where are you at? Pre-MBA? Post? If you're off cycle, it's tough. The smoothest way to career change (ie, go from something else into consulting) is b-school.
PMd you with more info, don't want to chew up too much bandwidth here...
What are some of the most insightful questions you've got that left an impression or kind of blew you away?
Thanks for the tips. A couple of questions:
How important/influential are referrals (those that stem from informational interviews)? Do recruiters actually grant interviews based on the referrals, or is there till a chance to go home empty handed if one component in your app is lacking?
Any advice would be appreciated!
UFO - sent you a PM
oowif - there really haven't been many that have blown me away (they all start to sound the same) but the good ones are the ones that seemed to dig a little deeper. things like.....what separates good from outstanding consultants? what are ways the job has pushed you that surprised you? one thing i've observed about (firm) is ____, has that been consistent with your experience? what have been the most critical skills the job has helped you learn? The basic idea is ask probing, insightful questions. no random shotgun crap. if you don't know much about consulting, that's fair. just say so.
burrman - this is hard to say. i don't think a referral alone will get you an interview unless it is a very very strong one. that said, if your resume is borderline and they are on the fence about you, a good referral will certainly help especially if the referrer can provide good context on the part of your app that may be lacking.
I really appreciate this stuff... WSO needs to bolster the content for us consultants lol ... where is Consultarella?
thanks for that karl!
Not interested in consulting, but had to read this when I saw the name Karl Pilkington, hilarious.
lmao
Now you all know what my sense of humour is like!
.
I have a question; my CV is "full" of IB related experience and financial markets interests. I did an internship in IB boutique, however, I have been interested in consulting too. I just wanted to see what IB is like. Turns out I think there are more suitable careers for me. How do you suggest I spin this around; there are several student consulting jobs and consulting events to attend? Plus, how strict is consulting with GPA and what do you look for on a CV? Thanks
Walkerr,
I wouldn't worry about it. I think that as long as you have a well articulated story of why you think consulting is good for you, you are fine. In my opinion, this doesn't really necessitate you talking about why IB didn't work, but moreso why consulting fits. That said, it would probably be nice to have a couple of "proof points", like the student consulting jobs you mentioned. Then you can say you had an interest, followed through with it, and then had some tangible things to say about why you liked it. I would prioritize this over the consulting events since these are more "real" experiences that you can speak to.
GPA - tough to say, but I would say if you are an undergrad they are more focused on it than in b-school.
CV - real evidence of acheivement. what have you really done? also, evidence of leadership. were you a member of a club or an officer? were you an officer in name or did you do something bigger or better than your predecessors that had a real effect? keep in mind, we get thousands of resumes from very intelligent and accomplished people. what will distinguish yours?
Appreciate the insight and response K_P, thanks a lot!
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