Looking for advice with a Deloitte BTA offer
Hi everyone,
I am new to this forum, have been reading a lot of posts and topics here for the past 2 months and finally decided to register and ask my first question. I know there are a lot of experienced people out there that may be able to give me some advice as how I should approach my offer letter.
I have been interviewing these past 2 months and have received my first offer letter from Deloitte as a BTA in Houston, TX. I was trying to get into Deloitte BA but they don't recruit that position from my school and so BTA was my best option with them. I specified in the interviews I wanted to be in the Technology Strategy and Architecture line but the offer does not mention if I will be placed in that position.
I have also interviewed with some other consultancy firms (Accenture, SunGard, couple others) as well as some industry companies. I have yet to hear back from them but I believe I should get at least 2-3 other offers (hopefully).
My question is:
- Can I try to pressure them into confirming that I will be placed in the TS&A service line? And how should I approach them?
- Can I try to pressure them into changing me to the Austin, TX office as that had been my 1st choice preference and would really really like to be there?
- Finally, can I negotiate my starting salary? I am a MS student with 2 previous internship experiences and I believe I got the same salary as other UG students with less experience. What would be the best approach to negotiate this?
Again, I am unsure as to how this works out and so I don't know if these are valid questions (demands) that I can try to get out of them. Let me know what you guys think, I am open to any opinions, suggestions, past experiences. Thank you everyone!
No clue on any of this but can't blame you a bit for wanting to be in Austin
I'm pretty sure the starting salary for all entry-level Big 4 positions is non-negotiable. They have really strict policies about that.
Thanks guys, anyone else with valuable feedback or suggestions? @CPAturnedIB are you 100% sure on non-negotiation? I think I've heard of some people doing it, but I'm also not 100% sure myself.
A friend of mine was offered 72K for the BA program. Was your offer similar? If there is any room for negotiation it would definitely be less than +10% from where you are now. This is based on another Big4 firm that has a range for new hires.
@PSUeng It was almost similar. I would be fine with negotiating even 7-10%. Do you know the best way to approach this? How to bring it up, and to who, and how to best convince them?
Deloitte offers are pretty firm. But I know other firms, Accenture specifically, will try to match your offer or bump you up about 2k, but not much more. These entry level salaries are very strict, and hard to negotiate. One thing about salary, your school plays a role in it as well. As a Master's graduate, you should get 3-5k more than the other undergrad analysts but city makes a big impact, cost of living and stuff. But if you do want to, you can let your recruiter know if there's an opportunity available in your first preference to ask you to move. In regards to service line, my Deloitte recruiter said nothing is set but 90% of BTAs usually get their service line of choice.
But whatever you do, NEVER lie about having other offers with higher pay. Never worth
Thanks thedonkeykongsong! From what I've been seeing, I will contact my recruiter to try to see how likely I will be able to be placed in service line of my choice. Thanks for your advice, and also one last thing. I am heavily considering just asking about the salary negotiation even if it's a little bit more. Do you have any advice for how I should word my reasoning or how I should tell them that I want to negotiate the salary? I am a bit intimidated by the thought of it :p.
I just recently accepted full-time BTA position. I called my recruiter and asked which service line I was recommended for. I was recommend for my first choice service line and that led to me accepting my offer. If you don't get your first choice, make your recruiter aware of your preference and they'll take that into consideration.
I'm not sure, you can call and ask. But I don't know how important office location is. If your clients are local then yes it is important, if you're going to be flying monday-thursday, then it is not important.
You can't negotiate starting salary. I was offered 5k-15k less than other students from different schools/majors for the same BTA position. Someone from my school that interned there and had a really good relationship with the people there and was denied negotiation. After 2 years you can renegotiate when you get promoted. I'm pissed that I got offered way lower because of my school, but I also paid a LOT less tuition than the students going to 50k-60k/year schools. After 2 years, my salary will even out.
your recruiter can't do anything about what service line you're placed in. Know that you are a commodity, not a rare prospect. They give out these offers expecting not to sign everyone. Your best bet to get what you want would be to network with people who actually work in the Austin office or in your desired service line (Think managers/sr managers/partners) and try to get them to swing for your transfer. Austin Office is fairly small, they won't place you there just because you really really want to be there, it's more of a need-based approach. The only realistic way I can see you getting there is if some higher up really really wants you to be there.
As for salary, yeah, non-negotiable, especially at entry level. If you were in a super niche service line or had a high degree of knowledge in a specific subject matter, that would be different, but seeing as how it's just the BTA program, you won't really be able to affect your offer.
