Corporate Strategy vs. Management Consulting – What’s the Real Difference?

Hey there!

Great question—corporate strategy and management consulting often get mixed up, but there are key differences. Corporate strategy usually refers to an in-house team within a company (e.g., at a large bank or industrial firm) focused on long-term strategic planning for that specific business. Management consulting, on the other hand, is broader and involves advising various external clients on a range of topics—from pure strategy to operations, transformation, and more. MBB firms (McKinsey, BCG, Bain) are known for high-level strategy, but so are firms like Oliver Wyman, Roland Berger, Kearney, and L.E.K., especially in Europe.

For summer internships, top firms typically open applications between August and October (for the following summer), so early autumn is the best time to apply. To maximize your chances: build a strong, tailored CV; get referrals where possible (LinkedIn coffee chats work well); and prep well for both fit and case interviews. Showing genuine interest in a firm's focus areas and staying structured in your approach goes a long way.

Alessa 

I believe you made a good distinction between Strategy vs. Management consulting.

1. Other good strategy consulting firms in Europe are Roland Berger, Oliver Wyman, Kearney. Some other relevant ones are LEK, OC&C, Eurogroup, EY-Parthenon, Strategy&, Altman Solon.

2. You need to check their websites to know when to apply. Many of them will be by November / December. So if you want to apply for this summer... do it ASAP.

3. CV is what really makes the difference.

Hello there,

You’re right, however MBB does other types of projects (management consulting type) besides corporate strategy.

1. Covered in the comments above 

2. In addition to what was said, google the name of your university + the name of the consulting company. If it is a target school, there will probably be a dedicated page with a calendar and some recruiting events mentioned. Also, besides in-campus recruiting, you can check the open roles in these websites.

3. Right now, the most important thing to do is to have a strong CV. A referral would be great, but if your CV is weak, you wont even be considered joining the process.

Feel free to reach out if you would like to discuss your case in a 20min free intro call, specially considering your CV preparation. I have successfully helped other candidates join the process and will be happy to help you join the process.

Best regards,

Mari 

Hi there,

You're mostly spot on. Corporate Strategy usually refers to in-house teams shaping the future of their own company (often ex-MBB consultants btw.) - big-picture, long-term stuff. 

Management Consulting is broader and external, covering strategy and things like ops, implementation, org, etc. MBB often straddles both but focuses more on strategic, high-impact work.

Outside MBB in Europe, look at firms like Roland Berger, Strategy& (PwC), Kearney, Oliver Wyman, and LEK - all strong in strategy.

Applications: Varies, some open Aug–Oct the year before, others in Jan, some recruit on a rolling basis. Being early is best.

Maximizing your chances:

• Sharp, tailored CV + strong cover letter (show impact + fit)
• Referrals help - network early and well
• 95% focus on case and fit interview prep!

Feel free to reach out for more tailored guidance!

Cheers,

Florian

Hi,

Thanks for your question.

Its a great question since often they are used interchangeably. Below are the key differences:

Corporate strategy:

You are working for the in-house corporate strategy arm of a company. The projects impact the company at a corporate level and would depend on the strategic goals and initiatives of the company. So mergers and acquisitions, licensing, divestiture, long term strategic planning, entering into/getting out of a market, resource allocation decisions etc. would fall in the scope of the corporate strategy team. 

Pros: The roles are often very interesting and due to the high impact decision making nature of the projects, also come with high visibility. Career growth opportunities are good due to the high impact and high visibility nature of the roles.

Cons: Can be intense and often difficult to get into. The decisions have a long term impact on the company and thus come with risk to your reputation.

Management consulting:

In Management consulting perception is you are working on projects advising the senior management of your client organization. Even though that is the perception, that is not necessarily the case wherein you may be working with middle or lower management as well. Additionally, the project could be marketing, sales, operations, pricing, market research, M&A, technology etc. and strategic/implementation oriented, all falling under the high level bucket of management consulting.  

Pros: Given you work on a variety of projects for multiple clients, the experience is highly valued in industry. Thus, a lot of corporate strategy roles look for ex-strategy consulting experience. Also, learning curve for consulting is very steep since you have to show you are an expert to advice clients, so you learn more in a short amount of time.

Cons: Projects are short ranging from a few weeks to a few months, and consultants don't stay back to see the impact of their recommendations. Thus, it may be less rewarding and also less risky than working for a corporate strategy role where you live through your decisions in the firm.

Overall, you can consider management consulting as a stepping stone to corporate strategy, if that is what you want to do in the long run. However, it depends on the kind of management consulting you do as described above.

Hope this helps. Feel free to reach out if you have more questions.

Thanks,
Soh