Consulting to industry question

Hi,

it is very common that consultants actually end up working for previous clients. It is also legitimate to keep your eyes and ears open for new opportunities while you are on the job. In your current situation, you probably want to limit publicity to a minimum as you figure out your options.

In some cases there are agreements in place that clients are not trying to poach any consultants from the team. In many cases though, consultIng firms don’t mind seeing one of their own to join a former (or current) client as this establishes a direct networking link for them for future business.

Best of luck 

To my knowledge, yes, it should be ok. 

You are within your rights to be applying for jobs as you wish. As long as you didn't sign any specific documents with your current employer that you will not apply for a job with a client, then you're in the clear. 

If you want to be 100% sure, I would suggest you seek legal advice. 

Best,
Cristian

Hi there,

Q: Do you think it is okay and legal to contact and send my CV for a job opportunity to an entity that my firm is CURRENTLY working with on a project? 

If you don’t have obligations in your contract regarding it, it should be legal. 

I know cases where the opposite was not possible (someone working for a firm with a project with an MBB wanted to join the MBB - the consulting company opposed it). However, if that’s the case, the HR of the company you are targeting should inform you before you start the process. 

Good luck!

Francesco

Hi there,

This is actually very hard to tell from the outside since clients and consulting firms often have signed agreements related to these things, which work both ways.

For instance, one of my clients worked at a leading automotive company and wanted to make the switch to one of the MBBs. Before his first interview, he was informed that the process could not be continued due to such an agreement.

If that is the case, there is no way around it other than waiting for the cooldown period (usually a year) to make the move.

I'd investigate if such an agreement is in place!

All the best,

Florian

Hi there,

You should be just fine. It's actually quite common to jump ship and go work with the client.

Be smart about how you do this though. You want to handle the politics of it all deftly/carefully.

I don't see why it wouldn't be legal.

But.

I've seen client contracts where consulting firms prohibit clients from hiring their people without the consulting firm consent. This may not be legal or enforceable everywhere but… nevertheless seen as a gentleman's agreement that the parts commit to.

So… legal? Probably yes. Okay? Depends on how likely is your firm to know about it and how they are likely to react (I've seen cultures where this was perfectly okay, other where this was an issue; you should know best which one is yours)

Hi,

This is normally fine, and if there were some specific policies I think you should have known about it already (e.g. specific non-compete clauses in case of client conflicts etc).