Source: self (BA went through S&O recruiting) and friends who are BTAs
As far as service lines, you won't be able to have them confirm anything. However, I would network heavily in that office with TS&A practitioners. If you impress the right people there, you just might be on their radar. Beyond that, I would just very explicitly state to your recruiting lead that you have a strong passion for TS&A.
Actually, you could try to have the recruiter put you in contact with someone in TS&A, after indicating your interest.
As far as offices, much less likely, but it's possible. If you have a good reason (i.e. family ties, medical), the chances are much better. I know people who have done this right after receiving an offer.
Hope this helps
Thanks everyone for the help! I will try to get in touch with people in TS&A to network and hopefully get placed in that service line. I will also attempt to negotiate salary as some people say it might be possible (although will probably be very little) and others say you can't but I will see what happens. I will post the results of the outcome when I have finished speaking with my recruiter.
My understanding in the Arlington office is that networking plays a huge role in the service lines. If you don't land what you want off the bat, I wouldn't be too concerned about it as you'll be able to network and make it known that you want to be doing X instead of Y after your first placement.
@alargefox do you happen to know if BTA's also receive performance bonuses like BA's do?
godspeed, hope it works out
Clarification for you, BAs do not receive performance bonuses, but their raises are tied to performance
Thanks for the clarification, I thought I had read some other post that noted that BAs received performance bonuses. On another note, do you by any chance know if Accenture SI analysts receive performance bonuses? I am hoping to get an offer from them as well but will hear back until probably next week but would just like to know ahead of time.
I know the strategy division or their mcdp deal does have yearly performance bonuses. Not too familiar with the tech side, but I'd assume it would be fairly similar. I think it's up to 10% of salary if you're a top performer from what my friends tell me
S&O BAs don't get year-end performance bonuses, but like another poster mentioned, their year-end salary increases are tied to their performance rating. Also, Deloitte's salary increases are significantly larger than other firms (if you're a top performer), so it's more like a small bonus spread over your next year of salary. Bonuses start at the consultant level (3rd year out of undergrad).
@onthegrind thanks a lot man, I have found a recent grad from my University working now at Accenture so I will also ask him to confirm
@Zzari , do you happen to know if the same is true for BTAs?
that's purely the recruiters/employees trying to sell you
I see why you would think that, but that is not certainly the case. I was told the same thing for the service line I wanted, and was subsequently placed into it. The same was true of my four or five closest friends. What matters more is the office you are placed in, and the areas that they specialize in.
@Voco90 @sheerdumbluck @onthegrind @thedonkeykongsong
Hey guys, I know you guys have been helping a lot and I really appreciate it. I have just received the offer from Accenture and now I'm facing some dilemmas lol. The Accenture offer pros: - 10% base salary increase - Austin office Cons: - Business & Systems Integration Analyst (not really the role I would like, no strategy, compared to TS&A in Deloitte)
I wanted to get everyone's opinions on how to assess these, and how the different roles differ. Also, I've been getting a lot of advice from everyone here to network like crazy when inside the firm to try to move around and that's what I intend to do. However, some people have said the Austin office is not really the place for that because it is a super small office and no chances to network, etc. Is this true? Will I have more chances in a Houston office, whether it be Accenture or Deloitte?
Also, how do you all see the difference between TS&A with Deloitte vs B&SI with Accenture.
Welcoming all feedback and opinions, thanks!
I also had an offer from accenture. Here are some of the things that made a difference.
I preferred Deloitte's culture. It seemed a little more friendly and open. Although both firms are huge, there are some Benefits to Deloitte not being a public company. I personally know at least 15 or 20 people who came from Accenture after it went public, citing cultural concerns as one of their big reasons. I obviously cannot speak to every office, but that was my experience. Someone from accenture can weigh in there.
In terms of the pay difference, I would look at the total package, i.e. 401k, signing bonuses, performance bonuses, raise percentages, etc. For me, Deloitte was the better option, all things considered. Not to mention GSAP if you want to go to b-school. And yes, that includes the technology practice. (PM me if you want more info there).
The training at Deloitte seemed better. I recall being a little underwhelmed by what Accenture was offering at the time. I have probably spent a month training already (broken up), and the quality of the programs are great.
As far as the actual office, I would task them to give you solid numbers with regards to office size and makeup (i.e. # of partners, analysts), as well as business outlook. Yeah, they are obviously going to inflate that picture to attract you, but you can probably get more raw information out of one of the newer employees. I know Deloitte's Texas presence is strong, and some of my best friends are based there.
For what it's worth, I valued the ease of opportunities over almost everything else. At the beginning, the difference in work between the two firms might not differ that much; it'll be down the line that the differences start to show.
Maybe someone from Accenture can weigh in on how easy it would be for you to move to what you wanted, amount of training, b-school, etc.? I can't really recall these details.
So here are my 2 cents, gain based off self-experience and friends who I have that have worked at both Deloitte and Accenture.
Houston - In Houston there is somewhat of a carousel at these firms in the lower levels (think senior consultant and below). I have many friends who worked for Deloitte and then switched to move to Accenture and vice-versa. It's usually due to a combination of a cultural and work fit aspect (the people didn't like the project/team they were on, didn't gel well with the people, etc). That being said, there have been many boomerangs as well (people who leave a firm and come back because they realize the grass isn't always greener on the other side). From what I know about Houston, the offices for both companies are fairly medium/large. You will have lots of opportunity to network and engage with members from various service lines as well as industry lines, so if you have interest in gaining broad exposure to different industries and services, there are many upper level employees that you have access to. Of course Houston does have some specific focus (healthcare, oil and gas/energy, etc.), but for the most part, you will have a wide access to different areas.
Austin - The Austin office, again, for both companies is small. In Austin, there is somewhat of a focus on tech startups (I hear the new moniker is Silicon Hills) and government work. You won't have as many networking opportunities or broad exposure/access to move across industry or service lines in smaller offices because of the specialization these small offices offer. The main reason I can see choosing Austin over Houston would be primarily just to live in the city/for the "cultural experience", but you'd be busy working m-th anyways that idk if it would be worth it.
Other things to consider - Living in Houston is much cheaper than living in Austin. 10% base increase is nothing for a first year salary, don't let a small bump like that be the deciding factor (taxes and cost of living and shit will eat up most of it anyways). Consider airports/where you'd live, where your friends and family are, etc. Think about what you want to do and how each firm positions yourself not only to do that, but to do things that you may not have an inkling of right now.
I'll write another post detailing my thoughts on Deloitte v Accenture later (recruited/offers from both), gotta run, hopefully this helps in the meantime.
So I had an offer from Deloitte and Accenture, but I chose Deloitte over Accenture for a variety of reasons. Even though my Accenture offer was 10k more than my deloitte offer, I had a better fit with Deloitte than Accenture. When I was a summer intern with Accenture, I learned that the whole public vs private situation was a huge deal for me. I preferred private a lot more, felt more like family and the partners look at long term goals. Accenture works towards very short term goals to raise their stock price as much as possible. Deloitte also offers a preference of your service line (even tho not guaranteed, its most likely you will get it), but Accenture just throws you on whatever project they can staff you on. Theres a reason why deloitte is rated higher in rankings such as "best firms to work for" and "best places to launch your career".
in five years, the 10% wont meant much. especially if youre miserable at the company. if you enjoy your company and enjoy the work, you'll perform at your best, which will help you become a top performer, which in turn will give you better raises and promotions.
I really feel its important to make a decision without involving compensation and really looking at your fit with the culture, people, and the way the companies operate. Unless the compensation varies more than 20%, your salaries will even out eventually.
You should think long term about your career as a consultant with each firm...
Money Don't use money to make decisions right out of college. Money will come if you work hard. 7k will seem like chump change at the end of the day. Plus you have no idea about how the pay will change. Way too many variables
Service Line -Simply doesn't matter unless you have a keen interest in particuliar topics within the service line. Every service line involves Advisory/Strategy. -I am 100% positive that a firm like Deloitte would not lie about your service line to make sure you join. Their reputation as a firm(regarded as highly ethical) is much more important to them than you. If they told you that you are slated for TS&A, then there is probably a 99% chance that will happen. -Longer term your service line won't matter. You will become much more entrenched within an industry and providing adivce on business problems affecting your industy vs working down in the weeds on technical details of a service line. You don't walk into a CXOs office and tell him you work in TS&A or SI. He doesn't care. Bottom Line: I wouldn't worry about service line unless you have an extreme interest in an area
City -Austin is a medium city -Houston is a very large city THUS -As a consultant traveling from Austin, you might add several hours to your commute every week -Houston has more networking opportunites especially higher ups to network with. The adults live there. -Houston has a very diverese industry base now(energy and health care are large) -Austin is mostly SI work with the state of texas. Thats why Accenture gave you an offer there in SI. -There is no way of knowing this, but working in SI in Austin, you will most likely get stuck on projects in Austin. As a BTA, I really enjoyed traveling to new places and using alternative travel to travel to even cooler places with new found friends on the weekends.
Bottom Line: Picking Austin you sacrifice personal taste for Austin over career opportunity, flexibility, and travel pains.
I personally would not consider money, service line, or the city unless you have some huge personal reason. I would instead focus on your longer term career and which company would help you achieve success.
-Culturally fit -Working at a partership vs a fortune 500 company -Career progression: does the firm offer the opportunites, environment, and support to excel
I think the best way to proper analyze this are the people you meet from the two firms and what they say. If one company has folks that are more excited about working there, then they are more than likely happier people (the ultimate goal)
"Longer term your service line won't matter. You will become much more entrenched within an industry and providing adivce on business problems affecting your industy vs working down in the weeds on technical details of a service line. You don't walk into a CXOs office and tell him you work in TS&A or SI. He doesn't care.
Bottom Line: I wouldn't worry about service line unless you have an extreme interest in an area"
This. If you want to get involved in a particular kind of work (i.e. Tech Strategy), that can happen regardless of your service line. I speak from experience when I say that doing this is not that difficult.
Hey guys, wow I am amazed at everyone's great responses. I was unable to check the post for a couple days and came back to everyone's great advice.
From what I've been able to get from the various recent posts is that service line doesn't really matter and you can end up doing what you want after a while. Could I know exactly how or why? How, then, does TS&A differ from the other service lines in the type of work being done.
Also, a lot people have been kind of pointing that Houston would be better except for personal reasons.. the only reason I am considering Austin is because I have all my friends there and my family is about 2 hours away and in Houston I have absolutely no one :\ this is really what makes it a hard decision for me.
If a lot of people are saying that you can end up doing what you want, regardless of the service line.. Then would this hold true if you are at the Austin office and in SI type of work? Or how does this really work.. I think I agree with everyone that I would prefer the type of work right now that I am barely starting over my location and the one that will help me more in my future career (so I would take Houston) so if this would not be possible in Austin then I would choose Houston.
Also, if I would like to hopefully network and switch over to the Strategy and Operations (BA) position.. would this be pretty much impossible in the Austin office (whether it be Accenture or Deloitte)??
Late to this thread but, for what it's worth, if your offers are restricted to ACN Austin vs Deloitte Houston, I would definitely go Deloitte. There may be some folk who consider ACN on a level tier as Deloitte, but that simply isnt the case. Similar to what others were saying in this thread, ACN is public and Deloitte is private, making for some interesting firm direction.
I'm not sure if anyone else mentioned this, but a few things I thought you should be privy to:
Deloitte has that GSAP/Grad school reimbursement program. From my knowledge, Deloitte really invests heavily in its people because they are its main asset in consulting. Everyone is encouraged to go back to school (at least in S&O) and get an advanced degree. They also have some continuous career path option for high performers who are directly promoted without having an advanced degree. Regardless, Deloitte invests in its people and wants them to succeed.
Accenture DOES have an MBA/reimbursement program for education, but it is not as major as Deloitte's. That is to say, basically all BAs at Deloitte are expected to go back to get a MBA, whereas at Accenture, only if you're a star performer will the company sponsor you to go and get further education. Now if you are a hotshot, it wouldn't matter, you could go to either Accenture or Deloitte and choose to have your postundergrad reimbursed or just stay on and internally work up the ladder. However, if you are really looking to go towards getting an MBA or masters in information systems or whatever, Deloitte is a much more supportive environment.
That being said, your competition/peers at Accenture are likely to be of a different level than those at Deloitte. Not to be rude, but typically, Deloitte employees are very intelligent and results oriented people. Accenture people are too, but not as competitive as those in Deloitte. So if you were really intelligent, you'd have to choose kind of between being the top performer/star at Accenture versus competing with many people at marginal differences in Deloitte.
Final say, I've never heard of anyone lateraling from Deloitte Consulting's Tech practice to their S&O division. I have many friends who work at Deloitte and researched the company thoroughly when going through recruiting and I never really saw an instance of this or a success story... Not to get your hopes down, but you may want to speak with current employees that are alumni or someone who's left the firm that knows more about it. I'd venture to state that it's highly unlikely to the point of being not possible.
I know a few people who switched from Deloitte's technology practice to S&O, but they all did so after getting their MBA. You won't be able to transfer from a BTA to a S&O BA directly.
@Zzari DId the ones who switched to S&O after MBA, still get their MBA paid by Deloitte?
Yes. Just make your intentions clear early on (not too early, maybe 1-2 years in as a BA) and perform well.
Also, any comments on the previous question I posed about the differences in service lines between TS&A vs the rest?
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